Power Rankings: Tampa Bay trickin' or worthy of top 10 treatin'?ÂÂ
  By Pete Prisco
CBSSports.com Senior Writer
Tell Pete your opinion!
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http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/powerrankingsUpdated Oct. 2
October brings us a lot of things.
It brings us pumpkins, bellies loaded with candy you stole from your kid's bag and Halloween drunks (don't believe me, go to your local bar that night). It brings cooler weather and playoff baseball.
It also brings us NFL surprises. One month in, and we're already stunned by a lot of things in the NFL. Such as:
• The Green Bay Packers off to a 4-0 start.
• The San Diego Chargers and Chicago Bears off to 1-3 starts.
• The Tampa Bay Buccaneers at 3-1.
The latter might be the most surprising thing of them all.
Remember all that talk about how Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden was in big trouble? The offensive wizard, they said, had no magic left in his wand.
Still think that way?
I remember asking Gruden about his job status during training camp. He brushed it aside in typical Gruden fashion, the Chucky-like smirk on his face meaning no words were necessary to answer.
Are you nuts, dude?
Gruden said he couldn't be bothered with such talk. Now maybe we know why. Maybe he knew his team was better than we all thought.
When I left Lake Buena Vista after watching the Bucs practice, I thought they'd be lucky to win five games. They do practice at the Wide World of Sports Complex in Disney World, and don't they make dreams come true there?
Gruden must have wished for an offensive line that can finally block somebody. He must have wished for a quarterback who takes care of the ball.
He must have wished his aging defensive players didn't slow down and his young ones came on faster than expected.
So far, they've all come true.
That's why the Bucs are now in the No. 7 spot in the CBS Sports.com Power Rankings, riding the defense to that lofty spot.
Along with the Packers and Lions, they are surprise visitors the top 10 after the first month.
We'll know more about the Bucs on Sunday when they travel to Indianapolis to face their former coach Tony Dungy and the high-scoring Colts. If Tampa Bay can slow down that offense, then maybe their September success won't be so surprising by the time Halloween does roll around.
October is a lot of things, and it's also the NFL month when pretenders fade away. So the next 28 days will tell us a lot about whose September surprise is the real deal.
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7 Buccaneers · Trends 17
The defense is really playing well. The loss of Cadillac Williams will hurt the running game, which keys the offense. Jeff Garcia will have to do more now.
