Gruden Never Blinked With Game On Line Martin Fennelly, The Tampa Tribune, published 14 November 2005 Big ones. Sunday's game was a big one. The winning play, named 14 Blast, capped the greatest Bucs night since that night in San Diego three seasons ago -- an unforgettable 36-35 victory. You probably had trouble sleeping if you were a Bucs fan. You kept replaying it. How Chris Simms, the kid at quarterback, became a man. How cult hero Mike Alstott thundered back to life and legend. Maybe best of all for Bucs fans? They got their Chucky back. And he got them back, too. Big ones. Sunday, the next largest set of stones were the Rocky Mountains. Jon Gruden cornered the market on chutzpah with his call to go for two points instead of one to beat the Redskins. It was a game the Bucs had to win. Gruden refused to tie. He went with his gut. He went with his guys. Why not to win? "What the hell are we doing here?" Gruden said. Chucky sneered at the book most in his conservative profession breathe chapter and verse, the book that says play for the tie at home, play safe. Gruden didn't blink. He ditched safe. The abyss was real if the gamble failed: a three-game losing streak, a 5-4 record, a trip to Atlanta and the snarling Falcons, plus Fire Gruden fan clubs sprouting like crabgrass. "It would have all come down on him," Michael Pittman said. Didn't matter. The Decision stood. And stands. Sometimes genius means being a little crazy. "It'll go down in history," said Alstott, who fought his way into the end zone a third time for the 2-pointer, though the Redskins said different. Tough loss for Washington. At least all their cheerleaders are accounted for. This was the Chucky that Tampa cheered, the devil dog who coached Super Bowl rings onto Bucs, who convinced a team it could win in Philadelphia, who dared his men to follow him. You can talk all you want how a Washington penalty took the ball to the 1-yard line. Think making 36 inches is easy? Tell that to that Tennessee guy who got hauled down by that St. Louis guy to end a Super Bowl. Think this didn't take brass? It took an entire family of jewels. People were still talking about Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil going for the win against Oakland last Sunday against Oakland when Gruden made his call. He insists it was easy. "I wouldn't have been able to wake up tomorrow not knowing what we would have done with Alstott." Now we all know. Look, this guarantees nothing down the road. But understand where this season was early Sunday evening. Every Bucs player had a lump in his throat when the extra point to tie it at 35 was blocked. "And everyone teared up," Joey Galloway said. They'd lost. The Washington offside penalty provided new life. But there was still a deep, dark canyon between the Bucs and that end zone. So it fell to the head coach, the same guy who has worked with Simms, showing more patience than we honestly thought he had. It paid off Sunday. Simms' poise and presence were extraordinary. "I thought he showed a tremendous amount of guts," Gruden said. Look who's talking. It fell to the head coach, and when the moment came, Gruden didn't hesitate. He owed the offense this moment, his team this moment. Owed it to himself, too. What the hell are we doing here? "He believed in us," Alstott said. Bucs raced from the field hugging each other. The first game ball went to the head coach for his call. Jon Gruden had it tucked under his arm as he went out into a city that, at least on this night, was his again. "It's one I'll never forget." You never forget big ones.