TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Bucs Eager To Fix Road Woes

ADVERTISEMENT

By ANWAR S. RICHARDSON

arichardson@tampatrib.com

Published: November 1, 2008

Updated: 11/01/2008 12:35 am

TAMPA - The Bucs have changed more than their uniforms when they have gone on the road this season.

The Bucs offense has played well at Raymond James Stadium, outscoring opponents 101-43 to go 4-0, winning those games by an average score of 25-11.

But the offense has taken a turn for the worse when the team has left Tampa. The Bucs are 1-3 on the road, and if not for an incredible comeback against Chicago in Week 3, they would be 0-4.

That is why Tampa Bay (5-3) views Sunday's game at Kansas City (1-6) as a must-win before next week's bye.

"We've been in close games. It's not like we haven't played good football," Bucs coach Jon Gruden said. "We've played some pretty good opponents - at Denver, at New Orleans in the opener, and certainly at Dallas. We've played some good teams on the road.

"We've got to get more done. We've got to get more done offensively and generate more turnovers. We've got to coach better. ... At the same time, I like our team. We've laid eggs on the road. We've had chances to win all three of the games you're talking about."

Gruden is right about the team's struggles. The Bucs' three road losses were by a combined 11 points. They scored only one touchdown against Denver, which had one of the NFL's worst defenses at the time. Tampa Bay also kicked three field goals last week against Dallas, which had lost to St. Louis 34-14 the previous week.

Tampa Bay had opportunities to beat New Orleans and Dallas in the final seconds, but the offense came up short both times.

"Being within a touchdown, good teams find a way to win those games," Bucs quarterback Jeff Garcia said. "I'm not saying we're not a good team, because we are winning more games than not, but we need to find a way to finish games better, obviously.

"Having the defense we have puts us in a position to have those opportunities, and we just need to find a way to make it happen. That's been disappointing. It's been frustrating, but it's not the end of the year."

Tampa Bay's running attack has been the main offensive culprit in road games.

Bucs running back Earnest Graham has rushed for more than 100 yards twice at home, while Warrick Dunn eclipsed that mark once, but neither has reached that mark on the road. Their best performance was Graham's 10 carries for 91 yards against New Orleans.

"They've all been close games, so it's not like we got our butt kicked. But at the same time, we need to find a way to win on the road," right tackle Jeremy Trueblood said. "We need to find a way to come back and close it out. With that comes controlling the clock, and we have to run a little bit. If I'm correct, we haven't had the best running days. I think we've been steadily going downhill.

"We have to come out with a purpose and a sense that it has to happen now."

Tampa Bay has road games remaining at Detroit, Carolina and Atlanta after this week. Losses in those games will hinder the Bucs' playoff hopes.

For Tampa Bay to win those games, it will have to change more than its uniforms for road games.

"It's realistic in the postseason that you will probably have to play one or two games on the road," Bucs right guard Davin Joseph said. "You have to capitalize on your opportunity on the road.

"We haven't been hitting the nail on the head right now. We need to put those things together and play a lot better in the weeks to come. We have a lot of road games coming up, some important road games, and we've got to fix it."

Reporter Anwar S. Richardson can be reached at (813) 259-8425.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT