Don't hang this loss on Wilder Tom Zucco, The St.Petersburg Times, published 11 December 1989 He saw them coming, with their shoulder cameras and their foot-long microphones and their little spiral notepads, and he knew right away they were looking for him. He could see a few of them were a little embarrassed about having to approach him; they were acting like little kids inching their way up to meet a department store Santa for the first time. But the fact remained: They were going to seek him out, and whether they did it quickly or slowly wasn't going to make much difference. Besides, what could he do about it now? He couldn't hide. He couldn't lie and claim he was some other player. And he wasn't going to take the usual copout, which is to tell the reporters to go take a long walk off a short pier, or words to that effect. That's just not his style. No, for a full 20 minutes, James Wilder would sit there on the wooden bench in front of his locker and face them all - one reporter after another - until they had run out of ways to ask the same question: “How in God's name did it happen?” Over and over, Wilder said he thought he was down when the ball squirted out. He said he tried to say something to an official but realized quickly it wasn't going to do any good. Then he said he stood on the sidelines and prayed the replay official would reverse the call. He didn't. “It's a terrible feeling,” Wilder said softly. “I was down, the ball came out, the ref made the call. The more I think about it, the more “ His voice trailed off. When all the interviews were done and the reporters had gone, Wilder picked up his travel bag and walked down the tunnel to the team bus. There was no expression on his face and he walked slowly, but he never once looked down. Now, there undoubtedly will be some people who think Wilder's fumble late in the fourth quarter, with the Bucs moving toward a score that would tie or win the game Sunday, was the primary reason Tampa Bay fell three points short of the Houston Oilers. They'll say that old warhorse Wilder is getting along in years (he's 31), his best days are behind him, and he always did have a little trouble hanging on to the ball. And maybe some of those things are true, but to place more blame on Wilder than anyone else would be as unfair as it would be inaccurate. This was a group effort. “There were so many mistakes,” said right tackle Rob Taylor. “That one (Wilder's fumble) just happened to be the last one.” Precisely. So how, you ask, did the Buccaneers lose this time? Let us count the ways: The Bucs are having an increasingly difficult time running the ball. After gaining all of 88 yards rushing against Green Bay, the Bucs managed just 66 yards rushing Sunday, and almost half of those yards (28) came on Vinny Testaverde scrambles. Bucs opponents are having an increasingly easy time running the ball. Sunday, the Oilers gained an average of 4.5 yards every time they ran the ball - this against a team that last year was ranked first in the league against the run. The Bucs are having an increasingly difficult time punting the ball. Chris Mohr had a punt blocked two weeks ago against Phoenix, and he had two more blocked Sunday. Testaverde was sacked four times Sunday, bringing his season total to 35. In addition, he threw several passes that were nearly intercepted, and there were moments when it appeared as though he thought the Oilers simply didn't exist. Come hell, high water or triple coverage, he was going to wing the ball to the intended receiver. Fortunately for him, he was only intercepted once. You could argue that the Oilers, after taking a 20-3 halftime lead, were on automatic pilot during periods three and four. Or that if Houston hadn't run that ridiculous pitch play near the Bucs goal line late in the game - and lost the ball - the game would not have been as close. Or that the Bucs had been victimized by the officials for the second week in a row. But whatever you do, don't hang this one around James Wilder's neck. “If we had to do it all over again,” Taylor said, “I'd want to see Vinny throw that same pass to James.” Rest assured there's a proud but bitterly disappointed fullback sitting at home in Tampa right now who wants exactly the same thing.