The Bucs-Lions game takes on a new flavor this year.

That's because Lions coach Rod Marinelli spent 10 seasons in Tampa Bay as the defensive line coach and was repeatedly denied chances to leave his post for a defensive coordinator's job.

Same with Marinelli's son-in-law, former Bucs linebacker coach Joe Barry, who is the Lions' defensive coordinator.

There was some bad blood spilled between those two and Bucs general manager Bruce Allen, so the emotions will be running high on both sidelines.

"You guys know me, right? So you could probably already write my answer," Marinelli said. "It's always been the gray matter. It's all about us. It's more important this week for me. It's all about us.

"But that said, we do play them. I'm very fortunate to have been there. It was a great 10 years. I had a chance to be with coach (Tony) Dungy, coach (Jon) Gruden and win a Super Bowl. Rich McKay, Bruce Allen and Monte Kiffin and all those players who are going to the Hall of Fame. The ones that were just high-motor guys, great motor guys. That's something that's in your mind forever and just locked in. I'm very, very grateful, very fortunate to have been there with great owners."

On the field, it's a classic matchup between Lions offensive coordinator Mike Martz and Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin. The two have met many times when Martz was the head coach and one-time offensive coordinator of the Rams.

Martz will try to spread the Bucs out with three- and four-receiver sets and fill the sky with footballs. The Lions have just 98 rushing and 191 passing attempts, so they aren't exactly balanced.

"Being with coach Kiffin all those years, when we went against coach Martz, he was on it," Marinelli said. "There was a great respect. We always had a great respect. And it was fun. Now, I'm on the other side with coach Martz and the respect is the same. It's just unbelievable how much respect everybody in this league has for coach Kiffin. It's awesome.

"In this league, you earn respect. And you earn not by your mouth, not by the newspapers, but by what you put on tape. As a player and a coach, what you put on tape, that goes around the league. That's how good coaches are found and how coaches get respect. You look at the tape, you say, 'Wow, that guy is doing a heck of a job and he's coaching the heck out of his players and his guys are responding.' It's about the tape you produce. Both these men, coach Martz and coach Kiffin have put out great tape for years. That respect is there."

Defensively, the Lions have been up and down. Their offense, with all its three-and-outs, have put the defense in bad situations.

The Bucs are decimated by injuries at the running back position. Tampa Bay acquired running back Michael Bennett, 29, from Kansas City Tuesday in exchange for an undisclosed draft pick in '08 and '09, based on performance criteria.

Injuries to Cadillac Williams and Michael Pittman in consecutive weeks have helped erode the Bucs ground game and Bucs running backs have mustered only 39 yards rushing the past two games.

In Kansas City, Bennett was buried on the depth chart behind running back Larry Johnson and rookie Kolby Smith. Veteran Priest Holmes also returned to practice Wednesday after spending six weeks on the physically-unable-to-perform list.

Though surprised by news of the trade, the 5-9, 207-pound Bennett also embraced it.

A former first-round pick of the Minnesota Vikings, he rushed for a career-high 1,296 yards and five touchdowns in 2002. Injuries plagued him the next two seasons until he signed a three-year deal with New Orleans in 2006. But he was dealt to the Chiefs after the Saints drafted Reggie Bush.

Bennett believes his career has been derailed by a few cases of bad timing.

"I think so. I mean, when I was in Minnesota, I did my five-year term there," Bennett said. "I signed with New Orleans. They drafted Reggie Bush and I was the odd man out, so I got traded to Kansas City. I went there, played a little bit but they have the great Larry Johnson. And Priest Holmes is coming back. It's just kind of being, you could say, in the right place but at the wrong time or vice versa. Again, I mean, it's just opportunity and I think this is a great opportunity for me to come in and play more than I was playing in Kansas City. I'm around a veteran team, a lot of great leadership on and off the field so I'm definitely thrilled to be here."

Coach Jon Gruden was so excited to add Bennett's speed that he announced to his team Wednesday morning that Bennett had run a 10.3 100-yard dash. Bennett quickly corrected him. "That was in college," he said. "I ran 9.98 in college."

How fast the Bucs can incorporate Bennett into their game plan against the Detroit Lions is uncertain. Gruden's offense, with the voluminous terminology and multitude of shifts and formations, is hard for most to grasp.

"I mean, it's like me trying to learn Chinese in 48 hours," Bennett said. "It's not going to happen. But that's why we have the coaches and the veteran players, the guys who have been here before, to kind of help me along with the progress."

SERIES HISTORY
51st meeting. The Lions lead the series, 26-24, but the Bucs have won six of the past seven games. Tampa Bay owns more wins over the Lions than any team in the league.

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