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Michelle Kaufman, The St.Petersburg Times, published 23 October 1989
Football fans from places other than here and Tampa Bay may never learn just how handily the Buccaneers were beaten Sunday afternoon by the Redskins. They'll look at the score: Washington 32, Tampa Bay 28. They'll figure the Redskins (4-3) were just a little better than the Bucs (3-4). If they're real curious, they'll check Vinny Testaverde's stats, find that he completed 19 of 38 passes for 311 yards with three touchdowns, and conclude that Tampa Bay's offense did a pretty good job.
But the 52,862 at RFK Stadium and the thousands of others who watched on television know better. There were numbers more telling than the score of this bizarre contest that featured a blocked field goal, a blocked punt returned for a touchdown, a safety, and a successful onside kick: Thirty-six inches. That's all the Bucs gained rushing on 10 carries - an average of 3.6 inches per attempt. Needless to say, it was the lowest rushing total in franchise history, breaking the previous record of 12 yards against Kansas City (Sept. 13, 1981).
Nine of the Bucs' 13 drives went less than 10 yards, and Tampa Bay's final four marches of the first half went backward, a total of minus-29 yards. The Redskins' top-rated offense controlled the ball for 41 minutes, 6 seconds, and for 23 of 30 minutes in the second half. The only time the Tampa Bay offense clicked was during the fourth quarter, when the Bucs scored three touchdowns and gained 197 of their 297 total yards.
It seemed everyone in the Bucs locker room had his index finger directed at himself, including the head coach. ``The way we got kicked around offensively in the first half, I have to look at two things: First of all, I have to look at myself and my staff and see what we're doing,`` Perkins said. ``Next, I have to look at the people we're doing it with. Maybe some of the guys out there shouldn't even be in uniform. But, some good things could come from the game. We had some people playing in the second half who maybe should've been in there the first half. I'm taking about three offensive linemen (Tom McHale, rookie Carl Bax, and Harry Swayne). Maybe we've been playing the wrong guys for the last three or four weeks.``
McHale and Bax entered the game after first-half knee injuries to starting guards John Bruhin and Mike Simmonds. Starting right tackle Rob Taylor, usually a consistent blocker, was yanked midway through the third quarter and replaced by Swayne. ``This is the worst feeling I've ever had, personally, after a game,`` said Taylor, slumped over his knees. ``What can I say? I just didn't do my job today.``
Swayne reserved comment on the play of the line, except to say, ``One yard rushing the whole half? That's pitiful. I don't care how good their defense is. We all needed to work harder.``
After 30 minutes of play, the Bucs had managed only two first downs and 58 yards total offense, compared with 175 yards by the Redskins. At the time, Testaverde was 4-of-14 for 72 yards with an interception. Unbelievably, Washington led by only 12-7. The Bucs moved the ball 57 yards on the game-opening drive (most of those on a 44-yard catch by Don Smith) only to have Donald Igwebuike's 41-yard field goal attempt blocked by Redskins tight end Terry Orr.
But Tampa Bay came back with a special-teams highlight of its own. Cornerback Ricky Reynolds slapped down a punt, scooped it up and returned it 33 yards for a touchdown to give the Bucs a 7-0 lead with 5:04 remaining in the first quarter. It was Reynolds' second touchdown in as many weeks. He returned an interception 68 yards for a score against Detroit seven days earlier. ``I just did what I'm supposed to do,`` Reynolds said modestly. ``Nothing fancy or tricky.``
Reynolds batted away a Mark Rypien pass to keep Washington receiver Gary Clark from scoring a touchdown and tying the game later in the half. The Redskins had to settle for a 33-yard field goal by Chip Lohmiller. They made it 7-5 when Dexter Manley smothered Testaverde in the Tampa Bay end zone with 10:24 to go in the half. ``I tried to step up, and I didn't see him,`` said Testaverde, who started Sunday after missing last week's game with a bruised knee. ``Then, I tried to lean forward into the field of play, but because I wasn't as mobile as usual, I didn't get there.``
Each team grabbed an interception during the ensuing drives, but they amounted to nothing. A 7-yard touchdown pass from Rypien to Clark gave the Redskins a 12-7 lead at intermission. Rypien finished the day with 24 completions in 36 attempts, 221 yards and two touchdowns. Clark and Art Monk were his favorite targets. They combined for 18 catches and 170 yards.
Despite the sputtering Bucs offense, Tampa Bay refused to give up. ``There are no quitters on this club,`` said Tampa Bay receiver Mark Carrier, who led the team with eight receptions for 106 yards. ``We were determined to make things happen in the second half.``
Instead, the Redskins dominated the third period with 17 unanswered points - a 10-yard touchdown catch by Clark, a 42-yard Lohmiller field goal, a 6-yard run by Gerald Riggs - and the Bucs were behind 29-7. Then, the Tampa Bay offense came out of hiding. Testaverde hit Carrier for consecutive passes of 18, 5, and 10 yards to end the third quarter. Lars Tate caught a 10-yard pass to make it 29-14. Incidentally, Tate's touchdown was the first by the Bucs offense since the Chicago game two weeks ago.
James Wilder recovered an onside kick to keep the ball in Tampa Bay hands, and Bruce Hill caught a 20-yard touchdown pass 22 seconds later to close the deficit to 29-21.
``Vinny had more time to throw in the second half,`` said Hill. ``Of course, they were up by 22 points, so I'm sure they were probably playing a little deeper in their zones; but still, we got things going in those two drives. It's hard to understand what happened before that. We're all searching for the answer.``
The Redskins hogged the ball for 6:24 late in the game and added another three points on a 29-yard Lohmiller kick. Tampa Bay got its final touchdown on a 4-yard catch by Carrier with 1:16 left in the game. A second onside kick attempt failed, and the Bucs couldn't get the ball back. ``The only bright spot of the day was that we were able to move the ball there at the end, but I'm upset with the way our offense has been performing,`` Testaverde said. ``We just have to be determined from the start of the game, like we were in the fourth quarter. The defense has been playing great all year, and we don't help them much.``
Linebacker Ervin Randle said: ``It's frustrating to watch our offense sometimes because we know what they're capable of doing. When they're good, they're real good. They just haven't been able to get it together. But we haven't deteriorated yet. It's still early.``
And Swayne: ``This loss hurts, but it won't shoot us down. We've been through a lot worse together. This is nothing.``
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