The Buccaneers may have thought they had the game in the bag at halftime, with a 10-0 lead over the Washington Redskins, but a third-quarter offensive spurt put the 'Skins on top when the final whistle blew, sending the Bucs to their fourth-straight loss 16-13.
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The Buccaneers had made the Redskins look like a Pop Warner team in the first quarter, allowing a quarterback making his first NFL start to throw a touchdown on his first pass of the game. A field goal in the second quarter gave the Bucs a bigger lead.
But it could have been bigger. Mike Nugent missed two first-half field goals, and Aqib Talib had three interceptions that came to nothing.
Second-year quarterback Josh Johnson went 13 for 22 for 106 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the Bucs. He also ran seven times for 41 yards.
The game was over when Bucs running back Clifton Smith fumbled with 48 seconds left and the Redskins recovered on the Tampa Bay 29-yard line. With only two timeouts remaining, the Bucs couldn't get the ball back.
With a record of 0-4, the Buccaneers and rookie coach Raheem Morris still haven't found the winning formula in this year's NFL.