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Eager to make amends

By ROGER MILLS and JAMAL THALJI

© St. Petersburg Times, published September 29, 2000

TAMPA -- For days, the Bucs have had to answer questions about what went wrong against the Jets and could it be corrected in time for the Redskins.

And the whole thing is getting a little old.

Sunday's debacle is an open wound that the players desperately want to close ... not in front of cameras, but on the field.

"I guess that's true," running back Warrick Dunn said. "People always say that you're only as good as your last game and so you always want to go out and play the next game so you can forget about the last game you lost.

"So, we're going to want to go out and play hard. I think guys are going to be anxious but the thing is, we have to prepare right and be smart about it."

Middle linebacker Jamie Duncan said it is common for players to be particularly eager to get on the field after a defeat of that nature. He said he remembered playing at Vanderbilt, where losing was a little more frequent and where he couldn't wait for the next Saturday.

"I know that feeling more than anybody (in this locker room)," Duncan said. "After the game, I was like, "Wow, I just got that same feeling I used to feel in college when we lost.' I couldn't stop thinking about getting back on the field again. I would be so excited to get back out there and get the monkey off our back. That's how I feel now."

Of course, the preseason hype that labeled this game with the Redskins a true measuring stick of two of the NFC's top teams may have dwindled considering Washington's early struggles and the Bucs' recent loss. But, Duncan said, the game has a new identity.

"The prognosticators expected both teams to be 4-0," Duncan said. "Well, both teams aren't 4-0. But they are still very talented teams with something to prove."

NUMBERS GAME: Considering the unbeaten start by Minnesota (3-0) and the 3-1 start by the Giants, neither the Bucs (3-1) nor Redskins (2-2) can afford to slip too many games back. "I think both teams are looking at it as a game we need to win to stay in the division," Bucs coach Tony Dungy said. "They took care of New York (16-6 on Sunday) but they're still a game behind them."

AIR BUCS: The Bucs are known as a run-first team and that's not likely to change much. But the presence of cornerbacks Deion Sanders, Champ Bailey and Darrell Green doesn't mean the Bucs' passing game will be left behind in Tampa.

"We can't be scared to throw because they have good corners," Dunn said. "We have to go out and play our game and execute and, if we do that, we should be fine."

DAN D' MAN: First, it was receiver Keyshawn Johnson who endorsed Redskins owner Dan Snyder for spending all that money to win a Super Bowl. Now, All-Pro defensive tackle Warren Sapp, the league's defensive player of the year, has offered his opinion:

"I don't know who Dan Snyder is, what his philosophy is, I don't know what business he runs. I don't understand what the whole big hurrah is about the guy. Maybe it's because he is everything that most of us want to be: handsome, young, plus legendary and a billionaire at 35. Why not?"

SAPPING THE QUARTERBACK: Entering last weekends' game, the Bucs were tops in the NFL with 18 sacks, including Sapp's 51/2. Tampa Bay sacked Vinny Testaverde only once, but Sapp said it wasn't because the defensive line didn't come to play.

"You all are sitting around here acting like we were sitting back there on the couch eating potato chips," said Sapp, who pointed out that the Bucs had a number of pressures. "The passing game didn't beat us. Curtis Martin threw a halfback option pass. Vinny Testaverde didn't win that game. We just didn't tackle going down the stretch. Our pass rush hasn't gone anywhere. I rushed the passer better in that week than I did in Detroit and you all were hooping and hollering about three sacks. Let's not lose sight of what we're doing here. If you don't know the game, don't talk about it."

INJURY REPORT: Strong safety John Lynch (hamstring), tackle Jerry Wunsch (right hip flexor), receiver Jacquez Green (left hamstring) and cornerback Ronde Barber (right quadriceps) did not practice Thursday but are probable for Sunday's game. Receiver Reidel Anthony (left hamstring), receiver Andre Hastings (left finger dislocation), guard Frank Middleton (left hip flexor), running back Aaron Stecker (right knee strain), and cornerbacks Floyd Young (left hamstring) and Dexter Jackson (right hamstring) practiced and are probable.

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