TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 48 OAKLAND RAIDERS 21 And then on one magical night in San Diego, the Buccaneers became World Champions. All those years of being the joke of the NFL, the losing streak, the wilderness years, the near-misses and the title game heartbreaks. They all were forgotten as Jon Gruden’s team put together an all- round display of offense and defense to hammer the Oakland Raiders. Dexter Jackson was named the MVP but it could have been so many different players, Brad Johnson, Michael Pittman, Simeon Rice, Derrick Brooks or Dwight Smith. The defense recorded five interceptions, three of which were returned for touchdowns and had Rich Gannon under pressure for the entire game. Click here for the game screen with statistics and other details
Roy Cummings with the lead story from The Tampa Tribune How columnist Martin Fennelly reviewed the magical night Joe Henderson paid tribute to the defense with his column GM Rich McKay remembered the days that led to this one Dexter Jackson was named the Super Bowl MVP Brad Johnson, it was all in the details Michael Pittman saved his best game for the biggest game Keyshawn Johnson’s self-imposed silence didn’t last long Pittman wasn’t the only part of the backfield committee Finally in sync - the offensive line really played its part Keenan McCardell had the two scores for the receivers Greg Spires and his defensive line played an incredible game Derrick Brooks closed the deal with his interception return Dwight Smith’s two picks came too late for MVP votes The defensive backs outplayed their big-name opponents John Lynch finally gets to raise a championship flag From the Raiders’ locker room - tributes to the Bucs No official nicknames so champions will do for now It was worth the wait - the patience shown to get Gruden Don’t forget the role Tony Dungy played in the success How Len Pasquarelli of ESPN saw the game unfold Now to design the Buccaneers’ Super Bowl ring The Monday homecoming - RJS was packed with fans The perfect homecoming - how Jon Gruden made it happen The parade through the streets of Tampa with the trophy My column for The Tampa Tribune