Ask the Buccaneers, who went from 9-3 and the second seed in the NFC with a chance to win their division to 9-5 and clinging to the final wild-card playoff spot after back to back losses at Carolina and Atlanta.

The Bucs pretty much need to sweep their final two games at home - against San Diego Sunday and Oakland a week later - to guarantee a post-season spot.

But Tampa Bay is not playing its best football when it needs it most.

Worse yet, the Bucs have been hit with injuries. Quarterback Jeff Garcia, who did not play at Atlanta last week because of a right leg injury, has been limited in practice this week but did take more reps again Friday and coach Jon Gruden said he expects Garcia to start.

Defensive tackle Chris Hovan, who missed the Falcons game with a knee injury, should return. Defensive end Gaines Adams is fighting through an ankle sprain. And linebacker Derrick Brooks, who was named to his 11th Pro Bowl, has a rib injury and will not practice until late in the week, if at all. He has never missed a game in his career.

Garcia sounded determined to tough it out against the Chargers if at all possible.

"I really just have to do my best to block it out," Garcia said Wednesday. "I really just have to take the approach that I'm going to be me and do whatever I have to do in order to be successful and not think about what I'm trying to overcome. And hopefully at that point on Sunday, it won't even be a question mark.

"But I think for myself, just watching this past Sunday and how difficult that was and frustrating for myself, and not to take anything away from the guys who stepped in because Brian (Griese) did what he had to do, but for me, it was just very difficult to watch and I don't want to be in that situation again. I want to do whatever I can to help this team and hopefully I am that guy who can do this."

Griese, who had been inactive for two months with tendinitis in his right elbow, did well last week to complete 70 percent of his passes for 269 yards with one touchdown and an interception. But he managed to only move the Bucs into the end zone once in 13 possessions.

"We just split the reps a little bit differently than we did last week and put the game plan together a little differently than we did last week," Gruden said midweek. "There are a lot of things that are different this Wednesday than last Wednesday and you guys know why. We have an obvious injury at the position that's a little bit more serious than unfortunately we all thought."

Luke McCown said he expected to start at Atlanta last week if Garcia couldn't go, but he was informed about two hours before the game by quarterbacks coach Greg Olson that Griese got the assignment.

"Yeah, I was surprised," McCown said. "But he's the coach, he makes the decisions. He made the decision and felt that was a better way to go. I'm never one to rant and rave and complain. I don't think that does the situation any good."

McCown hasn't taken a meaningful snap since last Dec. 2 when he started and won a critical game at New Orleans. Like Garcia, he will be a free agent at the end of the season. But the Bucs are hoping their fate rests with Garcia.

"I think Griese did a great job in the game, for someone who didn't practice or play for six weeks," tight end Jerramy Stevens said. "I think he did an amazing job. But Jeff is our starter and our leader. And he does bring a lot of energy and his ability to make plays on the run and create stuff. That's what we're used to playing with. That's what we expect to have out there this Sunday and hopefully he's able to go and give us that spark."

The Bucs will need it. The Chargers (6-8) have won two in a row and still have an outside shot at winning the AFC West. So every game is an elimination game for them.

The Chargers still are loaded with talent with running back LaDainian Tomlinson and QB Phillip Rivers, one of the league's highest-rated passers.

But the Chargers have been wildly inconsistent running the ball and are among the worst against the pass.

Tampa Bay is 6-0 at home and will have to be perfect this season to move on. The Bucs currently hold a tie-breaker over the Atlanta Falcons but the Cowboys and Eagles are also positioned for a playoff spot.

SERIES HISTORY: 9th regular-season meeting. The Chargers lead the series 7-1. The Chargers won the last game between the teams in San Diego 31-24. The Bucs' only victory in the series was a 25-17 victory in 1996, the game that former Bucs players Warren Sapp and John Lynch credit for helping turn around the franchise.