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Posted: Sunday January 26, 2003 8:37 PM
There are still 30 minutes left in Super Bowl XXXVII, but all the signs point to it being over. Giving the Bucs No. 1-ranked defense -- which has already proved to be too quick and too physical for the Raiders to handle -- a 17-point halftime lead to protect is almost unfair. Consider this: Only one team in Super Bowl history has overcome a 10-point deficit to win, that being 15 years ago in this very stadium, when Washington rallied from a first-quarter 10-0 hole to annihilate Denver 42-10. The Bucs are in such great shape entering the second half because this is exactly the type of game that Jon Gruden knows how to close out. Look for Tampa Bay to take the air out of the ball, keep it on the ground and eat the clock. The Bucs in the first half had surprising success on the ground, picking up 85 yards on just 20 carries -- after averaging just 97.3 rushing yards per game this season. Michael Pittman has 75 of those yards, which registers as the third-best first-half rushing effort in Super Bowl history. On defense, Tampa Bay -- with this kind of lead -- can just keep teeing off.
The Raiders are in real trouble, and they know it. They're off balance and out of rhythm on offense, and facing the best defense they've seen since losing to Baltimore in the AFC title game two years ago.
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