TOO HOT
Bucs comical against gnarly Brown
Nobody was hotter after Alex Brown posted two sacks, four pass deflections, a forced fumble that led to the Bears’ only touchdown and a hurry that led to an intentional grounding. “He and Wale [Ogunleye] are the best D-linemen I’ve ever played with,” special-teams standout Brendon Ayanbadejo said. “I’ve played with Jason Taylor, a Pro Bowler. These guys are doing better things than he did in Miami.” Brown has forced three fumbles in two games after stripping Carolina’s Jake Delhomme twice, though both were recovered by Carolina. “We played Carolina a few weeks ago, and I didn’t think there could be a defense that good,” Bucs quarterback Chris Simms said. “The Bears probably proved me wrong.”
TOO COLD
Losing grip on ball . . . and his job
Bobby Wade fumbled for the ninth time this season, coughing up his punt-returning job in the process. Rookie Rashied Davis replaced Wade after he dropped the ball on an 11-yard second-quarter return. Israel Idonije recovered or Tampa Bay would have been in business. The coaching staff stuck behind Wade after he fumbled three times against San Francisco, and Wade responded with an error-free performance against Carolina. But even though Wade entered Sunday’s action ranked fifth in punt-return average, this demotion had a more permanent feel to it. Having witnessed Wade’s struggles, Davis said his first priority was to secure the ball. That’s a good strategy for a team that can’t afford to lose the turnover battle.
JUST RIGHT
Gould standard makes difference
Robbie Gould seems to be cornering the market in this category. But that’s what happens when you nail the field goals you’re supposed to–25- and 36-yarders Sunday–and consistently get solid depth and height on kickoffs. Gould is now 11-for-15 for the season, with three of his misses from beyond 40 yards. His one shorter miss came on the comical 39-yard windblown attempt against San Francisco that took a right turn. “Robbie Gould, that was the difference in the game,” coach Lovie Smith said. Indeed, Gould’s 36-yarder with 3 minutes 47 seconds remaining in the third quarter ended up standing as the winning points when Gould’s counterpart, Matt Bryant, missed a chip shot late.
