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Simms, Bucs Get Some Love

Tribune photo by JAY CONNER

Bucs WR Brian Clark celebrates a TD in the 2nd quarter with QB Brian Griese during their game against the Miami Dolphins.

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By ROY CUMMINGS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 10, 2008

Updated: 08/10/2008 12:44 am

MIAMI - Chris Simms and Jon Gruden still don't see eye-to-eye on very much. At one point Saturday night, though, they were arm-in-arm.

"Yes, he actually gave me a hug," Simms said of Gruden's reaction to the beleaguered quarterback's performance in a 17-6 Bucs victory over the Dolphins at Dolphin Stadium. "He told me he was proud of me, and he gave me a hug and I gave him a little hug back."

There were hugs all around for the Bucs on Saturday night. Michael Bennett, the running back who struggled to decipher Gruden's playbook last year, earned a few by running 19 times for 74 yards and a touchdown.

Brian Clark, a former Chamberlain High standout who is fighting to crack the team as wide receiver, earned a couple by hauling in a 3-yard touchdown pass to account for the Bucs' first score.

Finally, Jimmy Wilkerson, a spare defensive lineman acquired by the Bucs in the offseason, earned a couple of hugs by batting down a pass and recording a sack to lead a defense that limited Miami to 198 yards.

Most of the hugs, though, went to Simms, the one-time Bucs starter whose career fell apart two years ago when he was ravaged so badly in a game against Carolina that he wound up losing his spleen.

Simms tried coming back from that injury a year ago, but the attempt ended in disaster on this very field. Almost a year to the day later, Simms looked and felt like a different player.

"I think I showed tonight that I'm healthy and capable of making some big throws and that I'm working myself back to being the old Chris Simms," said Simms, who completed eight of 10 passes for 60 yards.

The old Chris Simms had a penchant for delivering big throws deep downfield. The one that was on display Saturday made mostly short throws, but was right on the mark the one time he did go deep.

That was on a third-and-13 play from his 21. After shaking off a pass rusher, Simms drilled a pass between two defenders to connect with Micheal Spurlock on a 15-yard play that kept a pivotal third-quarter drive alive.

"That was a big play in the drive," Simms said. "It was one of those where you drop back and you see the guy is going to come open, but you don't have a whole lot of time to throw, so you just have to trust that the receiver is going to be there."

Spurlock was there, and his catch allowed Simms to keep moving the Bucs, which he did consistently all night. On that drive, he moved them 76 yards to a touchdown, scored by Bennett on a 1-yard plunge.

"I was pleased with a lot of the things he did," Gruden said. "He has a long way to go, but he got a lot of it back tonight."

Simms also engineered a 31-yard drive that put the Bucs in scoring position, but a struggling Matt Bryant watched helplessly as his 52-yard field-goal attempt sailed wide right.

"Everything was going to the right tonight," said Bryant, who also missed a 36-yard field-goal try at the end of the Bucs' third offensive series in the second quarter.

It was that kind of night for the Bucs offense early on, as it went three plays and out on each of its first two drives and missed a scoring chance when receiver Michael Clayton dropped an almost-certain touchdown pass.

Clayton's drop came on the first play of the Bucs' third offensive series, after Luke McCown directed a long pass down the left sideline and right into his outstretched hands.

McCown and the Bucs offense bounced back after that, moving the ball 62 yards in 17 plays before stalling at the Dolphins' 18-yard line. That gave Bryant a shot at a 36-yard field goal, but his miss kept the game scoreless.

It didn't stay that way for long. The Bucs defense, stellar to that point, allowed the Dolphins to immediately move 56 yards in nine plays. That and a Dan Carpenter field goal gave Miami a 3-0 lead.

Brian Griese took over the Bucs' offense from there, and he finished the half by leading the Bucs on a 73-yard touchdown drive that ended with Clark grabbing the scoring strike.

Most of the other first-half Bucs highlights were provided by the defense, which got a stuff out of linebacker Barrett Ruud on the first play of the game.

Then came Simms.

"It was just good to get back out there again," he said. "It was good to get out and get hit again and be out there on the football field with my team."

Reporter Roy Cummings can be reached at (813) 259-7979 or rcummings@tampatrib.com.

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