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© St. Petersburg Times, published November 19, 2001
Observations from the Bucs broadcast:
Two weeks ago we urged Pat Summerall to practice Martin Gramatica's first name -- Mar-TEEN, Pat -- but right before kickoff, he stumbled. Apparently, he didn't do his homework.
Summerall and John Madden took too long to note the increased playing time for receiver Karl Williams. With Jacquez Green injured and Reidel Anthony's play spotty, Williams started and played extensively in the first half. But Summerall and Madden didn't talk about it until Williams was injured on a punt return late in the first half.
After Keyshawn Johnson failed to catch a third-and-goal pass in the first quarter, Madden said: "You have to catch that whether it's deflected or not. When you're a superstar and it's in your hands, you have to catch it."
Sideline reporter Ron Pitts has stepped up his performance. He provided timely injury updates and revealed that John Lynch's wife gives him a note of encouragement before each game, though the text of the note didn't add much. Pitts also drew the attention of Brad Johnson, who questioned a noncall just before halftime, asking Pitts: "Did John Madden see that face mask?"
Self-deprecating Summerall playfully said he would like to be a pirate, then acknowledged some critics, saying: "There are people who would say I've been stealing for a long time."
Madden saw trouble ahead for the Bucs early in the second quarter when they led 6-0: "The Bucs have to get going here and score some points because they're really controlling everything ... but they only have six points."
Summerall and Madden struggled on names, including Summerall confusing Williams and Warrick Dunn on one reception, Madden referring to "Dexter Johnson" before correcting it to "Jackson" and Summerall referring to Steve White as "Stan."
Where was a replay of Brian Kelly mixing it up with a Bears coach to draw an unnecessary roughness penalty?
Understatement of the season from Summerall with 4:01 left in the third quarter and the Bears leading 24-9: "It's time for the Buccaneers to get some sense of urgency going."
Summerall was confused when Dunn was stopped short of the end zone, then Brad Johnson sneaked the ball in with 2:29 left to make it 27-24. Summerall thought officials signaled Dunn's touchdown but then couldn't find a signal for Johnson's.
Fox came out of replay late and missed what could have been a critical play when the Bears' Anthony Thomas fumbled with 1:47 left, but Chicago recovered.