From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette published 24 December 2002 It took them nearly until Christmas, but the Steelers finally hammered together one of those complete games they have been seeking against a good team all season long. They jumped on Tampa Bay early and often last night and never let go as they throttled the Buccaneers, 17-7, to clinch the first AFC North Division championship. They took particular delight in doing so after Buccaneers linebacker Nate Webster pranced through the Steelers' pregame warm-up stretch. "The intensity on that field was as great as any playoff game I've been involved with," said Steelers Coach Bill Cowher, still dripping wet from a Gatorade bath administered on the sideline. "These were two teams that had a genuine dislike for each other." The Steelers rolled to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter and, unlike previous games such as their infamous tie with Atlanta, they hung on for the win. The victory assures the Steelers (9-5-1) of at least a home playoff game the first weekend in January. If they beat Baltimore Sunday at Heinz Field and either Tennessee or Oakland loses, the Steelers would earn a first-round playoff bye. The loss stung Tampa Bay's chances to get a first-round playoff bye. The Buccaneers, who clinched the NFC South Division championship Sunday when New Orleans lost, slipped to 11-4. Tampa Bay Coach Jon Gruden rested starting quarterback Brad Johnson, who has a deep back bruise, and turned to former starter Shaun King. He looked more like Stephen King trying to throw and was never effective. Rob Johnson replaced him in the third quarter. "We are playing well at the right time of year," Cowher said. Tommy Maddox threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to rookie Antwaan Randle El, his first NFL scoring reception. Scott returned a King interception 30 yards for a touchdown. And rookie Jeff Reed kicked a 26-yard field goal. The Buccaneers did not score until Keyshawn Johnson caught a 22-yard touchdown pass from Rob Johnson with 1:14 left in the game. End Aaron Smith led a furious defensive game for the Steelers. He had 2 1/2 sacks and a fumble recovery. Tampa Bay lost two fumbles inside the Steelers' 10, and the Buccaneers were sacked five times. "They had the No. 1 defense," Steelers receiver Hines Ward said, "but I think we showed what the No. 1 defense is in the NFL." Plaxico Burress had over 100 yards receiving for the second consecutive game and the fourth time this season, catching five passes for 127 yards last night. Ward had six catches for 78 yards. "We had our way with them on offense," Ward said. The Steelers scored with stunning ease on the game's first drive. After all the talk about how they had to run to beat Tampa Bay the way they did last season, they came out throwing and Maddox was near perfect most of the game. He completed 17 of 23 passes for 236 yards, no interceptions and a 120.9 passer rating. On the game's first play from scrimmage, Maddox threw deep down the left sideline, where Plaxico Burress caught it over cornerback Ronde Barber for a 41-yard reception. Jerome Bettis ran twice for 10 yards, Burress caught another for 18 and then, on second down, Randle El took a short sideline pass and scooted quickly around end. He lunged the ball over the left corner of the goal line for an 11-yard touchdown. "I've been waiting patiently," Randle El said, "and I got my shot." It was 7-0 with 12:01 to go. Two plays later, it was 14-0. On second down from his 25, King threw a pass toward Keyshawn Johnson near the right sideline. Scott jumped on it, and took the interception 30 yards for a touchdown. It was the first score by the Steelers' defense this season, and it put them up 14-0. "We knew they like the quick rhythm passes," Scott said. "I anticipated it pretty good and got a good jump." They made it 17-0 when their second offensive drive ended when Reed kicked a 26-yard field goal with 4:24 left in the first quarter. "The first five minutes were catastrophic," Gruden said. The Buccaneers finally scored when Martin Gramatica kicked a 50-yard field goal. But Jason Gildon, on the kick block team with the rest of the starting defense, was penalized 5 yards for holding. Gruden opted to take the automatic first down, canceling the 3 points. That choice looked good when the Buccaneers worked their way down to second-and-2 at the Steelers' 7. But fullback Mike Alstott fumbled when he was hit by Casey Hampton and Kendrell Bell. Smith recovered at the 8. Maddox completed his first seven passes for 152 yards. He had the Steelers back down at the Buccaneers' 4 with a first down late in the second quarter. But an illegal motion penalty on Dan Kreider and a holding penalty on Jeff Hartings pushed them back to the 19, and then Amos Zereoue lost a fumble after a screen pass. Nevertheless, they led at halftime, 17-0, and things looked bleak for the Buccaneers. Maddox was 11 of 13 for 174 yards, while his counterpart, King, had trouble completing a pass. He was 7 of 22 for 67 yards and one interception with a 22.3 passer rating. Last season, the Steelers ran for 220 yards to beat Tampa Bay, 17-10, but they had trouble running last night. Gruden stayed with King to open the second half, but had finally seen enough with 6:40 left in the third quarter. Rob Johnson replaced King, who finished 9-of-26 passing for 73 yards and a 27.4 passer rating. Rob Johnson did a nice job on his first series, leading the Buccaneers from their 5 to the Steelers' 3, mostly by passing to Keyshawn Johnson, who led the Buccaneers with eight receptions for 132 yards. But on second down at the 3, nose tackle Hampton plowed past Cosey Coleman and stripped Rob Johnson of the ball. Bell recovered for the Steelers to maintain their shutout late in the third quarter. Neither team could get much going on the ground, although the Steelers kept hammering away with Bettis in the second half to protect their 17-point lead. Bettis led everyone with 66 yards on 26 carries.