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DEFENSIVE LINE
The top priority for Tampa Bay's defense heading into Sunday's game with Minnesota was to contain Vikings running back Adrian Peterson, who rushed for over 1,000 yards through the first nine games of the season.

The Bucs did not look like they were going to be successful in stopping Peterson in the first half, where he rushed for 71 yards on 13 carries (5.5 avg.). However, with some help from the offense, which dominated the time of possession in the second half, Tampa Bay's defense limited Peterson to six carries in the third and fourth quarter. He finished the game with 19 carries for 85 yards (4.5 avg.).

The Buccaneers sacked Vikings quarterback Gus Frerotte five times on Sunday. Three of those quarterback takedowns came courtesy of the team's defensive line.

On the last play of the third quarter, Bucs nose tackle Chris Hovan sacked Frerotte to set up a third-and-19 play from Tampa Bay's 38-yard line. On the next play, Bucs defensive end Kevin Carter chased down Frerotte near the right sideline and sacked him for a 1-yard loss to keep the Vikings out of field goal range.

Bucs under tackle Jovan Haye and Carter stuffed Vikings RB Chester Taylor in the backfield late in the second quarter, which set up third-and-9 from Tampa Bay's 25-yard line. The Vikings settled for a 37-yard field goal two plays later. That score put the Vikings up 13-6. Haye nearly had his first sack of the season on Frerotte on the first play of the second drive of the game, but Minnesota's scrambling quarterback made it back to the line of scrimmage while sliding to avoid contact.

On Minnesota's second-to-last drive of the game, Bucs DE Gaines Adams hit Frerotte's hand as he attempted a pass, which caused an incompletion and set up a third-and-2 play.

The most significant contributor along Tampa Bay's defensive line was Jimmy Wilkerson. On the third drive of the game in the first quarter, Wilkerson was called for a 15-yard personal foul penalty (blow to the head of the quarterback), which put the Vikings on the 14-yard line. Minnesota eventually scored its first and only touchdown of the game, capping off the eight-play, 77-yard drive to go up 10-3.

Wilkerson came up huge on Minnesota's last drive of the game with the Vikings trailing the Bucs 19-13. On first down, Wilkerson beat Vikings right tackle Ryan Cook and sacked Frerotte to set up a second-and-28 situation. On the next play, Frerotte dumped the ball off over the middle to Taylor, but Wilkerson showed great backside pursuit and caused Taylor to fumble, which allowed cornerback Ronde Barber to recover the ball at the 28-yard line.

Adams, Haye and Wilkerson recorded four tackles apiece vs. the Vikings. Wilkerson also had two quarterback hurries, one sack and a forced fumble. Carter registered three tackles and one sack while Hovan notched two tackles and one quarterback takedown. Bucs DE Greg White recorded three tackles.

GRADE: B+

LINEBACKERS
Bucs middle linebacker Barrett Ruud played an integral role in containing Peterson and Minnesota's ground game, which produced 99 yards on 26 carries (3.8 avg.). On third-and-11 on Minnesota's opening drive of the game, Ruud blitzed and sacked Frerotte for a 13-yard loss, forcing the Vikings to punt. Tampa Bay's linebackers were inconsistent in terms of their ability to get off of tackles and tackling Peterson in the first half, but Ruud was solid. He finished the game with team-high eight tackles and one sack. Ruud did not have a tackle in the second half due to the fact that Tampa Bay's offense controlled the ball for over 20 of the 30 minutes.

Weakside linebacker Derrick Brooks had a shaky start. He allowed Vikings tight end Visanthe Shiancoe to haul in a 23-yard pass for a first down on Minnesota's second drive of the game. Brooks had good coverage on the play, but he never turned around for the ball that was thrown over his shoulder and towards the sideline. But Brooks and Co. eventually forced Minnesota to settle for a 43-yard field goal on that drive.

Brooks came up huge early in the third quarter when he defended a pass thrown from Frerotte to Peterson down the right seam on fourth-and-1. That turnover gave the Bucs offense the ball at the 48-yard line. Brooks did a great job of not biting on the play-action and running stride for stride with Peterson. On the final drive of the game, Brooks made a key tackle to put the Vikings in a fourth-and-2 situation. One play later, Frerotte threw an incomplete pass and the Buccaneers defense preserved the victory. Brooks finished the game with six tackles.

Bucs strongside linebacker Cato June recorded three tackles. One of those takedowns resulted in a loss for Peterson in the third quarter.

GRADE: B

SECONDARY
Bucs cornerback Ronde Barber had an incredibly active game vs. the Vikings, but he also had mixed results. On the second play of the contest, Barber sacked a scrambling and sliding Frerotte, which set up third-and-11. On Minnesota's third drive, Barber took a great angle on Peterson in the backfield on the running play, but Peterson shed the tackle by using a spin move. To make matters worse, Bucs safety Sabby Piscitelli, who was starting in place of Jermaine Phillips (forearm), was caught out of position. Those two mistakes led to a 22-yard run for Peterson. It was his longest run of the game. On the same drive on second-and-8 from the 12-yard line, Barber was called for holding on a fade thrown to the end zone. That set up the Vikings with a first-and-goal from the 7-yard line. The Vikings eventually converted a third-and-goal play from the 4-yard line when Frerotte connected with wide receiver Bobby Wade, who reached the ball across the end zone despite safety Tanard Jackson making a great tackle near the goal line in an attempt to prevent the score. Barber's biggest play came late in the second quarter when Wilkerson caused Taylor to fumble, which allowed Barber to recover it at the 28-yard line. Barber finished the game with three tackles, one sack and two quarterback hurries.

Late in the second quarter on a third-and-6 play, Bucs cornerback Phillip Buchanon allowed Vikings WR Bernard Berrian to run a slant pattern and catch the ball for a first down at the Vikings' 45-yard line. Minnesota eventually settled for a 37-yard field goal on that drive, which put the Vikings up 13-6. Buchanon notched four tackles vs. Minnesota.

Piscitelli and Jackson spent a lot of time defending near the line of scrimmage. They performed well. Jackson and Piscitelli recorded six and four tackles, respectively. Tampa Bay's pass coverage was solid for the most part, evidenced by the fact that the Vikings' leading receiver, Berrian, had three catches for 46 yards.

Frerotte completed 14-of-20 (70 percent) passes for 138 yards and one touchdown. Minnesota's offense, which had just 210 total yards, converted 5-of-12 (42 percent) of third downs on Sunday.

GRADE: B

SPECIAL TEAMS
Kicker Matt Bryant missed a 46-yard field goal wide right with 1:55 remaining in the fourth quarter and the Bucs leading the Vikings 19-13. However, he was 4-of-4 on field goal attempts before that miss. Bryant's field goals came from 39, 26, 29 and 26 yards, respectively. With his extra point after the Bucs' only touchdown of the game, Bryant accounted for 13 of Tampa Bay's 19 points.

Tampa Bay's offense produced 363 yards vs. Minnesota's sixth-ranked defense, but it struggled inside the 30-yard line. Still, the Bucs were able to move the ball, evidenced by the fact that Josh Bidwell had just one punt on Sunday.

Bucs special teams captain Will Allen came up huge late in the fourth quarter when he forced Maurice Hicks to fumble a kickoff. Wide receiver Brian Clark recovered the loose ball at the 26-yard line. That led to Bryant's second 26-yard field goal, which put the Bucs up 19-13.

Tampa Bay's coverage units were strong. Minnesota averaged just 20.7 yards per kickoff return. The Vikings did not return Bidwell's only punt of the game.

GRADE: B+

COACHING
Bucs head coach Jon Gruden's offense successfully moved the ball vs. a Vikings defense that ranked sixth overall in the NFL heading into Sunday's game. Tampa Bay produced 363 yards of offense, but it had trouble moving the ball inside the 30-yard line. The Bucs had one turnover on a fumble, one missed field goal and four successful field goal tries, which proved to be enough for Tampa Bay to down Minnesota. Despite the fact that running back Earnest Graham injured his ankle on the first play of the game and did not return, Tampa Bay head coach Jon Gruden called a balanced game (Bucs had 33 rushes and 30 passes). The Bucs also outrushed Minnesota on Sunday, 108 to 99 yards. In addition to needing to work on their red zone woes, the Bucs offense must also perform much better in short-yardage situations. Minnesota stuffed Tampa Bay's ground game on several third-and-short plays, which stalled promising drives. One of those plays came on fourth-and-1 play in the first quarter, which gave the Vikings the ball at their own 40-yard line and eventually led to a 36-yard field.

Tampa Bay's defense allowed Peterson to rush for 71 yards in the first half, but he finished the game with just 85 yards on 19 carries. The Bucs offense played a big role in keeping Peterson and Co. on the sideline. Tampa Bay dominated the time of possession in the second half, 20:38 to 9:22. Although it did not intercept Frerotte, who had been picked off 11 times heading into this game, the Bucs defense did come up with five sacks and a key fumble recovery that secured the win for the Bucs on the Vikings' final drive of the game.

GRADE: B

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