ALL-TIME SERIES
The Buccaneers and Patriots have met eight times in the preseason, with Tampa Bay winning each of the last seven contests. This year’s meeting is the seventh in Tampa, with the Bucs owning a 5-1 mark at home in the series.
During the regular season, New England leads the series 5-2. The Buccaneers won, 21-16, at New England in the 2000 season opener. The Buccaneers also won, 27-7, in 1997 in Tampa. The first meeting between the two clubs was in the Bucs’ first season in 1976, a 31- 14 New England win in Tampa. The Patriots also captured wins in 1985 (32-14 in Tampa), 1988 (10-7 in overtime in New England), 2005 (28-0 in New England) and their last meeting in 2009 (35-7 in London).
REGULAR SEASON VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS-
Check out video in your browser….
Videos are property of NFL Films, CBS, FOX, NBC Sports, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
LAST MEETING (PRESEASON)
Tampa Bay 27, New England 10
Sunday, August 17, 2008
TAMPA – For the second consecutive season, Tampa Bay topped the New England Patriots in its preseason home opener. The contest also marked the second consecutive game in which the Buccaneers defense limited the opposition to less than 200 yards of offense and the Buccaneers offense did not commit a turnover. The Buccaneers again held a distinct advantage in time of possession, nearly 16 minutes, while only being flagged for three penalties, giving them just three penalties in their first two preseason games. Offensively for Tampa Bay, RB Michael Bennett again led all players with 57 yards on only eight carries as the quarterbacks completed 76 percent of their passes while registering a collective quarterback rating of 104.2. On the game’s opening drive, Tampa Bay marched 80 yards on 17 plays, chewing up 9:38 on the clock, to take a 7-0 lead on RB Earnest Graham’s one-yard touchdown run. Following a Patriots turnover in Buccaneers territory, K Matt Bryant tacked on a 34-yard field goal that was set up by a 33-yard catch-and-run by WR Antonio Bryant. Tampa Bay increased the lead on its next drive as QB Luke McCown found FB Byron Storer on a one-yard touchdown pass with 1:13 left in the first half. New England K Stephen Gostkowski brought the Patriots within two touchdowns on the last play of the half as he connected on a 53-yard field goal. On the first play from scrimmage of the second half, S Sabby Piscitelli scooped up a Patriots fumble and raced 24-yards for a touchdown and a 24-3 lead. Following a Buccaneers interception inside Patriots territory, Bryant hit a 23-yard field goal to increase the score to 27-3. Patriots RB Heath Evans’ one-yard touchdown run with 10:20 left in the contest provided the game’s final score and was the first touchdown surrendered by the Buccaneers in the preseason.
LAST MEETING (REGULAR SEASON)
New England 35, Tampa Bay 7 (10/25/09)
LONDON – Playing out of the country for the first time in team history during the regular season, Tampa Bay trailed New England by two touchdowns in London as it entered the second half but was unable to cut into the lead. The Patriots grabbed and early 7-0 lead on the Buccaneers first drive of the game as S Brandon Meriweather intercepted QB Josh Johnson and ran 39 yards for a touchdown. Tampa Bay entered New England territory on its next possession, but Johnson was again picked off by Meriweather to end the threat. New England increased its lead to 14-0 late in the first quarter as QB Tom Brady hit WR Wes Welker for a 14-yard touchdown. Early in the second quarter, New England threatened to increase its lead, but S Tanard Jackson picked off Brady in the end zone. However, the Buccaneers were forced to punt on the resulting possession and three plays later, Brady hit WR Sam Aiken on a short pass over the middle that he turned into a 54-yard catch-and-run for a score and a 21-0 lead for the Patriots. Tampa Bay got on the board just before halftime as Johnson hit WR Antonio Bryant for a 33-yard score to trim the lead to 21-7. New England went back up by three touchdowns on the first drive of the second half as Brady hit TE Ben Watson for a 35-yard touchdown for the only scoring of the third quarter. Following a 10- play, 89-yard drive early in the fourth quarter, the Patriots put the game away as RB Laurence Maroney ran in from one yard out to make the score 35-7. Following the Patriots final score, rookie QB Josh Freeman made his professional debut as he engineered the Buccaneers final two drives.
PRESEASON SERIES HIGHLIGHTS
New England rallies from a 10-point deficit to defeat Tampa Bay 17-16 (8/15/81)… The Patriots scored a pair of touchdowns during a span of 2:52 in the third quarter, when Ken Toler recovered a fumble in the end zone for a score and RB Tony Collins scored on a two- yard run for the go-ahead touchdown… QB Jerry Golsteyn completed 8-of-11 passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns in a 41-21 rout over the Patriots (8/26/83)… WR Theo Bell hauled in three receptions for 116 yards, including a 69-yard scoring strike from QB Jack Thompson… Tampa Bay erupted for 35 second-half points in a 44-10 drubbing of New England (8/18/90)… The Buccaneers posted a pair of defensive touchdowns on S Thomas Everett’s 33-yard interception return and LB Broderick Thomas’ 56-yard fumble return… Tampa Bay posted its highest preseason point total ever en route to a 45-14 win at Raymond James Stadium (8/28/99)… The Bucs gained 436 total yards in the contest and did not commit a turnover… RB Warrick Dunn rushed for 115 yards on 12 carries in Tampa Bay’s 20-3 win vs. New England (8/25/01)… QB Brad Johnson threw scoring passes to RB Aaron Stecker and WR Jacquez Green… RB Kenneth Darby led all rushers with 84 yards on 15 carries in a 13-10 win over New England (8/10/07)… K Matt Bryant hit a game-winning 32-yard field goal as time expired… The Buccaneers took the lead early and never surrendered it as they went on to defeat the Patriots 27-10 (8/17/2008)… Tampa Bay’s defense held the Patriots to 174 total yards of offense on its way to the seventh straight preseason victory against the Patriots.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
