"The game was circling the drain in the fourth quarter Sunday against the Saints when Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman scrambled to his right and stepped out of bounds near midfield after a 3-yard gain. That's when cornerback Malcolm Jenkins took a shot at Freeman's knees after he was clearly out of bounds. Flags flew, tempers flared and Freeman was in Jenkins' face like an orthodontist. "Completely unnecessary and cheap to take a shot at my knees, and I got up and let him know," Freeman said. Then Jenkins let a right haymaker go in the direction of Freeman's head. Jenkins received two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties — one for the late hit and one for throwing the punch — for 30 yards and likely a hefty fine from the league. But after the Saints' 31-6 pummeling of them, now we'll find out if the Bucs can take a punch. For the second time in three games, the Bucs were soundly beaten by one of the NFL's heavyweights, Sunday's loss reminiscent of the 38-13 whipping by Pittsburgh on Sept. 26. But it wasn't as if Reggie Bush or even Pierre Thomas mopped up the turf with the Bucs. No, sir. With both running backs injured, the Saints turned to Chris Ivory, an undrafted rookie from Tiffin (Ohio), a Division II school that went 0-11 last season. Ivory accounted for 158 of the Saints' season-high 212 yards rushing, and Drew Brees passed for 263 yards and three touchdowns as the defending Super Bowl champs racked up a season-high 475 yards while recording a season high in points and converting 9 of 12 third downs. Ivory's performance came less than a week after a prosecutor in Washington state said he has been charged with second-degree assault stemming from a July 2009 altercation in which he's accused of hitting another man in the head with a bottle. Ivory, who was dismissed from the Washington State team after the incident and transferred to Tiffin, denies the allegation. The Bucs (3-2) fell a half-game behind the Saints and Falcons in the NFC South. "We have two losses versus the heavyweights, and there's no doubt it tells you where you are," Bucs coach Raheem Morris said. "You can't hide from that fact."" http://www.tampabay.com/sports/football/bucs/article1128745.ece
