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Roy Cummings, The Tampa Tribune, published 1 October 2007
Last year it was Chris Simms. This year it was Cadillac Williams and Luke Petitgout. Playing the Carolina Panthers is becoming an increasingly costly venture for the Bucs.
Sure, they won this time around, but at what cost? The price could be the playoffs.
The Bucs looked every bit the part of a playoff contender Sunday, dominating the Panthers throughout a 20-7 victory that left them alone atop the NFC South Division with a 3-1 record.
But with three-fourths of their season still to go and Williams and Petitgout likely to miss weeks, if not months, of action, you have to wonder how long the Bucs can remain playoff contenders.
And make no mistake, weeks or months without Williams, their starting tailback, and Petitgout, their starting left tackle, is precisely what the Bucs are now facing. Williams, who was having his best game of the year when he ripped his right knee apart finishing off an 18-yard run late in the first quarter, is almost assuredly done for the season. 'I don't know too much, all I know is that it's severe,' said Williams, who left the locker room on crutches and is believed to have suffered a torn patellar tendon.
Petitgout was much more optimistic. While leaning on crutches, he said he 'won't be out for long,' but he acknowledged he did sprain his right knee when he was hit from the side on a play early in the second quarter.
Both players will be re-examined and more information on their injuries will be made available today. You get the feeling, though, that the news won't be good, especially in Williams' case.
'I'm sure that Cadillac knew the moment he got hurt that his season was over,' Jeff Garcia said. 'It's a shame, really. It was not a pretty sight. He'll be missed.'
Williams and Petitgout already were being missed Sunday. Though the Bucs moved the ball well without them initially, they struggled to move it as the game dragged on.
After racking up 248 yards and 17 points during six first-half possessions, the Bucs gained only 117 total yards and scored only three points during seven second-half possessions.
That second half included two drives that started deep inside Carolina territory, the result of two takeaways (a Greg Peterson fumble recovery and a Jermaine Phillips interception) by the defense.
On the first, Williams' replacement Earnest Graham failed four times to score from inside the Carolina 5, forcing the Bucs to give the ball back after he was stuffed on a fourth-and-goal play from the 1. On the second, the Bucs gained 8 yards on their first two plays but when a third-down pass for Joey Galloway fell incomplete, the Bucs settled for a 38-yard Matt Bryant field goal.
The field goal was the second the Bucs had to settle for after Williams and Petitgout went down. While Graham scored a touchdown (his third in two weeks) in the wake of those injuries, there is lingering concern.
'We didn't finish things off the way we have the last two weeks today,' said Garcia, who led the Bucs to a touchdown on the opening drive of the game, scoring on a 3-yard scramble. 'We have to figure out a way to finish out ballgames. We have to get better at that.'
You could say the same for the defense, but that might not be fair. That unit didn't get scored upon until there were 23 seconds remaining in the game. Prior to that, it was as dominant as it has been all season. The Bucs allowed 236 total yards and 13 first downs, which was mostly the result of limiting receiver Steve Smith to 32 yards on five catches. They also had three sacks to go with the two takeaways.
'It's the same things we've been talking about all year,' cornerback Ronde Barber said. 'We're hustling to the ball and hitting and making plays. It's defense the way we're supposed to play it.'
It helped that the Panthers were a little out of sorts, what with quarterback Jake Delhomme unable to play because of a sore elbow and David Carr making his first start.
Carr never looked completely comfortable. A lot of his throws were well off target, especially early in the game, and when he did zero in on his targets there was usually a Bucs defender there to make a play against him as well as some early drops. 'There was definitely some rust,' said Carr, who was making his first start since last season, when he was with the Houston Texans. 'Going with a new group, I definitely could have felt better.'
The Bucs could be feeling better themselves. They're 3-1 and one of the surprise teams in the NFL, but the tougher games in their schedule are dead ahead and they'll play them without two key components.
That was clearly weighing on everyone's mind in the locker room afterward. However, there was also a lot of talk about team chemistry and players stepping up that was missing this time last year when Simms was knocked out for the season against the Panthers with a ruptured spleen.
'We've got a tight football team; these guys like each other a lot,' said Jon Gruden, whose entire team, led by Garcia, strolled onto the field to console Williams after he went down.
'There aren't a lot of cliques here,' Garcia said. 'So it's unfortunate what happened, but it gives other guys a chance to prove they belong here, and that's what they have to do. That's the only way we're going to survive.'
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