Butler breaks under a Buc-lashing Hubert Mizell, The St.Petersburg Times, published 13 December 1993 Defense was carrying the Bears. Chicago is the City of Big Shoulders and bad offense. But, for an NFL month of Sundays, the Bears overcame their pass/run shortages by defensively assaulting San Diego, Kansas City, Detroit and Green Bay. Eventually, the enemies would crack. Tampa Bay (3-9) suddenly refused. Through a glorious, sunny, 60-degree football afternoon, the Bucs' offense was un-bullied by Chicago's hit men. It was no high-scoring, high-yardage scorching of the Bears, but the Bucs won with well-executed, sure-handed efficiency. Tampa Bay fumbled not once. The Bucs suffered hardly at all from Craig Erickson's lone interception, a pickoff at the Bears' 13. In the end, NFC Central tail-gunner Tampa Bay would crack contender Chicago. Erickson went unsqueezed by Bears quarterback-killer Richard Dent, who was blocked into Tampa Stadium surrender by 300 pounds of Bucs franchise player, left tackle Paul Gruber. "Gruber shut his a-- out," said Ian Beckles, who plays a few doors down the street as Tampa Bay's right guard. "Paul still has an injured groin, but he was great against Dent. Richard resorted to working the refs, begging for (holding) calls." Nothing worked. Bears defenders created no touchdowns, no field goals, no safeties and no mayhem. Tampa Bay's offense refused to crack, as had the Chargers, Chiefs, Lions and Packers. Once the Bucs stone- walled against the Bears' defense, it was up to Chicago's offense to carry the ball and pass it. A job that went unhandled. Chicago tried everything. Kevin Butler went overboard. Alas, a taunting kicker. Butler is no monster from any Chicago midway. Among the Bears in Sunday uniform, he was the 47th most likely to instigate a rumble with the Bucs. The guy's a placekicker. A gnat among Godzillas. Nonetheless, at the first-half gun, Butler would punctuate a 55-yard field goal by waggling a taunting finger in Bucs faces. Bucs waggled back with acid tongues. Sam Wyche used the moment. Tampa Bay's coach immediately romped into his locker room and lobbied to incite the Bucs. "Sam said it was bad, being taunted or belittled by any opponent," said 270-pound defensive lineman Santana Dotson, "but a placekicker? That was beyond insulting." Tampa Bay players were anything but angelic. Butler's ears burned. Bucs orally abused the nine-year pro. Last year, Kevin muffed an easy field goal in a 20-17 loss to Tampa Bay. Earlier this season, the old Georgia Bulldog blew two short fourth-quarter kicks when the Bears failed 16-14 against the Los Angeles Raiders. Bucs rookie Curtis Buckley, a special-teams player known as much for back flips and fast talking as for his high-speed kick coverage, greeted Butler's every appearance with a vulgar barrage. Linebacker Hardy Nickerson was a supporting Bucs baritone. Butler finally cracked. "They kept screaming at me, and it got beyond ugly," he said of Buckley, Nickerson and other Bucs bashers. "It's part of being a kicker in the NFL, and I know I need to keep my emotions bottled up. But they just kept yapping, about the Raiders misfires and my screwup here in Tampa last season," said the slightly cherubic placekicker. "They kept referring to my mother. So, when I popped that 55-yarder (cutting the Bucs' lead to 10-3), I wrongfully lost control." After Wyche inflamed his Bucs during the halftime break, Buckley and Nickerson returned to the field in search of Butler. "They called me a mother------. Nickerson said he could kick my a--. I got mad and fired back at Hardy, `If you can't, you won't be a linebacker in this league much longer.' I can take a lot, but this time I blew a fuse." After the Bucs won 13-10, Wyche sought out Butler as the teams departed the battlefield. "Sam told me I shouldn't be taunting," the placekicker said in Chicago's dressing room. "I apologized for the taunting, but Sam said no apology was necessary. That's good, because it didn't take Superman's ears to hear that there was a great deal more taunting, and a lot more vulgar, coming from the other side." Boys will be . . . But aren't these grown men?