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Don Banks, The St.Petersburg Times, published 26 December 1994
Goodbye, winning streak. Goodbye, hopes of ending years of double-digit losses. Goodbye, Tampa Bay?
In what may have been their farewell performance in Tampa Bay, the Bucs on Saturday went out the way most people remember them. They lost 34-19 to the Green Bay Packers, before the first sold-out Tampa Stadium crowd in two years.
Tampa Bay's season finale was a game the Bucs were barely ever in. So said Bucs quarterback Craig Erickson. "I guess all things have to come to an end," he said. "We just wish it was after the game and not in the middle of the third quarter. This is not the way you want to finish things. You might lose a ballgame, but you don't want to go out there and (not) have a legitimate shot going into that fourth quarter. That's tough."
With its ownership situation in limbo, Tampa Bay capped its late-season support drive by selling a team-record 36,000 tickets this week. Christmas Eve was declared Orange Pride Saturday by the team's front office, and the Bucs sold their 74,301st and last ticket an hour, 10 minutes after kickoff.
But the Tampa Bay players and coaches didn't exactly hold up their end of the festivities. The Bucs trailed 7-0 before all in the announced crowd of 65,076 settled into their seats. It was 14-0 at the end of the first quarter, and a discouraging 28-6 at the half.
Packers receiver Sterling Sharpe again bedeviled defenders, catching a game-high nine passes for 132 yards and touchdowns of 6, 22 and 6 yards. All three scores came in the first half. It was Sharpe's fourth career 100-yard game against the Bucs, all in Tampa Stadium.
The Bucs "won" the second half 13-6 and late in the game helped rookie running back Errict Rhett reach 1,000 yards rushing - he finished with 54 yards to total 1,011 for the season - but the day had the distinct feeling of an opportunity lost. "We were hungry for it," Bucs fullback Eugene McDowell said. "You could just see it in the air, in the locker room, everywhere. We went out there trying our best to bring a victory home and save the Bucs. We wanted to go out there and show we can play football with the good teams that are going to the playoffs. We just fell short. I guess we just got too hyped and too excited and didn't stay calm enough to play regular football like we should have. We never really had a crowd like that before. We finished strong, but I thought we could have finished stronger. It's just a bad feeling losing the last game."
Maybe because the Bucs lost so much with this one. For instance: The chance to win their fifth straight game, which would have tied the franchise high set 15 years ago. The opportunity to improve to 7-9, thereby ending their NFL record streak of losing at least 10 games per year. The Bucs (6-10) are at a dozen and counting. The chance to post their first winning record at home in 10 years (they dropped to 4-4).
And the honor of eliminating Green Bay (9-7) from the playoff chase. The Packers' second road victory of the season put them into the post-season for the third straight season. They need losses by Detroit and Minnesota tonight and Monday to clinch their first NFC Central title since 1972.
The Bucs' record is their best since 1990, when they also went 6-10. But Tampa Bay coach Sam Wyche, who was surly in defeat, could not avoid becoming the first coach in NFL history to rack up four consecutive 10-loss seasons (1991 with Cincinnati, 1992-94 with Tampa Bay). It was also Wyche's 100th career NFL loss, including playoffs. "I wish we could have won the ballgame for (the fans), but that was the best shot we could give versus a team that was too good for us today," Wyche said. "Green Bay's got it going. They're going to be tough."
Green Bay gained 433 yards, 312 in the first half. The combination of Sharpe and Packers quarterback Brett Favre (24-of-36 for 291 yards, one interception) was nearly unstoppable. In his past two trips to Tampa Stadium (1993 and '94), Sharpe has carved up the Bucs for seven touchdown receptions. "We felt like they came in and they were going to be tight because they needed a win to get to the playoffs," cornerback Martin Mayhew said. "We had nothing to lose. We felt like we could get a little lead early, keep the game tight, and they would start pressing. The worst thing that could have happened is to let them get a lead on you."
Down 7-0 early, the Bucs' defense gave the full house something to cheer about when it held the Packers pointless after Rhett's fumble gave Green Bay a first down at the Bucs' 6. Linebacker Hardy Nickerson stuffed fullback Edgar Bennett on fourth down from the 1.
The Packers picked the defense apart with short passes on their second touchdown drive. Eight of the drive's 13 plays were tosses of 6 to 14 yards to Bennett, Sharpe and tight end Ed West. Sharpe made a pretty nab on a fade pattern in the right corner, beating Mayhew.
Tampa Bay's first points were set up by a 38-yard kickoff return by Vernon Turner. Starting at the Packers' 43, the Bucs gained one first down before stalling and settling for a 38-yard Michael Husted field goal and a 14-3 deficit a minute into the second quarter.
After a poor punt by the Packers, the Bucs again started in Packers' territory, at the 47. And again, Tampa Bay settled for a field goal, a 27-yarder by Husted.
Its lead cut to 14-6, Green Bay looked Sharpe in pushing the margin back to 21-6. The Packers needed just five plays to journey 74 yards, thanks to Sharpe receptions of 49 and 22 yards. The latter went for the score, a play on which the Bucs chose to blitz and leave safety Thomas Everett alone on Sharpe.
Green Bay effectively put the game on ice with its next possession. Taking over at their 33 with 2:40 remaining in the half, the Packers went 67 yards in 10 plays, gaining everything through the air. Twice the Packers converted on third and 10. The 6-yard touchdown reception, of course, went to Sharpe, giving him his hat trick. The 22-point halftime lead was no fluke. At the break, Green Bay owned statistical advantages: 19:15 to 10:45 in time of possession, 17-4 in first downs, 312-92 in total yards, and 78-8 in rushing yardage.
In the second half, the Bucs sandwiched Erickson touchdown passes to Charles Wilson (17 yards) and Tyji Armstrong (1 yard) around Green Bay field goals of 38 and 18 yards. But the real drama involved Rhett. The Bucs rookie back had zero yards on seven carries at the half, and just 13 yards on 10 carries through three quarters.
Needing 43 yards entering the game, Rhett was featured on the final drive, picking up his fourth digit on a 5-yard carry. It's been a real wild ride," Rhett said. "They should just give us a playoff berth for all the stuff we went through. No team has gone through the stuff we went through, with the the owner dying, coaching (speculation). The things we've been through were just truly amazing."
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