Respect for the Buccaneers, even against all odds

On Sunday, Jan. 26, 2003, having just finished preparing the most amazing feast imaginable (pizza, wings and nacho dip — aptly named the Big Man Dip), I settled in for the greatest tradition mankind has ever known. Indeed, the classic gridiron battle, though only 37 years old, has taken its place as one of the great American holidays. And listening to the distinct voice of John Madden, football comentator extraordinaire, announcing the kickoff, I prepared myself for the beginning of Super Bowl XXXVII.

At the heart of it all, I am a New York Giants fan. However, seeing as how the Giants had a mediocre season (though they were cheated out of advancing in the playoffs during the 49ers game), I had to pick a team to root for. As if that was hard.

Even though a colleague and good friend (senior Ramesh Nagarajan) is a huge Bucs fan, and he managed to get tickets to the game, I just could not bring myself to root for Tampa Bay. Maybe it was extreme disliking of Keyshawn Johnson (and his inflated perception of his own abilities and paltry acting ability) or the fact that Warren Sapp is full of hot air (and he put a man in the hospital jeopardizing his career because Sapp put a cheap shot on him), but I just could not do it.

So instead I sided with the Oakland Raiders, a wild team in the old days, but now a team made of veterans — players who no longer need to worry about an image as the younger blowhards do. They've already proven themselves. The primary example of this is Raiders' quarterback Rich Gannon whose career was pretty much nothing until he joined up with the Raiders and former head coach Jon Gruden. Gannon was league MVP this year, but has never won the Super Bowl.

As the game got started though, I admit, my faith wavered (many, many times). When the Bucs went up by 31 points, I'll admit that I was so disenchanted with the Raiders that I almost turned off the game. But then, I found reason to keep it on.

I realized that although the Raiders were getting the ass-whooping of a lifetime, what was most interesting to watch was the Bucs' defense. Now I repeat again that I dislike Tampa Bay — with a passion. But as a scholar of football, I can appreciate a good defense when I see it, and the Bucs' 'D' was all it was touted to be. When looking at Gannon on the sidelines when the Raiders' 'O' was off the field, he looked totally shocked and bewildered. I had seen that same look before — on the face of Eagles' quarterback Donavan McNabb the week before. The Bucs shut down McNabb one week (in Philadelphia, in the freezing cold, no less) and the very next week, they shut down Gannon. No two quarterbacks in the league have such different styles, with Gannon a pocket QB and McNabb a scrambler, and the Tampa Bay defense stopped both of them cold.

I may hate the personnel of the Buccaneers, but I'll say this for them: they have one hell of a good defense. But it was not that they brought in new defensive personnel, but that they were motivated in a new way under their new head coach Gruden — the same Gruden, in fact, who built the Raiders.

Jon Gruden has the fire of a great coach. And he's the youngest coach in the NFL. His scowl has become legendary, but his ability is what has impressed me. Gruden hails from the Green Bay Packers dynasty of the 1990s — when Mike Holmgreen took the Packers to the Super Bowl. winning the big game for the first time since Vince Lombardi coached.

The Oakland Raiders had become a bottom-dweller before Gruden came along. He took that team, made up of many players who teams had considered washouts, and turned them into contenders again. He took that team to the AFC championship game before losing to the eventual Super Bowl champion New England Patriots, led by surprise quarterback sensation Tom Brady. Then Tampa Bay paid top dollar for Gruden (eight million dollars and four draft picks), and Gruden changed the Bucs' style and consistency of play. Tampa Bay had almost gone to the big game under Tony Dungy, but they did not have enough to be a championship team then.

When it all comes down to it, I may never like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. But I will say one thing:

Jon Gruden is a damn good coach.