The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have turned the page on their 19-13 win over the Minnesota Vikings. That win gave the Bucs a 7-3 record and kept the team one game behind the 8-2 Carolina Panthers in the NFC South race.

Next up for the Buccaneers are the Detroit Lions, who still are looking for their first win of the season. The Lions currently own the NFL's worst record with a 0-10 mark, but Tampa Bay head coach Jon Gruden wants his players focused on Detroit's players and not the team's record, especially since the Buccaneers barely survived a trap game in Kansas City two weeks ago.  

"I don't know how many wins they have. I could care less," Gruden said of the Lions. "I just know that we have to play better. We went to Kansas City and I think they only had a win or so and we barely beat them. Cincinnati pushed Philadelphia to overtime. The Raiders were leading Miami on the last play of the game. This is the NFL, man. We have to play better."

One of the more interesting aspects of Sunday's game is the fact that the Lions roster and coaching staff is littered with former Bucs players and coaches, including head coach Rod Marinelli, linebackers coach Joe Barry and defensive backs coach Jimmy Lake. In addition, Detroit's roster includes former Tampa Bay defensive end Dewayne White, defensive tackle Chuck Darby, linebacker Ryan Nece and safeties Kalvin Pearson and Dwight Smith.

"They'll know more about us than any team they'll play all year," Gruden said. "They have a lot of our former coaches and players there. This will be a big game for them. They played Carolina hard yesterday. All I know is that the Detroit Lions are a tough team to play in that dome. We watched the Redskins game, we've watched them play in there. We're going to have to rally around the healthy men that we have and try to find a way to get our eighth win."

Gruden's message is already registering with his players. Bucs 10-time Pro Bowl linebacker Derrick Brooks was part of the 2007 Bucs team that went into Detroit and lost to the Lions last October, 23-16. Brooks believes the Lions, who have lost five of their last six games by less than 10 points, are a much better team than their record suggests.

"We're playing the Detroit Lions. The record means nothing to us," said Brooks. "The fact that they've beaten us the last two times we've traveled there, that's what means something to us. The record is meaningless. They could easily be 10-0 if a couple of plays went the other way."

GRUDEN PLEASED WITH GARCIA'S PERFORMANCE
Tampa Bay quarterback Jeff Garcia played an integral role in helping the Bucs down the Vikings at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday. Garcia completed 23-of-30 passes for 255 yards and tossed no touchdowns or interceptions. He also rushed for 21 yards on six attempts.

Although the Bucs scored just one touchdown despite getting inside Minnesota's 30-yard line seven times, Garcia helped the Bucs sustain drives, which allowed them to dominate the time of possession in the second half by over 10 minutes.

"Jeff was great. Jeff played a great game," Gruden said. "I think Minnesota only had seven plays in the third quarter. I believe they only had two-and-a-half minutes of time of possession in the fourth quarter. He was outstanding delivering the football and creating plays with his legs. He ran for [21] yards. He played an excellent game.

"When he plays at that level, we're pretty good. I have to do a better job, certainly. We have to do a better job in short yardage and goal line and score some touchdowns. But Jeff, the way he ran that no-huddle yesterday and the tempo in which he plays is exciting. I know our players really enjoy it."

Garcia was not sacked by Minnesota's defense, which entered the game with 25 quarterback takedowns. However, Garcia did get knocked down. On one particular play, Garcia was knocked to the ground late, which drew a penalty on a Vikings defender and earned Garcia a few stitches under his chin.

"He got hit - it was a late hit," Gruden said. "You hit a quarterback late, he's going to get stitches. He's going to get hurt. That's too bad, but Jeff's okay I think."

BRYANT HAVING PRO BOWL-CALIBER SEASON
Bucs kicker Matt Bryant was Tampa Bay's main offensive weapon vs. Minnesota. He made 4-of-5 field goals and was good on his only extra point attempt, helping him account for 13 of Tampa Bay's 19 points.

Bryant has made 24-of-28 (85.7 percent) of his field goal attempts this season. What makes that kicking percentage even more impressive is the fact that Bryant has been through so much adversity, including the sudden passing of his infant son Tryson in September.

It is unclear whether Bryant will be voted to the Pro Bowl, but he's got at least one person's vote.

 "He's not only had a great season, but what a great performance given the circumstances," Bucs head coach Jon Gruden said. "The tragedy he has suffered through doesn't go away in three or four or six weeks. For him to go out there and kick game-winners at Arrowhead and make four field goals yesterday, he should be in the Pro Bowl. He's in mine."

DEFENSE DOMINATES
Tampa Bay's defense has finished 10 of the past 11 seasons ranked in the top 10 in the NFL. Through 10 games, Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin's group currently ranks fifth overall.

The Bucs defense limited the Vikings offense to just 210 yards. That includes the 99 yards rushing posted by Minnesota's sixth-ranked ground game. In addition, Tampa Bay's defense registered five sacks on Minnesota quarterback Gus Frerotte.

Needless to say, it was an impressive performance.

"The defense did extremely well, and I thought the offense did extremely well," Gruden said. "It limited [running back Adrian Peterson's] opportunities to even be on the field. The best way to shut him down is to leave him on the sidelines. I thought our defense tackled. We got people to the football. It's a credit to Coach Kiffin and the defense, but it's also very much a credit to the offense for possessing the ball [20:38 to 9:22 in the second half] and keeping him off the field as long as they did."

WHERE'S GALLOWAY?
The Buccaneers claim wide receiver Joey Galloway is 100 percent healthy, but you wouldn't necessarily know it based on his playing time.

Galloway, who missed all of training camp and preseason with a groin injury and nearly half of the season with a foot ailment, received a limited number of reps vs. the Vikings on Sunday. Galloway, who turns 37 this month, was held without a catch.

Although Tampa Bay's offense, which had 363 yards of offense vs. Minnesota, did not feature a lot of three-receiver sets, which would put Galloway on the field with starters Antonio Bryant and Michael Clayton, Gruden said he needs to find a way to get Galloway on the field more often.

 "That's my fault," Gruden said. "I'm doing my best. We had a lot of two-receiver sets yesterday. We wanted to keep them out of their nickel. They are very specialized in their nickel. They get tremendous pass rush. We used the no-huddle offense as part of our game plan. To be honest with you, I have a hard time taking number 89 off the field and number 80 has been doing very well at the same time. I'm going to do a better job and do the best I can to get to be fair and get everyone on the field."

HOME SWEET HOME
With its win over Minnesota at Raymond James Stadium on Sunday, the Buccaneers improved to 5-0 at home this season, which is the best start the team has ever had at home. The good news for Tampa Bay is of its six remaining regular season games, three more (New Orleans, San Diego and Oakland) are at home.

"I believe it's the first time we started 5-0 at home in our history," Gruden said. "I thank our fans and I'm really proud of our team."

QUESTIONABLE CALL?
Bucs head coach Jon Gruden took issue with the personal foul, late hit penalty issued to offensive tackle Jeremy Trueblood in the first quarter of Sunday's game. The infraction put the Bucs in a third-and-17 situation at Minnesota's 30-yard line.

Although the Bucs still managed to get a 39-yard field goal out of it, the penalty was a drive killer. Gruden defended Trueblood's actions on Monday.

"There was a play there where there was a 15-yard penalty and the whistle had not blown," Gruden said. "The ballcarrier is struggling for yards and the defense is hustling to the pile and trying to strip the ball and gang-tackle the runner. Trueblood is one of those guys that doesn't like to see that. He's hustling and he's trying to peel some of the defenders off the pile before the play is dead. I think we need to take a look at that and maybe coach that a little bit better. But we do coach our players to play hard and finish through the whistle."

QUOTE OF THE DAY
Bucs head coach Jon Gruden on linebacker Derrick Brooks' performance vs. the Vikings.

"I'm going to pass out game balls today. I have five tackles, two assists, a pass broken up, a key stop on fourth-and-1, a key tackle for a loss and 11 factor grades for Derrick Brooks. So, way to go, Brooks! Hell, he's something else. He's the heart and soul of our team and I'm proud of him."

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