Sports: Fox's Aikman says Bucs, Dungy need to open up offense

Fox's Aikman says Bucs, Dungy need to open up offense

For Tony Dungy to say he is satisfied with the Bucs' offensive philosophy, Troy Aikman said during a Fox broadcast two weeks ago, is to say Dungy also is satisfied with a unit that is ranked in the bottom third in the NFL.

By SHARON GINN

For Tony Dungy to say he is satisfied with the Bucs' offensive philosophy, Troy Aikman said during a Fox broadcast two weeks ago, is to say Dungy also is satisfied with a unit that is ranked in the bottom third in the NFL.

Aikman expounded on that point this week, saying that as much as he respects Dungy as a coach, he doesn't agree with his approach.

"You can't say "We're going to run the football and we're not going to lose games offensively' and expect to score a whole lot of points," Aikman said. "You have to be willing to make big plays in the passing game.

"There's a balance. I don't agree with the mind-set that, "We're going to play not to lose.' " Those are things you expect to hear from one of the NFL's greatest quarterbacks, but Aikman speaks now from a different perspective: the press box. The first-year Fox analyst, who joins ex-Dallas Cowboys teammate and good friend Daryl Johnston and play-by-play announcer Dick Stockton on the network's No. 2 team, will call his second Bucs game of the season Sunday when the Vikings come to Tampa.

The Bucs' defensive struggles have made their lack of offensive pizazz even more glaring, Aikman said, but even if the defense were clicking -- especially if the defense were clicking -- the coaching staff would have every reason to open things up and take more chances. If he were Brad Johnson, that's what he would have expected to see this season.

And if he were Johnson, he said, he would be frustrated. "I would be," Aikman said, "and I have been."

Unpleasant memories of the past few seasons are what keep Aikman focused on his new career, instead of regretting his decision to retire. It also helps that every week when he returns home to Dallas, he gets to read about -- as opposed to participate in -- the Cowboys' latest travails.

He said he has "never really shut the door" on a return to the playing field, but that does not mean he is seeking a job or even thinking about playing next season.

"From the day I signed my first contract with the Dallas Cowboys, I knew at some point it was going to end," Aikman said. "I still feel I could play if I chose to. (But) the challenge of trying to do something new has been refreshing and exciting. It's occupied some of (my) competitiveness."

When Fox president Ed Goren announced Aikman's hiring last spring, many openly questioned whether he was too low-key for the job. But he has contributed some sharp analysis, and his obvious rapport with Johnston keeps them from stumbling over each other in the booth, a concern with any three-person team.

But while no one expects Aikman to be Deion Sanders -- who recently was hired by CBS to give the NFL Today a spark -- he needs to loosen up a bit on camera. That might come with time.

"We need to work on everything," Aikman said. "We're trying to get better each and every week."

BASEBALL NOTES: Even baseball's feel-good story of the year, the Yankees clinching a World Series berth, couldn't outdraw Monday Night Football. ABC's Eagles-Giants broadcast garnered a 9.9 rating, significantly more than the 7.6 for New York's victory over Seattle in Game 5 in the ALCS. It was not much of a surprise, though, in 10 Monday night playoff games since Fox acquired baseball rights in 1996, only one, a Series game, outrated MNF.

Overall, Fox's League Championship Series ratings were up 1 percent from last season. One ratings point equals 1 percent of U.S. households with television.

To save money, Fox has decided not to use reporters in the playoffs, going so far as to use a special hookup so announcers Tim McCarver and Joe Buck could interview New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani from the stands. During the Series, the network will use studio hosts Jeanne Zelasko and Kevin Kennedy as reporters.

A NEW VISION: The motorsports network Speedvision, recently purchased by Fox, will be relaunched Feb. 4 as Speed Channel. New president Jim Liberatore gave few details, but said the network's Inside Winston Cup program, recently shelved, will return.