Colts vs. Buccaneers: National Television Jitters a Bad Sign for Young Bucs Team

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have not played on Monday Night Football in about three years and they looked like a nervous team out there on one of the biggest of stages.

Tampa Bay was favored by around ten points over the Peyton Manning-less Indianapolis Colts but did not look it for the better part of the game.

The Colts had a 10-7 lead going into the half and the game was tied until late in the fourth quarter.

LeGarrette Blount, the Bucs running back who has had a so-so season thus far, finally broke off a huge 35-yard run for a touchdown with around 3:35 remaining while Colts DB David Caldwell clung on to him for dear life.

Raheem Morris, the young coach of Tampa Bay, was excited to come out of there with a win"

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"It's always exciting to win,” Said Morris. "You know, national stage, it helps my guys and my organization. It's good for us to get back on a national stage and get a big-time win, to go out there and play the way we need to play."

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It was definitely a huge win, as it pulled them even with the New Orleans Saints in the NFC South, one of the toughest divisions in football.

Morris kept emphasizing the national stage, because his young team has barely been on the radar even after going 10-6 last year and losing a tiebreaker to the Packers for the final NFC playoff spot.

The team needs to find an identity and be able to step up and play big when the spotlights burn the brightest.

Squeaking out a close win against arguably the worst team in the league right now hardly qualifies as much of a victory.

If the Bucs want to make a deep playoff run, they need to better prepare themselves for these big games. They take on the Cowboys in Week 15 on a Saturday night, which will again be nationally televised.

Look for them to do better there if they are serious about being a contender.