Hello, offense: Bucs win 30-21 Rick Stroud, The St.Petersburg Times, published 11 November 1991 This was a day when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were awfully glad to see the defense show off and their offense show up. It was a day when they got deep into their playbook instead of stopping at the table of contents. And how fitting that the Bucs would beat the Detroit Lions, a team that cannot win outdoors, by creating so much daylight to run to. It was a day unlike any other the Bucs have had this season, and one that was made especially for Reggie Cobb. The second-year tailback flashdanced through gaping holes for 139 yards and a club-record three touchdowns, doing a Tennessee waltz on the Lions in the Bucs' 30-21 victory Sunday in front of 37,742 at Tampa Stadium. The victory improved Tampa Bay to 2-8 overall and brought new life to a dispirited franchise. It was the third loss in four games for the Lions, who are unbeaten this season on carpet (6-0) and allergic to grass (0-4). "You look at our record and a lot of fans and people think we're out of it, that we're just going to lay down and try to get the season over with," Bucs defensive lineman Keith McCants said. "But that's not the case. We're just too legit to quit." "Our defense has played great all year," said quarterback Vinny Testaverde, who had his best day ever handing off, "and they've been waiting for us to show up." All Cobb had been waiting for was an invitation. After rushing for a career-high 93 yards last week at Minnesota, he picked up where he left off Sunday and scored on touchdown runs of 1, 3 and 59 yards. Cobb's final scoring run was a splendid gallop off left tackle in which he sprang into the secondary after a block by fullback Alonzo Highsmith and reached the end zone after wideout Lawrence Dawsey flattened Lions cornerback Melvin Jenkins near the 20. The play gave Tampa Bay a 30-14 lead with 4:28 left in the third quarter and was enough of a cushion for the defense to sit on. The Bucs allowed 345 yards, with tailback Barry Sanders accounting for 118 yards and two touchdowns on 23 rushes. Playing with a lead for a change enabled Tampa Bay's defense to claim four sacks, two interceptions and two fumbles. "Having a lead was very helpful to us," Bucs defensive coordinator Floyd Peters said. "Our offense saved our bacon. The first half, we were pretty sound against them. The second half, they decided just to run the ball with 20 (Sanders), and the kid is amazing. I threw blitzes at them, I threw everything I had at them. That 40-yard run should've been a 1-yard gain. We actually shut the door on him front side, then he scooted through a crack on the back side. I mean, the guy is awesome. He's probably the best right now in the business." The Tampa Bay defense set the tone for the game. On the third play, Lions quarterback Erik Kramer was sacked by Dexter Manley and fumbled into the waiting arms of tackle Tim Newton at the Detroit 16-yard line. Cobb carried three times for a first down before diving across for a 1-yard touchdown and a 7-0 Bucs lead. "We had to stop him; Barry Sanders is the only lethal weapon they have now that (quarterback) Rodney Peete is gone," McCants said. "Not to discredit the quarterback, because he stepped in and did a fine job. But we knew what we had to do and got it done." Why the Bucs' offense could not get anything done the first half of the season with Cobb at tailback is a bit of a puzzler. Before last week, Cobb had only one pro game in which he carried 21 times. That was earlier this season, when he responded with 70 yards against Buffalo. "The last couple weeks, we've stuck with the run," Cobb said. "I think earlier in the year, there were times we would run, and if we got stuffed, the next play was a pass play. Today, we ran the ball. The first touchdown drive, we didn't throw. Those are things you have to do for the backs to get in a rhythm and the linemen to get in a rhythm coming off the ball." A big reason for the Bucs' new success on offense may be the return of veterans Rob Taylor and Tom McHale to the starting lineup. Coach Richard Williamson said the Bucs' failure to run the ball had something to do with the teams they played earlier this season. "We didn't just discover it," Williamson said. "We knew that all along. But we were struggling and having problems doing things. But it progressed along to the point that we thought we could do it. I mean, a lot of it had to do with Philadelphia and the New Orleanses and those people that just stuff you when you try to run it up in there. Within the first eight people we played, we played the top four defensive teams against the run. That had a little bit to do with it. And we didn't have a whole lot in sync at that time, either. The combination evolved. If you just keep hammering and keep driving those pegs, somewhere down the line, something's going to start happening." Meanwhile, the Lions are fading fast, and the biggest reason for it has been their weakness on grass. Coach Wayne Fontes said the Lions just got beaten by a better team Sunday. "They whipped us in every phase of the game," said Fontes, a longtime Bucs assistant. "They were more physical, and they pushed us around. They tackled, and we didn't. They scored, and we didn't. This is a good team. They have good personnel. They're quick, young, and they get after you." Who knows? Fontes may have even been talking about the Bucs' offense. "I said earlier in the year we're not too far away," Testaverde said. "We just need to get some confidence. We need to know how to practice like we did this week. We need to know how to win two games in a row and not let up. These are things that hopefully the second half of the season we'll learn. So even if we're not in the playoffs, we'll get something out of the second half of the season."