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Sound bites

By SHARON GINN and MIKE STEPHENSON

© St. Petersburg Times,
published October 1, 2001

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Observations on the Bucs broadcast

Fox was too slow to report on Warrick Dunn's injured right foot. Dunn sustained the injury before his second-half touchdown, but cameras didn't show him limping until after he scored. And it wasn't until after the commercial break that we learned Dunn left the game. Finally, when cameras showed Dunn on the sideline with his ankle taped, analyst John Madden was left to guess at what happened. Sideline reporter Ron Pitts didn't break in with information until four minutes were left in the game, and he still didn't have the full story.

The Cyber-strator, which uses video game images to illustrate a play, is a nice addition to the pregame show. Howie Long described how teams are defending the Vikings differently without Robert Smith. The absence of the yellow first-down line was noticeable and disappointing. Fox might be hoping to pressure the league into allowing advertising on the stripe. That would help cover the cost, as much as $30,000 per game.

Nice replay: As Madden talked about how the movements of safety John Lynch had foiled a Vikings play before it started in the second quarter, Fox rolled a replay of Lynch moving up as quarterback Daunte Culpepper audibled. Lynch then moved back, tapping his head in an apparent signal to his teammates.

After picking up on Long's point about defending the Vikings early, Madden noted the Bucs' strategy changing in the second quarter: "They're starting to get a little frustrated by Culpepper and deciding they have to blitz." On the next play, Culpepper was pressured heavily but still completed the pass.

At halftime, Long noted the Vikings' more than 20 minutes of possession: "Tampa Bay cannot stay on the field this long (on defense). They have to get something started on offense."

Nice shot: Fox's cameras got a good angle of Keyshawn Johnson making sure his feet stayed inbounds on his 22-yard catch late in the third quarter. The play led to Dunn's touchdown run.

This is Martin Gramatica's third year in the league. Shouldn't Pat Summerall know the Bucs kicker is Mar-TEEN, not Mar-TIN?

Speaking of Gramatica, is this any way to treat the Bucs' leading scorer? After Gramatica's second field goal, Madden poked fun at his diminutive stature, saying if he were asked, "'Is this an NFL player or someone going trick or treating?' I'd pick the trick or treating."

Strongest comment: "Every time I think of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense, I think, 'Nine points.' If there's great defense, they're going to score nine points. If there's no defense out there, they're going to score nine." -- Madden.

Well, maybe next week: "It's finally going to happen. Tampa Bay's going to put up and shut up," CBS's Mike Ditka on The NFL Today.

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