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The Tampa Tribune, published 29 December 2003
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' disappointing season came to an end Sunday with the team's ninth loss of the season, perhaps nine more than some Buc players expected to suffer after an impressive, shutout win at Philadelphia in the season's opening weekend. By dropping a 33-13 decision to the playoff-bound Tennessee Titans, the Bucs finished on a rough note in the Music City, dominated almost as thoroughly as Tampa Bay handled the Eagles, another eventual playoff team, four months earlier. The Bucs threw four interceptions for the second straight week, balanced by just one takeaway, and saw those four turnovers turned into 16 points. The Titans also led in total yards (344-274), first downs (20-16), time of possession (32:13-27:47) and sacks (2-0).
The Bucs also finished the season with a lineup that only marginally resembled the one they put on the field at Philadelphia. S David Gibson, S Jermaine Phillips, DT Chartric Darby, DT Cleveland Pinkney, DE Dewayne White, DE Corey Smith, CB Ronyell Whitaker, FB Jameel Cook, G Kerry Jenkins, T Cornell Green, WR Charles Lee and WR Edell Shepherd all either started the finale or played critical roles due to injuries to other. By the four-minute mark of the second half, the Bucs had also ended the pounding on QB Brad Johnson, letting backup Shaun King finish the season.
Though the Bucs had pledged to play hard to the end, and undoubtedly did as King led the Bucs on a brief comeback in the fourth quarter, there was a sizeable difference in motivation for the two teams. While Tampa Bay had nothing more than a .500 record to gain from a win, Tennessee had the possibility of a first-round bye looming. As the Houston Texans simultaneously opened up a 17-3 lead over Indianapolis, the Titans' motivation only increased. (Indianapolis eventually won a last-second field goal, meaning Tennessee will be a Wild Card team.)
Actually, any thought that the game would be a flat, emotionless affair ended four minutes into the first quarter when safety John Lynch leveled wide receiver Justin McCareins at the goal line. Several Titans took offense, most notably WR Derrick Mason who was near the play, and skirmishes broke out after that play and the field goal that followed. When guard Zach Piller shoved safety Jermaine Phillips in the ensuing melee, the Titans took a 15-yard penalty on the kickoff and the Bucs' first drive started at their own 45 as a result. Unfortunately for Lynch, his season came to an end just before halftime when he aggravated the right shoulder injury that has bothered him all season. The Bucs also lost defensive tackle Anthony McFarland to an ankle sprain in the first quarter, continuing a season of medical misery for the Buccaneers.
And, unfortunately for the Buccaneers, Mason and the Titans took over after an opening exchange of field goal, scoring 16 unanswered points under the masterful direction of recently-unearthed quarterback Neil O'Donnell. Steve McNair, the Titans' NFL MVP candidate, sat out the game due to calf and ankle injuries and O'Donnell made his first start since early in the 2001 season. Showing little if any rust despite being signed just two weeks ago, a workmanlike O'Donnell hit Mason on touchdown passes of 34 and 23 yards and completed 18 of 27 passes for 232 yards, two touchdowns and one interception.
The Titans scored three times in the second quarter to build up a 16-3 halftime lead, then intercepted Johnson for the third time early in the second half and tacked on Gary Anderson's fourth field goal. King entered the game after that turnover. The decision was less a punishment - Johnson's first pick was deflected and his third came on a lazy popup that was the result of being hit as he threw - than a concession to a season entering its final minutes. King did his best to rally the Bucs, completing 11 of 15 passes for 106 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Early in the fourth quarter, after Mason's second touchdown made it 26-6, King directed a 10-play, 71-yard drive that ended in the Bucs' only TD. After rushing for a first down on fourth-and-one, King hit RB Aaron Stecker on the next play for a 14-yard touchdown. The Titans had an answer of their own, thanks to LB Keith Bulluck's interception at the four-minute mark. That pick put Tennessee at the Bucs' 17 and, three plays later, RB Chris Brown fumbled into the end zone, where TE Erron Kinney recovered for the game's final score.
Each teams scored on its opening drive of the game. Gary Anderson's 37-yard field goal capped a 55-yard march that ended in Lynch's hit on McCareins, who had a 24-yard catch three plays earlier. The Bucs answered with a 46-yard field goal drive, working out of the no-huddle and gaining 27 yards on successive receptions by RB Michael Pittman. Pittman, who had deferred to Thomas Jones as the starter the last three weeks, opened the game in the backfield as the Bucs wanted to attack through the air to begin the game. Martin Gramatica finished the drive with a 27-yard kick.
Neither team scored again, however, until six minutes were left in the half. A successful goal-line stand at the one thwarted one Tennessee threat, but the Bucs had to punt three plays later and the Titans started again at the Bucs' 38. Three plays later, O'Donnell hit Mason over the middle for a 23-yard touchdown. It marked O'Donnell's first touchdown pass since the 2001 season. That score was set up indirectly by DE Jevon Kearse's first career interception, as he deflected a pass just out of Johnson's hand and caught the pop-up himself. Johnson was intercepted again on the Bucs' next drive, as S Tank Williams made a diving pick at the Bucs' 33. The Titans got another field goal off that turnover, a 33-yarder by Anderson, and tacked on one more three-pointer as the first half came to an end, from 43 yards out.
Even in defeat, the Bucs got several fine efforts from young players who could figure into their near future. Edell Shepherd, filling the third receiver role for the first time all season, recorded his first four receptions for a total of 38 yards. Charles Lee, the Bucs' breakout pass-catcher of the second half, led the team with 59 yards on four grabs. And RB Thomas Jones put up exactly 100 combined yards, 68 on the ground and 32 through the air. On defense, Phillips, the second-year safety, tied for the team lead with nine tackles and added a forced fumble - the one Kinney recovered in the end zone. Gibson, playing the second half in Lynch's place, turned in six tackles and S Dwight Smith added four tackles and the Bucs' only interception.
Tampa Bay finished the season with a losing record, 7-9, for the first time since 1996, when they finished 6-10. The Bucs' NFL-long streak of four straight seasons in the playoffs also came to an end, as the Bucs became the second straight Super Bowl champion to miss the postseason the next year.
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