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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- The Detroit Lions gave the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers a lesson in being resilient.
James Stewart ran for 116 yards and three touchdowns and Jason
Hanson kicked two field goals Thursday night as the Lions came from
behind to beat struggling Tampa Bay 28-14.
|  | | Tampa Bay's John Lynch skies to break up a pass intended for Detroit's David Sloan Thursday night. |
The victory gave Detroit (5-2) a split of the season series
against their NFC Central rivals, who have lost four straight since
dominating the Lions 31-10 at the Silverdome on Sept. 17. The Lions
also have won three straight road games to start a season for the
first time since 1961.
"I think it really speaks well for this ballclub," coach Bobby
Ross said of the way the Lions have rebounded from the lopsided
loss. "I think there is a lot of character to them. And boy, did
they ever exhibit it tonight."
The Bucs (3-4) began the season with three consecutive
victories, but inconsistency on offense and uncharacteristic
mistakes on defense and special teams have contributed to the
team's first four-game losing streak since it started 0-5 in 1996 --
Tony Dungy's first season as coach.
Tampa Bay led 8-0 before falling apart, finishing with a costly
fumble and three interceptions, including two that set up go-ahead
scores by Detroit in the second half. The Bucs also gave Detroit an
opening to come back when Nate Webster blocked a punt and Ronde
Barber couldn't recover in the end zone for a first-quarter
touchdown and had to settle for a safety.
"This is one of the toughest losses we've had since I've been
here," Dungy said. "We had a lot of things going for us and
didn't take advantage of them."
Stewart scored on runs of 4, 4 and 1 yards, the last two coming
in the final 4:28 when the Lions pulled away from a 14-14 tie.
Hanson kicked field goals of 32 and 47 yards, while Charlie Batch
was 13-of-31 for 144 yards and no interceptions.
"That's what I envisioned from James Stewart," Ross said of
the running back who signed with Detroit as free agent during the
offseason. "He's going to be a big-time workhorse. He did that
tonight."
The Lions began the night ranked 22nd in offense and 29th in
defense, but had a winning record because they did a good of
protecting the ball. Tampa Bay sacked Batch seven times, but didn't
force any turnovers.
Martin Gramatica kicked field goals of 27, 43, 50 and 55 yards
for Tampa Bay.
The Bucs defense failed to hold fourth-quarter leads in two of
Tampa Bay's first three losses and penalties and mistakes on
special teams helped the Lions stay in the game despite being
dominated much of the opening half.
After driving for field goals on their first two possessions,
the Bucs squandered an opportunity to go up 13-0 when Webster
blocked John Jett's punt but Barber couldn't get control of the
loose ball for a touchdown.
The ball slipped from Barber's grasp three times before teammate
John McLaughlin tried to fall on it in the end zone only to fall
awkwardly and leave the ball exposed for Detroit's Ron Rice to
recover for a safety and the 8-0 lead.
"I've always talked to them about finishing plays -- the final
effort," Ross said. "You never know what can happen if you finish
the play. ... That was at least a five-point play."
Things got worse for the Bucs when Mike Alstott fumbled on Tampa
Bay's next play. Rice recovered, setting up Hanson's 32-yard field
goal on a drive the defense had to a chance to turn back when Brian
Kelly dropped what should have been a third-down interception.
Trailing 11-3, the Lions drove 70 yards in 12 plays to tie the
score just before the half on Stewart's first TD and 2-point
conversion run. Bryant Westbrook's interception and 16-yard return
to the Tampa Bay 19 led to Hanson's field goal that put Detroit
ahead 14-11 with 11:29 remaining in the third quarter.
The Bucs offense sputtered after outgaining the Lions 107-28 in
the opening quarter. The Bucs only managed one first down in the
next two quarters and didn't come close to scoring until
Gramatica's 55-yard field goal made 14-14 and set the stage for
Detroit to break the game open in the closing minutes.
Shaun King was 17-of-33 for 149 yards and three interceptions
for Tampa Bay. Keyshawn Johnson had six receptions for 79 yards.
Game
notes
Detroit's defense has gone 33 consecutive games without
allowing a touchdown on an opponent's opening drive, the longest
active streak in the NFL ... Warrick Dunn's 34-yard run, setting up
Gramatica's second field goal, was his longest in two years for
Tampa Bay ... Detroit's Kurt Schulz, who leads the NFL with six
interceptions, sat out the second half with a neck strain ... Tampa
Bay's Marcus Jones had four sacks, a Bucs' game record. Warren Sapp
had two.
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ALSO SEE
NFL Scoreboard
Detroit Clubhouse
Tampa Bay Clubhouse
Clayton: Lions roll with Bucs' punches
Stingy Bucs' defense just not enough
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Bryant Westbrook feels his team was focused.
wav: 71 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Charlie Batch was impressed with the play of Bryant Westbrook.
wav: 69 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
Tony Dungy knows his team has more time to improve.
wav: 198 k
RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6
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