Tampa Bay Buccaneers Are Two and Oh-So-Much Better

Two and oh.

Two and oh-so-much better. That is what these 2010 Tampa Bay Buccaneers are.

They are oh-so-much better than that mess on the field that started last season's campaign.

That was a truth that became more evident Sunday on a toasty field in Charlotte where your Bucs had offense when they needed it and a lot of defense when they needed it.

What they needed most and come home with was a doozy of a 20-7 win over division rival Carolina that was a nervous, exciting game.

It was a game that showed Josh Freeman is coming of age in a hurry—no doubt he's ahead of schedule. You can say that 12 of 24 for 178 yards doesn't sound all that great,  but he managed this game like a five-year pro.

No mistakes, no hint of the horrendous performance he had on the same field last season. He took care of the ball, took care of his offense, and got some help from his defense, a surefire formula to compete and win games in this National Football League.

Two and oh my, this team is two wins ahead of mighty Minnesota and those chest-thumping Dallas Cowboys.

You saw how Carolina thought they might just try and pound Raheem Morris' defense, perhaps thinking it would crumple like last year's? No how, no way. The big boys up front had themselves a heck of an afternoon. Shoot, DeAngelo Williams only came up with 54 yards and sidekick Jonathan Stewart added just 43. Sure beats 200-plus, doesn't it?

Go ahead and ask quarterback Matt Moore if he got the number of that truck that ran him over. He probably can't remember, seeing as how Quincy Black almost sent him back to the concussion recovery ward. Tim Crowder was a monster, flying all over the place and tallying two of the D's four sacks.

Brian Price, Gerald McCoy, and the rest of the gang did themselves proud when it came time to stop the Carolina ground machine. The nerve of Carolina to think they could just jam the football down the Buccaneers' throats near the goal line in the fourth quarter. The fellas sure showed 'em, didn't they?

Don't forget the secondary. Ronde Barber and Aqib Talib did their share. Moore wasn't all that great and Jimmy Clausen had no chance late, did he? Sure, Steve Smith got in a couple of licks and a TD, but his day wasn't all that great, was it?

Bad Knee Bear Kellen Winslow showed up in a big way. For a guy who was perhaps doubtful, he left no doubt that he was Mr. Clutch in this victory. He caught four for 83. "He was a clutch guy," Morris said after the win.

"KW was huge today," said his quarterback, Freeman.

So was Freeman, so was the defense.

Now before you start marking a W down for Sunday's home game with the Steelers, keep in mind that this team is still a work-in-progress.

There were still problems with the ground game. Cadillac Williams had to carry the ball 27 times for a measly 51 yards, and that's just not going to do. Freeman was the biggest ground threat. He scrambled for 43 yards and showed the Carolina defenders how hard he is to tackle. He was never sacked.

But what this all means is that this team feels so very much better than the sorry excuse for a squad that began the 2009 season. There is honest-to-goodness hope for this bunch.

And someone needs to tell Sports Illustrated guru Peter King that these Tampa Bay Buccaneers have already met his expectations with two victories. Pete might want a do-over.

Fact is, these guys have something that most didn't take into consideration.

Freeman had the explanation:

"We have heart," he said after the hard-earned victory.

Apparently, a lot of it.