It's the Rai-de-rs on Sunday

By By Jeff Byrd / sports editor
Jan. 24, 2003
So who's the pick for Sunday's Super Bowl?
Well, let's go back in time. Turn the clock back to 1976. This was the last time two teams with fighting mascots met in the Super Bowl.
You know the one. The Vikings and the Rai-de-rs.
That game was the first Super Bowl to be played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.
It was won by the Rai-de-rs, 32-14. The two indelible images from that Super Bowl provided by us through the magic of NFL films was a then young but never light, John Madden, being somewhat carried off the field.
But the most telling image was the close-up shot of Yazoo City's own Willie Brown taking a Fran Tarkenton pass back for a Rai-de-r touchdown. The score broke the Vikings hopes and sealed the Rai-de-rs first NFL championship.
Skip forward to 2003. This time, its the Tampa Buccaneers against the Rai-de-rs. It's also being played in sunny and warm California, but further down the coast in San Diego.
The fact that the game is being played on the west coast is an important factor in favoring the Rai-de-rs. Call it home-coast advantage. Hey, the last time they were Super Bowl Champs, in 1984, they were known as Los Angeles, Rai-de-rs.
The belief here is that the Bucs are about to get nailed by the convergence of jet lag and Super Bowl mania. This is a team that won a road game in Philadelphia, something they had not done before. Then they turn around, fly back to Tampa and then, the very next day, head to San Diego right in time for the Super Bowl crush.
If your're a Buc fan, Jon Gruden's gang could really use that extra week.
Historically, though, games with a just a week in between have turned out to be better games. Case in point were two of the last three Super Bowls two of the best games played in the 36-game series St. Louis Rams 23, Tennessee 16; and New England 20, St. Louis 17. Both games were decided on the final play of the game.
The extra week tends to help the team that is considered the better team. But for this game, most pickers are still scratching their collective heads as to that is.
Chris Berman of ESPN is going with the Bucs 24-23. A surprise to me was former Eagle quarterback and ESPN analyst Ran Jaworski also going with the Bucs 21-20.
Doesn't he remember the pounding he took by the Rai-de-rs in 1981 at the Louisiana Superdome? It was something like 27-10, Rai-de-rs.
With Berman picking the Bucs, that should tell many, to go with Oakland.
But his pick makes no difference to me.
This is why the Rai-de-rs are my pick.
First, what is the only team to beat the Bucs, not once, but twice this season? It was our own New Orleans Saints, 26-20 and 23-20.
So here's my hunch. The Saints run the west-coast offense. It features three excellent receivers and a quick back. That was the key to Saints offensive explosion for the first 13 weeks of the season.
They were able to beat the Bucs using their version of the west coast offense. Donte Stallworth was able to stretch out the field creating space for Joe Horn and Lamar Pathon.
The Bucs rely on a cover-two defense. Other than Ronde Barber, they don't have great corners.
Guess what? The Raiders run the west coast offense. The big difference is Rich Gannon is a far better quarterback than Aaron Brooks.
Defenses do win championships, but the Super Bowl, has always been more known for outstanding quarterbacks. The list: Joe Namath, Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana, Brett Friday's Games
Phoenix at Orlando, 7 p.m.
Seattle at Indiana, 7 p.m.
Denver at Boston, 7:30 p.m.
Sacramento at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m.
Dallas at New York, 7:30 p.m.
Washington at Chicago, 8 p.m. and John Elway.
Add to that one-game wonders which include two steady and reliable Rai-de-r quarterbacks in Kenny Stabler and Jim Plunkett.
When the Saints and Bucs tangled back in late November at the Dome, the Bucs' defense got after Brooks and the Saints. They got an early lead, but then the Saints came back and scored quickly. The Saints led 23-12 going into the fourth quarter.
The Bucs scored late and then got the two-point conversion to make it 23-20, but the Saints didn't blow the late lead like they did against the Vikings, and the 23-20 score held up.
The forecast for Sunday is similar. Raiders get a good lead, the Bucs make a comeback, but the pick Raiders still win by more than a touchdown.
The pick, the Rai-de-rs, 31-20.