If they compare the rosters of the Bucs and the Packers—minus the
starting quarterbacks—most people around the NFL would say Tampa
Bay has an edge in talent. But factor Bucs passer Trent Dilfer
and counterpart Brett Favre into the equation, and the advantage
swings decidedly to Green Bay. "Absolutely," Dilfer says. "I'd
agree with that."
Nobody has to remind Dilfer that he's at the heart
of the Bucs' offensive futility.
(Robert Rogers)
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Dilfer, starting his fifth year as a pro, isn't down on himself;
he's just being honest. Tampa Bay is winless in its last five
games against the Packers, mostly because the Bucs have scored a
total of four touchdowns and averaged just eight points in those
meetings. This accumulation of offensive frustration weighed
heavily on Dilfer during the bus ride to the airport after Tampa
Bay's 21-7 playoff loss to Green Bay last January. In the wake of
a game in which he completed 11 of 36 passes for 200 yards and
threw two interceptions, Dilfer remembers thinking that if he had
made two or three key plays in each of the five losses to Green
Bay, the Bucs wouldn't have felt the pressure to play a perfect
game to beat the Packers. Favre made such plays once or twice or
three times a game, and Dilfer knew he had to close the gap
between himself and Favre.
So in the off-season Dilfer worked to become more athletic. "How
many touchdown passes did Brett have last year?" Dilfer asks.
"About 35? I bet 20 of those were by the book and 15 he created.
I threw 21 touchdown passes, and I created four. You've got to be
good when a guy's holding on to you; instead of taking the sack,
you've got to somehow get off a seven-yard pass. This year, when
I have to make a play like that, my body's going to respond."
Despite ranking last in the league in pass offense, Tampa Bay
finished 10-6 last season and made its first playoff appearance
since 1982. The Bucs enter this year much improved at their
weakest position in '97, wide receiver. They signed free agent
Bert Emanuel, formerly of the Falcons, and selected speedy
Jacquez Green of Florida with the 34th pick in the draft. But
until Dilfer starts making more big plays, he knows that the
balance of power in the NFC Central won't shift to Tampa Bay.
Issue date: August 3, 1998
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