That’s what I’m talkin’ about!
Bucs 36 – Vikings 17
After a very short week, the Bucs were in action tonight against the Minnesota Vikings, a former rival from when both teams were in the old NFC Central Division, before there were any “Souths.” Coming off a heart-wrenching loss to the New Orleans Saints this past Sunday, a win here would go a long way toward restoring some much-needed confidence to the Pirates and their Pewter Pants.
That it might be a decisive victory wouldn’t hurt, either.
On display in the other guys’ house before whatever comes close to being a national audience when your cable network isn’t available on all systems, the Bucs seized the lead early and never let go. Tampa rookie Doug Martin had a career night, notching 200+ rushing yards and two touchdowns. Tampa quarterback Josh Freeman also had a solid game, throwing for 260+ yard and three touchdowns and–very importantly–no interceptions. In fact, the Bucs allowed no turnovers all night, compared to the Vikes’ two fumbles and one pick thrown by quarterback Christian Ponder.
Unlike last week, when the Bucs surged out to an early lead only to squander it, they never really let Minnesota into the game in any meaningful sense. There was some spark late in the third quarter, but it was obvious that Tampa learned from the harsh lesson taught last Sunday.
The Bucs improve to 3-4, three and a half games behind the 6-0 Atlanta Falcons pending the outcome of this weekend’s games. After a bit of a break thanks to their early game this week, Tampa will face off against the Raiders out in Oakland on November 4th. No telling which Raiders team will show up. I guess we’ll see what they do to the Chiefs this weekend.
Nice job, Bucs!
