Tampa Bay Buccaneers Suffer Second Loss in Jeff Faine

The 34-21 loss to the Cowboys was tough enough, that wound may heal.

The Buccaneers suffered yet another costly loss in that game—their best offensive lineman—Jeff Faine.

Faine, the center and signal caller for the offensive line, is out possibly four-to-six weeks with a bicep tendon tear.

Coach Raheem Morris called Faine's loss "huge."

"Huge loss," Morris reiterated Monday. "His return? It all depends on when he can go. Could be two weeks, could be more."

Morris reconstructed the Sunday loss but was insistent on his "no excuses," mantra.

"The big plays -- that throws the game out of wack. They're heartbreakers," he said of Dallas quarterback Tony Romo's three long TD passes.

"We're not into pointing fingers," he went on. "Every man in the room has to be accountable. Sabby (Piscatelli), he's accountable right now. He cannot be a hindrance. As a man, he's accountable. We'll get him going right."

Morris also said not to blame the breakdowns in the secondary on the new defensive scheme. "Don't blame the new scheme," he said quickly. "New scheme? That means nothing -- it's accountability. It's about making the play you're supposed to make."

Morris was not happy about Mike Nugent's missed field goal. "He HAS to make that one. When you miss that, it deflates you a little bit."

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When asked if the team is considering bringing Matt Bryant back, Morris tapdanced:

"I don't have an answer," he said.

Still, Morris gushed optimism:

"We lost the kicking game phase, we lost the defensive game phase, we won the offensive game phase," he said. "We make it two of those and we win!"

Faine's injury was apparently the only serious blow to the team. As for Antonio Bryant, "he's gonna fight through that thing," Morris said of his receiver's bad knee.

"This young Tampa Bay Buccaneer team is gonna be a good football team," Morris said. "I'm gonna tell them that today!"