Jeff Faine wants it known up front - he's no savior.
Still, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' veteran center is eager to help a winless club when he returns Sunday from a strained triceps that has sidelined him since the season opener against Dallas.
"It's been pretty frustrating,'' Faine acknowledged today after the Bucs fell to 0-5 with a 33-14 loss at Philadelphia. "You feel handcuffed not being able to help the way you want to. I think the guys up front have done pretty well, but it's tough when you take out a piece that makes all the line calls. It's tough to be cohesive.''
Coach Raheem Morris expects Faine to have a significant impact.
"He definitely helps with all the protection issues," Morris said. "Not that [replacement Sean] Mahan didn't do a good job, but Jeff Faine is a significant upgrade. The running game becomes a lot better. The demeanor of that unit, that room - all that stuff changes with Jeff Faine out there. He's one of our very best players."
Tampa Bay's running game has struggled since rolling up 174 yards against the Cowboys. Second-year quarterback Josh Johnson faced a dizzying array of blitzes from the Eagles on Sunday at noisy Lincoln Financial Field.
"That's their [Philadelphia's] MO,'' Faine said, referring to the Eagles' reputation as heavy blitzers. "We weren't able to pick it up the way we should have. I expected a lot of pressure with a new quarterback in there, trying to test Josh and see how he responds.''
Faine said he isn't worried about coming back too soon.
"There's a risk just going out there, period,'' he said. "I'm really not too concerned with it.''
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