By ROY CUMMINGS

rcummings@tampatrib.com

TAMPA - Like Stonehenge, the construction of the Great Pyramids of Giza and the appeal of the comedian known as Gallagher, it is a mystery that remains largely unsolved.

Only theories exist as to why the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , who have the 13th-best offense in the NFL, can't consistently score touchdowns from inside their opponent's 20-yard line.

The Bucs are 31st in the league in that key scoring category, worse than Oakland and Cleveland and better than only St. Louis, with a 35.3-percent touchdown rating. And the situation is only getting worse.

Since Week 6, when they ranked 25th in the league in red-zone production with a 41.7-percent rating, the Bucs have scored just eight touchdowns in 27 trips inside their opponents' 20, a rate of 29.6 percent.

"I can't explain it," guard Davin Joseph said. "All I know is we've been struggling there and we've got to correct it."

They need to correct it fast. The Bucs' chances of reaching the playoffs are diminishing, and they proved again last week how vulnerable they are when they can't produce touchdowns inside the red zone. The Bucs reached that critical area of the field once last week, but it was at the most opportune of times - with 1:56 remaining in a game in which they were trailing by three points.

But thanks to a second-down sack of quarterback Brian Griese and a holding penalty charged to Arron Sears on third down, four plays resulted in a net loss of 8 yards. That forced the Bucs to settle for a field goal.

"I wish I had an answer for you," veteran receiver Ike Hilliard said of the Bucs' red-zone problems. "But I don't."

As that drive against the Falcons indicates, penalties and sacks are part of the problem. The Bucs have been penalized eight times for 70 yards and taken three sacks for losses of 16 yards inside the red zone this year.

Turnovers have been a bit of an issue, too. The Bucs have fumbled the ball four times inside the red zone this year and have been intercepted there once. The biggest issue, though, seems to be plain, old execution.

The Bucs like to run the ball first and foremost inside the red zone, but their 66 rushes there this year have gained just 2.7 yards per carry. Their passing attack hasn't been much better.

The Bucs have completed 23 of 51 for the season (44.2 percent), but are eight for their past 20.

"It's definitely harder to execute plays down there," quarterback Jeff Garcia said. "You've got less room to work with and defenses tighten up down there. But I think at times we've been our own worst enemy.

"Whether it's a turnover or a penalty or just a lack of execution on our part, we've had chances to make plays and score touchdowns in the red zone, and we just haven't made them."

On several occasions this year, including a third-and-18 play from the 20 during that drive last week against the Falcons, the Bucs have clearly played for a field goal.

The Bucs appeared to do the same earlier in the year on a third-and-7 play from the 10 against Seattle, a first-and-10 play from the 17 with 18 seconds left in the half against Denver and a third-and-5 play from the 7 against Green Bay.

In all those instances the Bucs chose to hand the ball off to Warrick Dunn instead of throwing into the end zone, and some Bucs players are starting to wonder why.

Though they didn't seem to be complaining, both receiver Antonio Bryant and tight end Jerramy Stevens said this week they would like to be a little more involved in the red zone.

"I would like some more opportunities there, and I'm sure AB would like more opportunities there," Stevens said. "We feel like we have athletes that can go get the ball, so I'd like to see it."

"I would like to be involved more in the red zone, to be quite honest with you," Bryant confirmed. "A lot of receivers would like to be involved more. But we have our designated plays there. Hopefully we can execute them better."

Most of those designated plays are runs. Gruden defended that stance last week, saying some defenses force him to play for a field goal instead of being more aggressive and trying for a touchdown.

"I'm not going to apologize for running the ball on first down against a four-deep coverage," he said. "Everybody does [that]. On second-and-7 [against Atlanta] we threw the ball, we liked the play and we got sacked."

Gruden's approach may not be sitting very well with some of his players or some Bucs fans, but Chargers coach Norv Turner defended it, saying most teams look to run the ball first inside the 20.

"There are some teams that are so good down there with their coverages that you're not going to have a lot of places to throw the ball," Turner said. "But if you look every year at the four or five teams that are the best in the red zone, they all have great balance and they're all good at running the ball down there."

On plays that started between their opponent's 2- and 19-yard lines, the Bucs have been held to rushing gains of 2 yards or less 31 times.

That accounts for nearly half of all their red-zone rushing attempts, and Garcia believes the Bucs' problems scoring red-zone touchdown may be a result of their problems running the ball in the red zone.

"Last year, I think our running game was a little more effective in the red zone," Garcia said.

Last year, the Bucs had Earnest Graham running the ball in the red zone. It made a difference. The Bucs ranked 26th in red-zone production last year, but scored a touchdown on nearly half of their trips, 43.5 percent.

"When you lose a go-to guy inside the red zone, it's a problem," Gruden said. "It's hard to replace a guy like that. Earnest Graham scored a lot of touchdowns for us last year.

"And that's not to say that Warrick Dunn can't do it or that Cadillac Williams won't do it, but we've got to get better at it, and we've got to call better plays down there."

No question about it.

Reporter Roy Cummings can be reached at (813) 259-7979.

Chart:BUCS RED-ZONE WOES

3 Sacks, for losses of 16 yards, for Bucs offense in the red zone

4 Fumbles in red zone

8 Penalties, for 70 yards, in red zone

Chart:STAFF PICKS

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Photo Credit; Tribune and News Channel 8 file photos/Tribune Illustration

Photo: A sack of Brian Griese along with an untimely penalty hurt the Bucs during a critical drive last week, and the Bucs had to settle for the tying field goal.

Copyright ? 2008, The Tampa Tribune and may not be republished without permission. E-mail library@tampatrib.com