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TAMPA, Florida (Ticker) -- Last season, Warren Sapp left Mike Sherman plain angry. Sapp also left Chad Clifton 's career in jeopardy following a controversial hit.

On Sunday, the Green Bay Packers will be looking to exact a measure of revenge when they visit the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a battle of desperate teams.

In last season's meeting, the Bucs intercepted Brett Favre four times, including two by cornerback Brian Kelly , en route to a 21-7 victory.

But Tampa Bay's superb defensive performance was overshadowed by an ugly, obscenity-laced exchange between Sapp, the Buccaneers' five-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle, and Sherman, the Packers' coach, as the two walked off the field after the game.

Sherman was upset with a legal-but-blindside block by Sapp that left Clifton - an offensive tackle - with a career-threatening pelvic injury during a 31-yard interception return by Kelly that set up Tampa Bay's go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter. Sherman became particularly incensed that Sapp celebrated the hit while Clifton lay motionless on the field.

Sapp cursed at Sherman when the coach approached him on the field after the game to complain about the hit. At one point in the shouting match, Sapp screamed at Sherman, "If you think you're so tough, why don't you put on a jersey?"

"If I was 25 years old and didn't have a kid and a conscience, I would have given him (Sherman) a butt-kicking right there at the 30-yard line," Sapp said after the game.

The block left Clifton in a Tampa hospital for four days and with a sprained pelvis, a sprained back, swelling and internal bleeding. After extensive rehabilitation, Clifton returned this season and has not allowed a sack while protecting Fave's blindside.

Despite never hearing from Sapp, Clifton has no ill feelings.

"I'm not bitter toward him. You assume the risks when you play this game," Clifton said. "It was a perfectly legal hit. I honestly don't think he went out trying to hurt me purposely."

Sapp insists that if the results of the play had been reversed, he would not have expected a call from Clifton.

"It wasn't a dirty play," Sapp said. "If I had hit him low and blew his knee out, I would be feeling so bad, I would call him. But I did nothing outside the line. I made a clean block on an interception. I did what I was taught to do. Play until the whistle blows."

Sherman refused to talk about the incident this week.

"The whole thing is ancient history," Sherman said.

Unfortunately, the Sapp-Sherman incident became the story of last season's game rather than the play of the Tampa Bay defense, which picked off Favre four times in the second half and held Ahman Green to 56 yards on 18 carries.

While Favre was picked off four times, Brad Johnson capitalized on two of the turnovers with touchdown passes to Joe Jurevicius and tight end Ken Dilger .

Both teams would appear to be on the edge heading into this season's contest.

The defending Super Bow champion Buccaneers have lost two straight for the first time under coach Jon Gruden, falling three games behind first-place Carolina in the NFC South. Tampa Bay was swept by Carolina and probably will be left fighting for a wild card berth.

The second of the Bucs' losses against the Panthers came last Sunday, 27-24. Johnson threw two TD passes and Martin Gramatica kicked a 39-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to give the Bucs a 24-20 lead, but the Panthers drove 78 yards in six plays for the winning score.

Four of the Bucs' five losses have come with under two minutes remaining or in overtime. Tampa Bay is 1-3 at home with two losses in overtime and another coming with 13 seconds left when John Carney kicked a 47-yard field goal to give New Orleans a 17-14 win.

Green Bay, which is two games behind first-place Minnesota in the NFC North, is coming off Monday's 17-14 loss to Philadelphia.

Green rushed for a team-record 192 yards and a touchdown in the loss to the Eagles. He is second in the NFL in rushing with 1,063 yards and leads the league in yards from scrimmage with 1,376.

The Packers have lost in their last five trips to Tampa Bay, but lead the series, 28-18-1.