In victory, Bucs say they've lost that losing feeling
Jack Sheppard, The St.Petersburg Times, published 1988

Pretty or not, decisive or not, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers got what they needed most Sunday afternoon. They got a win. “There's no question that this game is going to give us a lot of confidence,” said running back James Wilder, whose 91 rushing yards contributed heavily to Tampa Bay's 13-10 last-second victory, halting the NFL's longest losing streak at nine. “Now we can put the losing streak behind us and get ready for the rest of the season. Now we can concentrate on improving week to week.”

“What counts is winning,” echoed quarterback Vinny Testaverde, who threw for only 135 yards but had no interceptions against the Packers. “If throwing for 60 or 70 yards means you win, then that's good enough for me. This team needed to win, and it didn't really matter how.”

The Bucs obviously did not dominate the Packers Sunday, amassing only 266 total yards and needing field goals of 53 and 28 yards from Donald Igwebuike (the latter on the game's final play) to beat Green Bay.

Highlights for Tampa Bay also included a 22-yard pass from Testaverde to Jeff Smith that set up Lars Tate's first NFL touchdown, and linebacker Eugene Marve's block of a 48-yard field goal attempt by Green Bay's Max Zendejas with 9:15 left in the game.

So, at least until they have to watch the game films, the Bucs were set to celebrate. “The main thing is we know we can win now,” said Tate. “We know what it feels like. We stood on the sideline late in the game saying to ourselves that we couldn't lose this one. We had to keep working, and it showed, because we played with aggressiveness and with enthusiasm.”

The victory was especially sweet coming on the heels of last week's 41-14 blowout by Philadelphia. It was the worst season-opening loss in Bucs history, and several players admitted being embarrassed at their performance.

Sunday, however, the Buccaneers kept themselves in the game by not making disastrous mistakes. Testaverde, who threw five interceptions against the Eagles, opted this time to throw the ball away. “It's obviously better to throw an incompletion than it is an interception,” said Testaverde, who hit Bruce Hill with a 22-yard pass to set up the winning field goal. “We just didn't kill ourselves today.”

And although 148 rushing yards are not considered impressive by NFL standards, they represent a marked improvement from the 43 the Bucs managed a week ago. “I was pleased with the running game in spots,” said head coach Ray Perkins. “In the second half we did a good job overall.”

Good enough to win. And when you're the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, riding a nine-game losing streak and looking for positive signs anywhere you can find them, that's all that really matters. “We'll enjoy this one tonight,” said Testaverde. “If we had lost, right now we'd be wondering if we would ever win again. But it worked out this time, so it gives us the confidence to move forward.”