NFL Week 13(Playoff race heating up.)

1:00 pm	W-L-T
Tennessee	4-7-0
Indianapolis	8-3-0

Rosters: TEN | IND
Depth Charts: TEN | IND

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
Arizona	4-7-0
Detroit	4-7-0

Rosters: ARI | DET
Depth Charts: ARI | DET

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
New England	10-1-0
Cleveland	3-8-0

Rosters: NE | CLE
Depth Charts: NE | CLE

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
Minnesota	7-4-0
Chicago	4-7-0

Rosters: MIN | CHI
Depth Charts: MIN | CHI

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
Cincinnati	5-6-0
Baltimore	7-4-0

Rosters: CIN | BAL
Depth Charts: CIN | BAL

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
Atlanta	9-2-0
Tampa Bay	4-7-0

Rosters: ATL | TB
Depth Charts: ATL | TB

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
San Francisco	1-10-0
St. Louis	5-6-0

Rosters: SF | STL
Depth Charts: SF | STL

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
Houston	5-6-0
NY Jets	8-3-0

Rosters: HOU | NYJ
Depth Charts: HOU | NYJ

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
Carolina	4-7-0
New Orleans	4-7-0

Rosters: CAR | NO
Depth Charts: CAR | NO

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1:00 pm	W-L-T
Buffalo	5-6-0
Miami	2-9-0

Rosters: BUF | MIA
Depth Charts: BUF | MIA

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4:05 pm	W-L-T
Denver	7-4-0
San Diego	8-3-0

Rosters: DEN | SD
Depth Charts: DEN | SD

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4:05 pm	W-L-T
Kansas City	3-8-0
Oakland	4-7-0

Rosters: KC | OAK
Depth Charts: KC | OAK

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4:15 pm	W-L-T
NY Giants	5-6-0
Washington	3-8-0

Rosters: NYG | WAS
Depth Charts: NYG | WAS

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4:15 pm	W-L-T
Green Bay	7-4-0
Philadelphia	10-1-0

Rosters: GB | PHI
Depth Charts: GB | PHI

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8:30 pm	W-L-T
Pittsburgh	10-1-0
Jacksonville	6-5-0

Rosters: PIT | JAC
Depth Charts: PIT | JAC

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It will be interesting to see how Bill Belichick is received in the "Dog Pound" today. I believe this is his first visit back there since winning two Super Bowls with the Patriots. (Belichick was a much-hated coach of the Browns in the early 1990s.)

Yeah, I remember Belichick coaching the browns. Grudge match time, like my falcs playing the bucs today. Our GM Rich Mckay hates Gruden.

The Pats should have an easy time with the Browns even though most of their starting safeties are still in the injured list.

Agreed. A new head coach going up against Belichick and co. in his first game? Shudder...

Looking forward to the Eagles/Packers at 4PM and the Steelers/Jaguars at 8:30. These are the top two games of the week.

Same here. Go pack.

Then we can see scowling "I'm so embarrassed for my team" Bill Parcells tomorrow night on MNF in Seattle.

Tell you what, with Julius Jones back, the cowboys have a shot at going on a run to finish the season.

Southern Feud
By ROY CUMMINGS rcummings@tampatrib.com
Published: Dec 5, 2004

TAMPA - This was bound to happen sooner or later. The NFL, in fact, was probably counting on it.

When it packed Tampa Bay and Atlanta into the same division a couple of years ago, the intention was to spark a natural geographic rivalry.

All the league needed was for someone to come along, light the fuse and set the rivalry ablaze.

Most figured Michael Vick would do it somehow. Or Warren Sapp. Few could have imagined it would have been Rich McKay and Jon Gruden.

Most of the players involved couldn't care less, but the rift between McKay and Gruden remains one of the most intriguing pregame story lines of this matchup.

It's the reason today's game is being referred to in some circles as ``McKay Bowl III'' and in others as the latest battle between the ``Hatfields and McKays.''

It wouldn't be this way, of course, were it not for an odd string of events last December.

The Bucs and Falcons were putting the wraps on disappointing seasons when McKay suddenly resigned as general manager of the Bucs on Dec. 11.

That was controversial enough, with the move coming after months of speculation that McKay and Gruden weren't getting along.

Within days, though, McKay was being introduced as the new GM of the Falcons, whose next game happened to be at Tampa Bay.

Television cameras zoomed in on McKay almost as often as they did on the game action that day. They usually caught him smiling.

His Falcons beat the Bucs and knocked them out of the playoff race, and that only served to stoke the rivalry.

Now, with his Falcons (9-2) in a position to clinch the NFC South title that his Bucs won two years ago, McKay returns.

He said this week that this trip back to Tampa will be less awkward than the ``bizarre'' one last year. For others, though, it could be worse.

Gruden said McKay's departure will always be ``a sensitive issue,'' and the thought of McKay curling up the bill of a ``2004 NFC South Champions'' cap and donning it at Raymond James Stadium is no doubt grating to some in the Bucs family.

Certainly, this is not what Gruden had in mind.

The Bucs are 5-9 overall since McKay left, including 4-7 this season. And the only reason they're still alive in the NFC playoff race is because only one NFC non-division leader (Minnesota) has a winning record.

Alive they are, though, and that has been enough to keep Gruden's focus off the McKay issue and on the Falcons. ``This is a game we need,'' he said. ``It's a big test for us.''

Indeed it is. The Bucs haven't beaten a team with a winning record since Dallas (16-0) on Oct. 26, 2003, and they are 0-2 against the Falcons since McKay jumped ship.

As a result, the rivalry has finally spilled onto the field, where several players say the heat of battle is far more intense than against some other opponents.

``When go up to block somebody they're trying to fight you back,'' receiver Michael Clayton said. ``With most everybody else, the whistle blows and you just go back to the huddle.

``But with these guys, you definitely feel the tension and the animosity. It's all been created by the past coaches and players and the media, so you just have to stay focused, because you don't want to get hurt out there.''

The Bucs are unbeaten in their past three home games, managing to fulfill one of the goals they set before the season by making Raymond James Stadium a tougher place for opponents.

There's no doubt they want to keep up the pace today and force Atlanta to delay its celebration.

``We have talked about it, and we don't want that to happen in our stadium,'' Bucs linebacker Derrick Brooks said. ``If they are going to [win the title], then let them do it somewhere else.''

Gruden couldn't agree more.

``Somebody's going to be the NFC South champion, but you don't want people coming into your place and celebrating,'' he said. ``So we've got plenty of incentive to go out there and win.''

The playoffs are among those incentives. Though many of their players find it hard to believe, the Bucs are just one game behind the leaders (the 5-6 Giants and Rams) for the second NFC wild-card berth.

``You could not have told me at the beginning of the year that I would be 4-7 and still have a chance at the playoffs,'' left tackle Derrick Deese said. ``The fact I still have a chance at this is something to keep pushing for.''

If they push hard and long enough, the Bucs could actually find themselves facing the Falcons again this year. It's a long shot, of course, but the teams could wind up facing each other in the playoffs.

At least one Buc says he would relish the opportunity, and not just because it would mean that the Bucs have forced their way into the postseason.

``I always look forward to playing Atlanta,'' said right tackle Kenyatta Walker, a University of Florida product. ``When we play them, it reminds me of when I was in college facing FSU. It's a real rivalry.''

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