Sailing Around the World | Tampa Bay Bucs Franchise

[Mit]

Benn Catches 3 TD Passes, As Bucs Upset Steelers 31 to 29

EA Sports: Madden NFL 11 Video Highlight

The Steelers came into this week 3 matchup 2-0, while the Bucs were on the opposite side of the spectrum with zero wins. This was supposed to be a game that the Steelers were to win very easily. It's a shame for the Steelers that upsets happen.

The scoring in the game started off in a very strange way. The Steelers offense went three and out on their 2nd offensive possession of the game. The Bucs had Clifton Smith back for the return at the 10 yard line. The Steelers punted the ball and Smith received it. The Steelers defense were able to get to where Smith was very quickly. Instead of going up the field, Smith went back, hoping he could get to the outside and go up the field. Bad idea. Smith ran all the way back to the end zone, where he was eventually tackled by Steelers LB Thaddeus Gibson. The Bucs punted the ball back to the Steelers. The Steelers took advantage of the safety to score on their possession. Ben Roethlisberger threw up a ball to rookie WR Emmanuel Sanders and Sanders was able to come up with the catch for a 25 yard touchdown. The Steelers were up 9 to 0 going into the 2nd quarter.

The Bucs were finally able to get on the scoreboard with 6:54 to go in the game. Josh Freeman found Kellen Winslow for a 4 yard touchdown pass on a slant. It was the 2nd time that Freeman has connected with Winslow this season.

The Bucs defense became even stingier as the 2nd quarter went on. They were able to force the Steelers to punt the ball on every single possession in the quarter. The Bucs were taking advantage of this, too, as Connor Barth was able to add on 3 more points to put the Bucs up 10 to 9 with 1:18 left. The Bucs got the ball back after the Steelers were forced to punt it and were able to drive the ball up the field, when they were going for a field goal. Connor Barth ended up missing the 52 yard field goal. Stefan Logan caught the missed field goal 6 yards deep into the end zone. He was able to use his speed to return the missed field goal for a touchdown to end the 2nd quarter, which put the Steelers up 16 to 10.

The Steelers and Bucs defense were hard to do anything against for most of the 2nd quarter. The Steelers defense came up big when Lawrence Timmons intercepted a Josh Freeman pass for a 60 yard touchdown. On the ensuing Bucs possession, Freeman showed that the turnover did not get to his head, as he led a drive up the field, which was capped off by a 2 yard touchdown pass by Arrelious Benn. The Bucs cut the deficit to 5 points going into the 4th quarter.

The Bucs came on firing on all cylinders in the 4th quarter. Josh Freeman had two touchdown passes in the quarter. Both were to Arrelious Benn. One came with 7:22 left and the other came with 1:53 left. This put the Bucs up 31 to 22. The Steelers were able to get a touchdown on a 2 yard pass from Big Ben to Rashard Mendenhall, but that wasn't enough.

The Bucs were able to come back in this game and upset the Steelers 31 to 29. The Steelers were expected to win this game, easily, but that was not the case.

"Josh [Freeman] became a machine in the 4th quarter. He could not miss any passes and he was finding me open on plays. I told him during halftime to watch me on posts and slants. In the 3rd quarter, he struggled a bit in finding me, but he went crazy in the 4th.", said receiver Arrelious Benn, who finished the game with 6 receptions for 72 yards and 3 touchdown receptions.

[Mit]

Bucs Could Not Come Back From 30 Down Against Bengals

AT

(1-2) (1-3)

The Bengals came into the game with a abysmal 1-3 record for the season, as their lone win came against the Panthers in Week 3. As for the Bucs, they were coming off a bye week after an exciting two point upset victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3.

Despite the Bengals 1-3 record, they were still the favorites to win the game and they started off the game showing that they were the favorites.

On the 3rd play of the game, Carson Palmer was able to hit Cedric Benson in the flats. There was nobody within 20 yards of Benson, as the Bucs came in on a blitz. Benson was able to outrun a surging Tanard Jackson to get into the end zone for a 78 yard touchdown. The Bengals defense did not allow the Bucs to score on any possession in the 1st quarter, which the Bengals utilized. Bengals kicker Dave Rayner kicked two short field goals towards the end of the quarter to put the Bengals up 13 to 0.

The Bengals continued their dominance for the most part of the 2nd quarter. Carson Palmer hit Andre Caldwell for a 8 yard touchdown pass. On the next Bengals possession, Dave Rayner hit another field goal. This time it was a 46 yarder. Then, Josh Freeman threw an interception to Keith Rivers, who returned it 55 yards for a touchdown. At this point, the Bengals were up big 30 to 0. It seemed like they were on their way to an easy victory.

That was not the case, as Josh Freeman and the Bucs fought back. Many times, Josh Freeman has showed that he can come back from a mistake. This was one of those times, as on the next Bucs possession, Freeman hit Maurice Stovall for a 75 yard touchdown pass to put the Bucs on the scoreboard. The Bucs kicked the ball off to the Bengals. On the 2nd play of the Bengals possession, Carson Palmer got picked off by Safety Tanard Jackson, who returned the pick 40 yards for a touchdown. The Bucs cut the deficit to 16 to end the 2nd quarter, which gave Bucs fans hope.

The Bucs came into the 2nd half still ablaze. Cadillac Williams started off the 2nd half scoring with a 3 yard TD run. Aqib Talib picked off a Carson Palmer pass on the Bengals next possession for a 24 yard TD. Then, Connor Barth hit a 30 yard field goal, which put the Bucs up 31 to 30 for the first time in the game.

The lead did not last, as Cedric Benson found a hole on the right side and was able to get a 81 yard TD run.

The Bucs could not score for the remainder of the game and Bengals backup RB, Bernard Scott, scored the dagger TD with 2:08 left in the 4th.

It was a great comeback for the Bucs, but they just weren't able to complete it.

[Mit]

Buccaneers | Bucs lose WR Reggie Brown
After a big 9 catch, 202 yard performance against the stingy Steelers defense, Reggie Brown only caught one pass against the Bengals. On that play, he ended up injuring his collarbone. It is a big blow for the Bucs, as Brown was really coming on as the slot receiver. After only a combined four catches in the first two games against the Browns and Panthers, Brown busted out for 9 catches against the Steelers. He will be missed, but the Bucs have a ton of depth at the receiver position, so the void should be filled.

Bills| WR Evans lost for season
#1 WR Lee Evans went down in the Week 5 game against the Jaguars. After making a catch in the game, Evans turned around and tried to run past CB Rashean Mathis. That's when he said he felt a sharp pain in his right leg. After an MRI, it showed that Evans has a torn achilles tendon and that he will be gone for the season.

Bengals | RB Benson AFC Player of the Week
Bengals RB Cedric Benson was named the AFC's Week 5 Player of the Week after an astonishing performance against the Bucs. Benson rushed for 182 yards on only 22 carries, while rushing for a touchdown. Benson also caught two passes for 84 yards and a TD.

Titans | Bulger the new starter in Tennessee
After losing both Vince Young and Kerry Collins for the season with serious injuries, the Titans had to look towards free agency for another QB. Head Coach Jeff Fisher looked at Marc Bulger, who was released by the Rams last season after a decline in his stats and performance. Bulger was signed to a 1 year deal worth approximately $850K.

[Mit]

IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO OWNER MALCOLM GLAZER

Dear Mr. Glazer,

As you may have realized, there are several key players on our team that are currently in the last year of their contracts.

These key players are as follows:

RB Carnell Williams (77 OVR)
LT Donald Penn (85 OVR)
LG Jeremy Zuttah (77 OVR)
RG Davin Joseph (88 OVR)
RT Jeremy Trueblood (74 OVR)
DE Stylez G. White (73 OVR)
LB Geno Hayes (79 OVR)
LB Barrett Ruud (91 OVR)
LB Quincy Black (70 OVR)
CB Ronde Barber (84 OVR)
CB Elbert Mack (68 OVR)
FS Tanard Jackson (88 OVR)
SS Sean Jones (77 OVR)

As you can see, it is evident that our offensive line, linebacker corps, and secondary would be greatly affected if we do not resign these guys. Unfortunately, we will not be able to sign all of these guys, but we definitely must sign some. The first players we must re-sign are Davin Joseph, Barrett Ruud, and Tanard Jackson. These guys are a vital part of our team, as they are all leaders at their respective position. All of these guys are also Pro-Bowl caliber players and can easily be signed by another team if we do not re-sign them before free agency starts.

Even though it is only Week 5, we need to start the process of re-signing these players. Remember, we can use the franchise tag on a player, but it may be a hefty price. For the players that we do decide not to re-sign, we must look at the draft for possible replacements.

I already see a few guys in the draft that I like. One being Penn State RB Evan Royster. Even though Cadillac is averaging about 75 yards per game on the ground, he is not a long-term solution for us. He's injury prone and he's fairly old for a RB at 28. Royster has shown to run a 4.4 40, but we shall see when the combine approaches us. Another guy that I have scouted is FS Jemale Hines, who looks like the best player in the draft to me. He is very quick, has great cover skills for a safety, and is an instinctive tackler. Definitely seems like a solid player.

That is all the scouting I have done thus far. I shall continue scouting players, but you must begin the process of re-signing our key players.

From, anonymous.

[Mit]

Saints Score 21 Unanswered Points in 4th Quarter to Win 42 to 28

VS

(1-3) (3-2)

The Saints were able to rout the Bucs 42 to 28 in this game. The Saints were led by Devery Henderson's 4 catch, 205 yard, 2 TD receiving performance. The first of those touchdowns came in the first quarter, when Drew Brees hit Devery Henderson on a deep out play. CB Ronde Barber went up to try and intercept it, but the ball went through him and straight to Henderson. Henderson caught the ball and ran in for an 89 yard touchdown pass. Before that, Reggie Bush had a 2 yard TD reception and Mike Williams had a 12 yard TD pass from Josh Freeman.

Arrelious Benn showed the opposition that he is a big play threat, as Josh Freeman hit Benn on a deep post play, which turned into 46 yard touchdown. Derrick Ward added on a 1 yard touchdown run in the 3rd quarter, which put the Bucs up 21 to 14. Not even 20 seconds later, Devery Henderson caught another touchdown pass from Drew Brees. This time it was an 80 yard touchdown; this was the 2nd 80+ yard touchdown of the game for Henderson.

Luckily for the Bucs, they were able to get the lead back in the 4th quarter on an 11 yard TD pass from Josh Freeman to Arrelious Benn. Too bad that was all the scoring that the Bucs could muster out for the rest of the game, as the rest of the game belonged to the Saints. The Saints scored 21 unanswered points to win the game. Reggie Bush had a 1 yard TD run, then Clifton Smith fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Marvin Mitchell ran it back 15 yards for a touchdown. Then, Pierre Thomas had the dagger with a 57 yard TD run, which finished off the game.