Off the Schneid but Nowhere to Hide What confidence a win brings to a team, a town and the media as a whole. Last weeks narrow triumph in the Superdome has at least given Mr Gruden a little time to breathe and a respite from all the knockers, myself included, pointing out how things had gone very bad, very quickly for the Bucs. This should have in turn enabled a good week’s practice which is something we will need going into the TWA Arena thingy on Monday Night. We are usually very much up for the Rams so we might surprise a few people in this game. Having seen the Rams defense last Sunday night they are certainly nothing to be scared about, but when your leading touchdown scorer going into week six is a cornerback what does that say for your offense? We haven’t scored a TD on the ground yet by anybody, principally because we don’t appear to have been inside the 5-yard line too often, and Mike Alstott’s celebratory comeback TD party has been on hold for over a month – in my house anyway. Five things I think 1. Mike Alstott, calling Mike Alstott……yoo hooooooooooo, where are you? 2. I think the team MVP so far this season has to be Ronde Barber. He tackles, he covers, he blitzes, and he gets in the end zone. 3. I think no matter how bad things have been so far, if we pulled off a win on Monday Night the whole of One Buc place would come alive again, and we could really get some momentum going. 4. I think Michael Pittman has actually proved we missed him a lot more than I ever gave him credit for. His blitz pick-up block on Ken Dilger’s TD catch was the best play by a Buccaneer back this season – nod of acknowledgement to Mr Pittman from over here. 5. Draft Watch – Bucs and 49ers schock victories left the door open for the Dolphins to assume sole possession of top spot, but we also need to watch out for the Bills coming into contention at 0-4. The longer the leaden footed Drew Bledsoe remains at QB, the worse it will be for the other contenders. Could a Brad Johnson and Keenan McCardell for Willis McGahee tempt them I wonder? I’m going to sit through the whole of the game on Monday Night regardless because it’s extremely likely to be the last live Bucs game I see until next September, unless we put together a ridiculous win streak or I drop the lottery – the lottery is currently the better bet. To be in the Monday Night game itself is a privilege and if we are not careful we will drop off it’s schedule next season. For the Bucs this would be a shame as we have really raised our profile in the NFL and America as a whole since 1997, and it is important we stay on the radar for our own self-esteem as well as the fact that it ensures UK fans get to see at least a full game as it happens. As an aside, wasn’t it nice of Keenan McCardell to drop by earlier this week? What exactly did he expect when he showed up? There’s more chance of The Chuckster singing a duet with Gobshite Johnson on American Idol, than there is of a new contract from Bruce Allen. You may have gathered that I’ve so far been underwhelmed by Mr Allen’s impact but I totally back him on this one and hope he remains as tight as a bullfighters pants when it comes to the Mccardell distraction. I believe McCardell has to report by Week 9 to maintain his NFL Pension benefits, so we will see you in November Keenan, when you can go from sitting your arse on a couch in Houston to sitting on a bench in Tampa. Speaking of Gobshite Johnson I see he’s been running his mouth off yet again in Sports Illustrated this week. If he crawls any further up Bill Parcells backside he will come out at the other end; I wonder how long his act will wear thin in the Cowboys locker room? Memo to Meshawn – if you cock it up with the love of your life Mr Parcells, where else are you gonna go as you’ve just about alienated the rest of the NFL with your antics. Good luck in the cellar of the NFC East and remember where and who got you your one and only Super Bowl ring. On a final note, and moving onto more important things it will be interesting to see how Brian Griese performs on the big stage on Monday. Not only did he look poised and in control when relieving Chris Simms, but he actually managed to throw the odd pass to the tight end – a play which appears missing from Brad and Chris’s list these 4 weeks. If our Offensive Line can raise their play up to mediocre level, Pittman can find some room and Griese shows the same poise, then we have a chance as we know what our defense brigs to the table, week in week out. The key to this game is our Offense and how long it manages to stay on the field, and what an opportunity it represents for Mr Griese to demonstrate he still can play in the NFL, lets hope he grasps it with both hands.