`D' bends, but doesn't break stride Ernest Hooper, The St.Petersburg Times, published 15 September 1997 Vikings quarterback Brad Johnson lofted a perfect spiral over cornerback Anthony Parker and safety Melvin Johnson and into the hands of receiver Jake Reed for a 56-yard completion. It was first and 10 from the Bucs' 15, but it wasn't time to panic. Early in the first quarter of a scoreless game between unbeaten teams, it was a moment when self-doubt could have filled the Bucs huddle. The defense, however, refused to yield to doubts or the Vikings. "We don't like giving up big plays and it's something we've struggled with this year to be quite frank," safety John Lynch said. "But we've played some very good offensive teams and after they make a big play we come into the huddle and we say, `That's all right.' We tell whoever got beat or whatever we're going to hunker down and not let them in." The Bucs did just that, keeping the Vikings out of the end zone despite the fact Minnesota had four plays inside the 15-yard line and needed only 1 yard to set up first and goal at the 5. It happened again in the third quarter when a flea-flicker from Brad Johnson to Chris Walsh and a late-hit call on Lynch gave Minnesota first and goal at the Bucs' 8. Three plays later, the Vikings kicked another field goal, though they trailed by 18 points. The defense's ability to limit Minnesota to field goals instead of touchdowns was a key factor in the Bucs' 28-14 victory. Although the game may be best remembered for offensive heroics, the contributions of the defense can't be overlooked. Statistically, the Bucs did not have a lot to brag about. Johnson (29-of-44, 334 yards) became the second quarterback in as many weeks to surpass the 300-yard mark against Tampa Bay, and Minnesota's ground game averaged 4.8 yards. The most telling numbers, however, were under third-down efficiency. The Vikings converted only 4 of 13 opportunities (31 percent), and two of those conversions were negated because the Bucs forced turnovers on the plays. The Vikings were at 44.8 percent coming into the game. "That really hurt us offensively," Johnson said. "We didn't keep drives alive on big third-down plays." Of the Vikings' 13 third-down opportunities, 10 required Minnesota to gain 6 or more yards to get a first down. The obvious passing situations allowed Bucs coach Tony Dungy to implement a nickel defense with a variety of blitzes. "Defensively, we basically turned our front loose," Dungy said. "We had some zone blitzes I'm sure they were concerned about, but overall it was a matter of getting them in long-yardage situations. They didn't have a lot of third and 3s and third and 4s." The Bucs are using more personnel in their nickel. Safety Charles Mincy is replacing Melvin Johnson and backups Reggie Rusk and Tyrone Legette are getting a lot of time, with Rusk occasionally spelling Parker. It was another solid effort by the defense, and tackle Warren Sapp said that while there may be doubters outside the team's huddle, there are none in the locker room. "If you're going to doubt us, stay off our bandwagon," Sapp said. "Don't jump on it, we didn't ask you to ride. We've got a full load and we don't need anybody else jumping on our bandwagon. If you didn't believe in us before, don't believe in us now."