NFL Football: can you win with almost no running game but a good defense?
| 5
|
by Joliecat
Last week on my day off the CBS affiliate here in the L.A. area broadcast a game with my favorite football team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Thirteen years ago, when my home was central Florida, the Buccaneers wore these horrible orange uniforms with a goofy looking winking cartoon pirate on the helmet. They played in an outmoded college stadium that looked like a wobbly Frisbee. They'd had a couple of glory years, such as 1979 when they made it to the NFC championship game but after that they mostly endured double digit loss seasons playing in front of lots of empty seats.
When I first saw them I thought "They need me," and little by little they improved, got themselves a great coach, moved into a stadium that is the envy of the league and got blood red and pewter uniforms that are much better. Their defense was so good that it hurt to watch their games sometimes when they would terrorize opposing quarterbacks or pulverize halfbacks and wide receivers.
This year, Mike Alstott has retired, and both Carnell Williams and Michael Pittman are injured. The game CBS broadcast, where they played the Titans, reminded me of their games from 1999 and 2000 when Trent Dilfer and Shaun King ran an offense who's main quest seemed to be "just try not to fumble or throw a pick, okay?" And their defense punished and brutalized opponents. The final score was 13-10 and the Buccaneers only touchdown came on a beautiful 60 yard touchdown pass from Jeff Garcia to Joey Galloway, who just did a quick victory pose and handed the football to the referee.
The Buccaneers are 4-2 and the remaining schedule favors them since their record was so putrid last year (4-12). They have already defeated nemesis Carolina Panthers in Charlotte. Can you win without any kind of a running game? I guess we'll find out!
