Today's Coverage:
• Chicago Cubs at Brewers
Brewers Gameday on Newsradio 620 WTMJ and a live blog here
• Packers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Packers OT now on 94.5 WKTI and a live blog here
Postgame coverage of both contests on Live at 5 and 10 on TODAY'S TMJ4

Next game: Sunday, October 5 vs. Atlanta
Packers Gameday at 9:00 a.m. on Newsradio 620 WTMJ, a live blog here, and postgame on Live at 5 and 10 on Today's TMJ4

4th Quarter

3:10 p.m,.  :46  Packers' 4th Drive
Ball goes on downs to Tampa Bay after Flynn can't get it done on a four-and-out.

3:05 p.m.  1:58  Bucs' 3rd Drive
Buccaneers 30, Packers 21
Graham goes to the GB 1 yard line and pretty much ends it.  Adding injury to insult: Collins looked like he got hurt.

Graham finishes off the Packers

2:59 p.m.  2:12  Packers' 2nd Drive
The pooch directional kick goes out of bounds and Rodgers comes in with the ball at the GB 40.

Rodgers INT'd by Gaines Adams as he got destroyed by a rushing lineman.  Nothing he could do. 

Read more below this series of links:

Packers Gameday Audio:
• Pregame w/Coach McCarthy
• Packers Insider: Tramon Williams
• Blast from the Past: 1997 NFC Playoffs vs. Tampa Bay
• Pro Football Weekly

More Coverage:
• Our Experts Predict
• Packers Hydrated for Tampa
• Grant Returns to Form 
• Packers Platter: Mader's

4th Quarter

2:56 p.m.  2:26  Bucs' 2nd Drive
Buccaneers 23, Packers 21
Bryant 24 yd FG
The drive starts at the GB 36 thanks to a bad punt, and the D-tackles are doing nothing as Graham goes seven yards on 1st down. 

Rodgers is out of the game thanks to the shoulder injury which he suffered while trying to scramble for a 1st down.

Graham ran for a first and ANOTHER DB injury - Aaron Rouse, knee injury.   Griese scrambles for a first down at the 13 yard line, and Griese proves he's a non-athletic statue who can scramble for key yards.

As time continues to drain in the game, under five minutes, 3rd-5 at the 7 - stuffed short of the 1st down.  Not only was Bishop's hit big, but it means a score comes earlier and gives Flynn/Rodgers/whoever more time with 2 time outs left.

2:47 p.m.  8:30  Packers' 2nd Drive
The Matt Flynn era begins with Rodgers on the sidelines and Flynn doing NOTHING. 

2:43 p.m.  9:40  Buccaneers' 2nd Drive
They're running a lot of Earnest Graham to try to milk the clock.  Cool.  Rest Rodgers' arm more, please? 

There has got to be a serious butterfingers problem on a big 20 yard completion where Griese avoids Jenkins...and Jenkins looks hurt.  That is not what we want, either.  He's hurt.

Pass interference on Clayton - but he really didn't do much.  We got away with one.

2:29 p.m.  14:33  Buccaneers' 1st Drive
Packers 21, Buccaneers 20
Woodson 58 INT return TD
Shoulder injury on Rodgers - "questionable" - but Wayne seemed to think Rodgers said "I'm OK" on the sidelines.

Why is Michael Clayton matched up on A.J. Hawk?  A crossing pattern to get into GB territory. 

CHARLES WOODSON!   THANK YOU AGAIN FOR SAVING OUR HIDES!  He took the ball right from Warrick Dunn on an INT and went to the house.

That helps Rodgers rest his shoulder.

3rd Quarter

2:25 p.m.  0:00  Buccaneers' 3rd Drive
Rodgers got hurt on the TD pass - Matt Flynn coming in?  PLEASE, no!  A right-arm issue, but he warms up and is OK.

Bryant was double covered on a deep pass...Larry: "Say what?"  Called on Aaron Rouse. 

2:21 p.m.  1:46  Packers' 3rd Drive
Buccaneers 20, Packers 14
Rodgers-Jennings 48 TD pass
Ryan Grant has GOT to get better blocking, because Chris Hovan just pushed Ryan Grant back like a blocking sled on 2nd and 10.  3rd-16?  Jennings on the slant!!!!  HUGE TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!  That changes games, people.  He's "just fast enough" to be the slowest game-breaker in the NFL!

2:18 p.m.  4:02  Bucs' 3rd Drive
Nick Collins must come from the Julius "The Doctor" Erving and Michael Jordan school of hops, because he showed about a 900' vertical to INT Griese.

2:15 p.m.  4:36  Packers' 3rd Drive
Thanks for the late hit to, at last, give Green Bay good field position when they need it, BIG TIME.  GB 40 for first down.  3rd and 8...Rodgers has to scramble, but Elbert Mack stops him two yards short of the yellow line.

2:10 p.m.  6:00  Packers' 2nd Drive
Buccaneers 20, Packers 7
Phelps 38 yd fumble return TD
One play, Grant fumble, Jermaine Phelps returns the fumble for the score.  What is this, Ahman Green-itis?  Nope...Derrick Brooks just hit the ball with his helment.  BETTER PROTECTION, Grant!

2:07 p.m.  6:29  Bucs' 2nd Drive
1st and 20 - WILLIAMS!  If you just hold on to the ball on the near pick you dropped, it's a touchdown.  We are AGAIN PROVING we cannot tackle Warrick Dunn.  He has 84 combined yards already.  3rd down INT - penalty of a late hit on Aaron Kampman?  What are you thinking, ref?  Are you watching Brewers-Cubs or something?

Johnny Jolly!  You must be hungry...on first down, eating Warrick Dunn for lunch.  Nick Collins on a nice 3rd down stop. 

1:56 p.m. 9:43  Packers' 1st Drive
1st down - uh, will you ever, Aaron, throw to another WR besides Jennings?  Nice play to Greg on 2nd down, but not enough for a first, and a stuffed run kills Green Bay again.  The ball bounces at the two on the punt but Patrick Lee can't bat it out of the end zone.

1:51 p.m. 12:22  Buccaneers' 1st Drive
Bucs start their first drive in a much worse position than the average - the GB 47 - in the first half.  Not for Green Bay - the TB 24.  Well, maybe not - Crosby gets him near the TB 45.  OK, special teams.  We don't like kickers making tackles.

Graham is exploding off the line, thanks to a gaping hole.  20 yards, on 1st down, and Ryan Pickett again is doing NOTHING defensively on the line.  Repeat of last week.  Same thing on the Dunn run left side.

Why the heck are they exploding cannons on runs into the red zone?  Annoying.

Tramon Williams Johnny on the spot and he's got a caravan before going out of bounds - the pass through the hands of Clayton.  Explode a cannon for that!!!

2nd Quarter

1:23 p.m. 1:32  Packers' 3rd Drive
After a Barrett Ruud sack...BRANDON JACKSON you are the lifesaver - 18 yard gain to produce a 3rd and short.  A third and short that Jennings butterfingers - HOW COULD YOU DO THAT?  They're going for it on 4th and 10 with :10 left??  It has to go to the sideline - out of bounds to Jennings - Tampa Bay gets the ball. 

1:23 p.m. 1:07  Bucs' 3rd Drive
Bryant 36 FG
A heck of a stop by Cullen Jenkins on 1st down.  2nd Down - Collins, you HAVE to hold on to that overthrown pass!!  That's what makes great defensive backs instead of average ones.  But Earnest Graham gained a first down at the GB 21, which makes me sick - though it's eased when Jeremy Trueblood gets the false start to set up a 1st and 15.

Can we stop Warrick Dunn?  Ryan Pickett and Aaron Kampman had them wrapped up and couldn't. 

But thanks to another Packers stop, Bryant has to kick a 36 yard field goal.

1:12 p.m. 5:27  Packers' 3rd Drive
Great gain by Jennings on a pass from Rodgers across the field - the first BIG play this team has had and they needed it.  A sack by Wilkerson, though, partially negated the big play.

Then, Rodgers made his first costly mistake of the season - an INT, overthrowing Driver, to Barrett Ruud.

1:06 p.m. 6:47  Packers' 2nd Drive
Matt Bryant 23 FG
Well, the Bucs seem to be using Earnest Graham more to try and run down the clock and make the Packers' defenders tired.  And it seems like Nick Barnett is feeling the effects - if that's a proper excuse for Barnett's missed tackle on Warrick Dunn that extended his gain another 10 yards into the red zone.

Love the end zone pass coverage by A.J. Hawk on Jerramy Stevens to force the 4th down and field goal.

Pray for Matt Bryant.  He lost his child this week in what seemed to be a freak accident.  Regardless of whether he's in another uniform, it's a tragedy.

1:00 p.m. 11:13  Packers' 2nd Drive
Desmond Bishop gets nailed for a personal foul call, and...oh no...Will Blackmon is injured?  Do I need to get in training to play d-back for the Packers???  This is getting insane!

That penalty and a horrific 1st down run forces a three-and-out that puts the Bucs in prime field position - and as a matter of fact, they BARELY avoided a punt block for a safety. 

12:52 p.m. 12:09  Bucs' 1st Drive
Packers 7, Buccaneers 7
Griese-Alex Smith 9 yd TD pass
A flag later than the service we often get when we go get fast food near Radio City...Charles Woodson for illegal contact.  I think those fast food restaurants trained the refs.

2nd down and 7 - see what happens when blockers get tied up by Pickett and Jolly?  Linebackers like "Badabinga" Poppinga come to the runing back!

3rd down - Bryant beat Blackmon this time on the slant for a first down. 

1st-goal, Michael Montgomory had a chance to tackle Alex Smith and, as Wayne put it - whiffed. 

12:44 p.m.  14:51   Packers' 1st Drive
A pass through the hands of Brandon Jackson leads to Derrick Brooks INT'ing Rodgers.  Not his fault, but the stat sheet doesn't care.

1st Quarter

12:41 p.m.  0:00   Packers' 3rd Drive
3rd-down - Hey!  Donald Lee can catch when the ball is thrown at his numbers!  Nice first down catch in traffic.

We don't love 1st down holding penalties...but Ryan Grant got good yardage to save a 9 yard loss before a 2 yard gain - and Colledge and Phillips go fighting.

12:35 p.m.  2:42   Bucs' 2nd Drive
1st-10 to start the drive: the theme continues.  Rodgers hit Donald Lee in the head.  This time, Brian Griese hits a ref in the head.  The ref has a little less advantage - no helmet to bounce off of.  But a 3rd down holding penalty on Charles Woodson keeps the drive alive.

Antonio Bryant turned Nick Collins and Tramon Williams into Tampa Bay toast, but Griese overcooked the throw and missed him.  It could have been curtains.

Warrick Dunn still has moves, still is quick in the hole despite being older than 99% of biblical characters, as he proved on a 2nd down play near midfield.  But on the next play, Charles Woods made another awesome play one-on-one against Maurice Stovall.  Woodson is such a tough stud besides being an awesome athlete.

12:26 p.m.  6:00   Packers' 2nd Drive
Another 3rd and 1 - and Ryan Grant made another great first down.  We like these third and ones, so as to not allow to allow Rodgers to get his head cut off by Tampa Bay's great speed rush.

Another 3rd, this time 5, and for the second time, Rodgers had to simply throw a football away or avoid a sack because Tampa Bay's secondary is playing spectacular.

12:19 p.m.  8:58   Bucs' 1st Drive
Tramon Williams and Johnny Jolly were the heroes on this defensive three-and-out.  Jolly stuffed a 2nd down run, and Williams showed he was up to the task on 3rd down with blanket coverage.

12:13 p.m.  10:42   Packers' 1st Drive
Green Bay 7, Tampa Bay 0
Rodgers-Jennings 25 yd TD pass
A great Blackmon return got them into Tampa territory, but a Ryan Grant run got them just short.  Even if it doesn't work on 4th...good to go for it...uh, did Rodgers get the sneak for the first?  (That's his 39,288th sneak this season, seemingly.)  By half a football!!!!  Phew.

(2nd down at TB 49) Let's see, Donald Lee, when you see a pass coming for you right at your head, you might want to put your hands up a little faster than you did, so it doesn't hit you in la cabeza.  (Spanish teachers, feel free to help me with how I spell mi espanol.)

Jordy Nelson, you apparaently know how to catch better than Lee did.  Thank you.

Ronde Barber, you apparently don't have the panache of your brother Tiki , nor his ability to avoid slipping when Greg Jennings burns you for a TD!

11:53 a.m.
Injury report:
Packers: S Atari Bigby (hamstring), FB Korey Hall (knee), CB Al Harris (spleen), WR James Jones (knee), RB Kregg Lumpkin(hamstring)
Buccaneers: FB B.J. Askey (hamstring), WR Joey Galloway (foot), G Devin Joseph (foot) 

Pregame Story

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- Brian Griese can relate to what Aaron Rodgers is going through in his first season as Brett Favre's successor.

When John Elway retired in 1999 after leading Denver to consecutive Super Bowl titles, a young Griese took over the Broncos' offense and learned firsthand how difficult it can be to follow a legend.

"I think he's handled it the right way," said Griese, now in his 11th season and three weeks into his second stint as the starting quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, his fourth NFL team.

"I think the less you say the better. I think you let your play speak for yourself, and he's played really well."

Rodgers' Packers (2-1) face Griese's Bucs (2-1) Sunday at Raymond James Stadium in what two months ago had the potential to be one of the most anticipated matchups of the year because of Tampa Bay's interest in acquiring Favre when he decided to come out of retirement.

But Green Bay was unwilling to trade the three-time MVP to another NFC team and wound up dealing him to the New York Jets.

Bucs coach Jon Gruden is unapologetic about his pursuit of Favre, a move that didn't sit well with then-starter Jeff Garcia, who lost his job to Griese after a poor performance in Tampa Bay's opener.

"We haven't done anything other than try to assemble the best football team we can," Gruden said.

"We'll play the best players at each position, and we're going to try to get the best players at each position on our team. That's your responsibility. Not everybody's going to agree with you, but the ultimate goal here is to win. And to do that, you have to have your best players on the field."

Both teams clearly have moved on.

The Packers are off to a solid start, with Rodgers mostly sticking to coach Mike McCarthy's game plans and making big plays when opportunities arise, a formula for success dramatically different than that of Favre, a master at improvising.

Above all, the 24-year-old has done a good job of protecting the ball in victories over Minnesota and Detroit, as well as last week's 27-16 loss to Dallas. Through three starts, he's completed 64 of 99 passes for 796 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions.

"With the kind of preparation I put in during the week, I expect to play well on Sundays and Mondays, so I wasn't surprised by the way I've played so far," Rodgers said.

"I am disappointed with the loss last week, obviously. But for me, my biggest hurdle every week is just preparing the same way, watching a lot of film, practicing very hard and studying the game plan."

It all sounds familiar to Griese, 2-0 since replacing Garcia, including last week's 27-24 overtime win at Chicago in which he threw a franchise-record 67 times and finished with a career-best 407 yards passing.

Griese was 24, in his second year in the league, when he stepped in for Elway and went 4-9 as a starter in 1999.

He led the NFL in passer rating and made the Pro Bowl the following season, and by the time he and the Broncos parted ways in 2003, he was second on the club's all-time list in attempts, completions and completion percentage.

"I think you go into it humble and say, listen I'm not going to try to be Brett Favre. I didn't try to be John Elway," Griese said. "You can't do that, you've got to be yourself and play within yourself. He's got plenty of talent to make it in this league, and I think he will."

The Bucs quarterback doesn't buy the notion that following great players, such as Elway and Favre, are impossible situations.

"I don't think that at all. It's still football. You've still got 11 guys on the field. There's a lot of pressure whether you follow Brett Favre or not," Griese said.

"Let's be honest. In this league, there's pressure in Cincinnati, there's pressure in Pittsburgh. It doesn't matter where you are. If you can't handle that pressure, and you don't have thick skin, you're not going to make it. Now, it's a little bit worse in (Rodgers') case, but I think he's done well."

Rodgers' mobility seemed to catch the Vikings and Lions by surprise in the first two games. However, the fourth-year pro was sacked five times by the Cowboys, who also faced him last season.

Tampa Bay feels one of the keys to being successful Sunday will be getting him on the ground when they have an opportunity.

"If not," Bucs defensive tackle Chris Hovan said, "he finds a second or third option and, all of a sudden, it's a first down in our territory."

Rodgers is confident the Packers, who will be without injured cornerback Al Harris (spleen) on defense, will rebound with a strong performance.

"You need to respond. It's going to be a good test for our team," Rodgers said. "We're a young team, we faced a little bit of adversity against Dallas, we got beat, we're 2-1, (and now) we're playing a big game against a good team that's won two in a row."

Harris' replacement is Tramon Williams, a second-year player who was a walk-on at Louisiana Tech and undrafted coming out of college. He bounced around from tryout to tryout and has gone from practice-squad afterthought to key contributor during his time in Green Bay.

"He really has come out of nowhere in a sense, compared to the normal path," McCarthy said.

"We feel very comfortable letting him step in there and play. I'm excited for him, and we won't even blink with him in there. His work ethic has just been tremendous. And now he gets the opportunity that every young player is looking for."

Throwing 67 times against the Bears left Griese, 33, with a sore arm but not the belief that will be the way he makes his living the rest of the season. The Bucs hope to be able to run the ball effectively against the Packers.

"I would go to bed happy every night if I never threw the ball 67 times again," said Griese, who led the Bucs back from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit.

"But I think it was a necessity. We had to find a way to win, and I think that was the way to do it. This week will be different. We do need to find a balance to be successful. We talk over and over about it, but that's the recipe for success in this league."

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)