No. 2 Buccaneers at No. 1 Eagles
Time & TV: 2 p.m. Sunday, WFLD-Ch. 32
How they got here:
Buccaneers beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-6 Sunday (Story, 18)
Eagles beat the Atlanta Falcons 20-6 Saturday
Short-attention span preview: The Eagles have knocked the Bucs out of the playoffs the last two years, which cost coach Tony Dungy his job. The Eagles also beat the Bucs 20-10 on Oct. 20 in Philadelphia, with the Bucs’ only touchdown coming on a fumble return by Derrick Brooks. So the Eagles’ No. 4-ranked defense will be out to prove it is better than the Bucs. This will be the final game at Veterans Stadium, a notorious venue with a dangerous turf and vociferous fans. The Eagles will move across the street to a new stadium next year. “Having home-field advantage is an important part of making a championship run,” Eagles defensive tackle Corey Simon said. “You heard that crowd (Saturday night). They were outstanding. They played a huge part in the win.” Of the four survivors, the Eagles came closest to last year’s Super Bowl, and Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb remembers the feeling. “I decided to go back out and watch the celebration of the Rams because I felt confident we would get back out in that same spot again,” McNabb said.
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Super Bowl
Sunday, Jan. 26
At San Diego, 5:18 p.m.
