The Bucs have placed QB Chris Simms on the Injured Reserve List ending his season.  Simms didn’t play a down this season and it appears that the Bucs were foolish to give him a nice contract in the off-season.  They paid a lot of money for a player with sub par stats in his NFL career to this point.  Simms has played in 19 games (15 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 291 of 492 passes (59.1%) for 3,087 yards with 12 TD passes and 17 INTs (71.2 QB Rating).

Michael Pittman will miss the next 6-8 weeks due to a high ankle sprain.  This really hurts the Bucs as they were depending Pittman to replace the injured Cadillac Williams.  Pittman has carried the football 35 times for 169 yards (4.8 ypc) and he also has caught 11 passes for 94 yards (8.5 avg).  Look for Ernest Graham to take over as the Bucs feature back unless they acquire another back through trade.  Graham has carried the ball 36 times for 147 yards (4.1 ypc) with 3 TD runs and he also has caught 4 passes for 35 yards (8.8 avg).  Look for rookie Kenneth Darby to get some work behind Graham.

The Buccaneers got outclassed by the undermanned Colts on Sunday.  The Bucs on had possession of the football for 21:45 of the football game and it’s hard to win a game that way.  Jeff Garcia completed 18 of 23 passes for 143 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  Bruce Gradkowski finished up the game by completing 3 of 4 passes for 22 yards with 1 interception.  Michael Pittman carried the ball 5 times for -1 yard (-0.2 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 16 yards (8.0 avg) before leaving the game with a severe high ankle sprain.  Ernest Graham followed Pittman and he carried the ball 6 times for 11 yards (1.8 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 18 yards (9.0 avg).  Ike Hilliard (8 rec, 58 yards) and Joey Galloway (4 rec, 50 yards) got most of the yards in the passing game.  But, it was TE Alex Smith who kept hitting paydirt as he caught 2 passes for 6 yards with 2 TD grabs.  The Bucs finished up with 17 yards rushing on 12 carries (1.4 ypc) and they completed 21 of 27 passes for 160 yards.

LBs Derrick Brooks (12 tackles) and Barrett Ruud (11 tackles) led the way on defense for the Bucs.  The Colts finished up with 147 yards rushing on 40 carries (3.7 ypc) and they also completed 29 of 37 passes for 253 yards.

http://scores.espn.go.com/nfl/boxscore?gameId=271007011

The Bucs are getting outstanding field position for the offense because of return man Mark Jones.  Jones has returned 9 punts for 131 yards (14.6 avg) and 2 kickoffs for 72 yards (36.0 avg) so far this season.  It’s only a matter of time until he takes a kick to the house.  Ernest Graham returned 4 kickoffs for 90 yards (22.5 avg) but the Bucs need him more on offense with Cadillac Williams down for the count.

The Tampa Bay Bucs have gotten off to an impressive 3-1 start which has them on top of the NFL South Division which is a huge surprise.  They have achieved that record by running the football and playing good defense.  The Colts are now 4-0 on the season but they have suffered a lot of injuries as of late that will effect them in this ball game.

The Colts will likely be without strong safety Bob Sanders and that is a huge blow to their run defense.  The Colts have allowed 127.5 yards rushing per game and 4.5 yards per carry so the Bucs will likely try to take advantage of that weakness.  Michael Pittman (170 yards rushing, 78 yards receiving) and Ernest Graham (136 yards rushing, 4.5 ypc, 3 TDs) will attack the Colts defense early and often.  After the Bucs establish their running game look for Jeff Garcia to run some play action passes and attack the Colts secondary deep with Ike Hilliard (15 rec, 246 yards) and Joey Galloway (14 rec, 256 yards).

The Colts will likely go to the air more than they have so far this season.  Peyton Manning has been outstanding as usual as he has completed 86 of 128 (67.2%) passes for 1,066 yards with 8 TD passes and 1 interception (110.4 QB Rating).  The Colts will likely be without Joseph Addai and Marvin Harrison so they need other players to step up.  RB Kenton Keith has played well as a reserve this season as he has carried the ball 23 times for 134 yards (5.8 ypc) so he should be able to find some running room against a Bucs defense that is allowing 118.3 yards rushing per game and 4.0 yards per carry.  Reggie Wayne (21 rec, 307 yards) and tight end Dallas Clark (19 rec, 251 yards) will likely be Manning’s main targets.  But, keep your eyes on first round pick Anthony Gonzalez who could have his best game as a pro.

PREDICTION:  This game will be much closer than the 11 point spread.  The Bucs will make a game of this but I like the Colts to win by a field goal.

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