National Football League

Freeman's late TD pass lifts Bucs over Rams 18-17

Published Oct. 25, 2010 5:23 a.m. ET

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Josh Freeman answered the question with the same sort of cool he displayed while leading another fourth-quarter comeback.

''We just find a way to get it done,'' the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback said after Sunday's 18-17 victory over the St. Louis Rams. ''It's really a culture thing, a mentality thing. When the game is on the line, we have a lot of standup guys ready to make a play.''

None of them has been better in crunch time than the 6-foot-6, 248-pound Freeman, who has directed fourth-quarter rallies in three of Tampa Bay's four victories.

Two weeks ago, he produced 10 points in the final three minutes to beat Cincinnati on the road. In the season opener, he overcame an 11-point deficit to defeat Cleveland.

''I've got so much confidence in the young man. He has so much confidence in himself,'' coach Raheem Morris said. ''He says it best. He says he loves winning more than he hates losing, and that's a great way to live.''

Freeman's 1-yard touchdown pass to Cadillac Williams with 10 seconds remaining finished an 81-yard drive the second-year pro kept alive with a 9-yard throw to Kellen Winslow on fourth-and-3. A 20-yard completion to Mike Williams on third-and-10 moved the ball to the St. Louis 1.

Out of timeouts and rolling to his right to avoid a blitz, Freeman found Williams running through the middle of the end zone for the winning TD.

''We knew coming in he was going to be the X-factor for them,'' Rams defensive end Chris Long said. ''And he was.''

Connor Barth kicked four field goals for the Bucs (4-2), who trailed 17-3 before battling back to surpass their win total for last season.

Sam Bradford threw two short touchdown passes and Steven Jackson became the Rams' all-time leading rusher before things unraveled for St. Louis (3-4). Jackson finished with 110 yards on 22 carries, hiking his career total to 7,324.

''It's bittersweet,'' Jackson said. ''It's something that I've worked really hard for, for a long time - a goal that I actually set coming in as a rookie in 2004.

''So to achieve it means a lot. I just really wish that we were able to cap it off with a win. It's kind of hard to be celebrating about an individual's success when it's a team sport.''

Freeman, the third quarterback selected in the 2009 draft, improved to 7-8 in 15 career starts. He credits Ron Prince, his former coach at Kansas State, with instilling confidence to take over games down the stretch.

''I remember my coach in college telling me, `Play as well as you can for three and a half quarters, and when it comes down it, you have to step up and be the hero,''' said Freeman, who completed 23 of 40 passes for 212 yards and no interceptions. ''That's the mindset I play with.''

Bradford threw TD passes of 5 yards to Danny Amendola and 2 yards to Michael Hoomanawanui to build the Rams' lead in the second quarter.

''This one hurts a lot,'' Bradford said. ''To be up 17-3 at one point, to be up 17-6 at half, and then come out and just really not be able to get anything going on offense, this one's tough.''

A week after joining Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson and Marshall Faulk as the only runners with at least 25 100-yard rushing performances for the Rams, Jackson moved ahead of Dickerson, who gained 7,245 yards from 1983-87, on a 3-yard carry to midfield.

Amendola scooted 21 yards on an end around on the next play, and Jackson broke a 12-yard run to set Bradford's short TD throw to Amendola to finish an 80-yard drive that put St. Louis up 10-3 midway through the second quarter.

Hoomanawanui's touchdown, three plays after the Rams took a field goal off the board when Tampa Bay's Ronde Barber was penalized for being offside, made it 17-3.

Jackson gained 74 yards on 12 carries in the first half. The Bucs slowed him in the second half, in part because Freeman finally got the offense on track.

Tampa Bay overcame 12 penalties for 92 yards by holding the ball for nearly 11 minutes of the third quarter, then another 6:33 of the final period.

Bradford finished 13 of 26 for 126 yards and no interceptions. The Rams rushed for 161 yards, but only had 96 yards of total offense after halftime.

''We're going to have to look at the film, find out what we're doing different in the first half that's allowing us to have success that we're not doing in the second half,'' Bradford said.

''It seemed like we never got in a rhythm as an offense. I've got to make more plays. ... When we're down like that, I've got to be able to get us going as an offense. I've got to be able to step up and make a throw, and I just wasn't able to do that today.''

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