PHILADELPHIA -- For an outsider not knowing the goings on of the past year, you could have sworn this was the same old Bucs team that marched into Veterans Stadium for its annual whipping.

Warren Sapp was a terror on the defensive line. Linebacker Derrick Brooks made big plays. Strong safety John Lynch charged up near the line of scrimmage to make big hits. And the offense was missing in action. The Bucs lost to the Eagles 20-10 Sunday with an offense that seemed to be no better than the offenses that were stuffed by the Eagles in the past two playoff appearances.

	Gruden

The new coach is Jon Gruden, an offensive mastermind who can't get this offense kick-started. He replaced Tony Dungy, who was known for creating the defense that made the Bucs an annual Super Bowl contender.

Against the Eagles on Sunday, the Bucs gained 207 yards on 65 plays. That's a pathetic 3.2 yards a play. They had 81 yards rushing. Worse, they produced only 126 net yards passing, a number that decreased because of six sacks.

"It was an ineffective offense to say the least today, especially on third down," Gruden said. "The Eagles are really good on defense physically and structurally they give you a lot of looks. But we have to do a lot better to ever beat the Philadelphia Eagles. We have to make some plays on offense."

In many ways, you have to feel sorry for quarterback Brad Johnson, who has lost to the Eagles in the Vet when he was a Redskin and now a Buc. In many ways, he must feel left alone out there. For one, he doesn't have an effective running game against good defenses. Michael Pittman gained 49 yards on 12 carries. Mike Alstott had only 14 on five carries. Part of the problem is an offensive line that has major breakdowns and doesn't get much push at the line of scrimmage.

It forces Johnson, a pure pocket passer without much mobility, to put the offense in his hands through the air. Johnson threw 31 passes, but was sacked five times and had a 56.4 quarterback rating. To make matters worse, he took a shot the ribs in the fourth quarter throwing an interception to cornerback Al Harris and he might be out a week or two.

"Brad got hurt early in the game and felt good enough to continue," Gruden said. "He got hit several times today as most quarterbacks do when they come into the Vet. But he sucked it up. He played well at times. I don't know his status officially until we get the X-ray."

	“	When you play Philadelphia, when you start studying the tape, it doesn't matter who you are. You have to come in here and play carefree, error-free football to win. You have to make some big plays in the process. We weren't able to do that today. ”
		— Jon Gruden, Bucs coach

Enter Rob Johnson, a mobile quarterback who tends to make dumb mistakes. Johnson, trailing 20-10 when he entered the game with 8:18 left in the fourth quarter, drove the Bucs to the Eagles 11-yard line, but had three consecutive incompletions. Martin Gramatica missed a 29-yard field goal and the ballgame was over.

It was that kind of day for the Bucs.

"We are sputtering along and we just have to keep plucking away at it," Keyshawn Johnson said. "We are sitting at 5-2 and it's not all over. The Eagles are a very good football team. We have to shake this one off like we did against the Saints and get ready for our game against Carolina. We'll see the Eagles again."

But by that time, they better get improved play from the offensive line or they are in trouble. As the Bucs have done for years, they let too much of the pressure fall upon the defense. For three quarters, the defense kept them in the game, but a steady diet of Eagles' running plays wore them down to a point where they broke in the fourth quarter.

"If you look at recent history, there hasn't been anybody in two years that scores over 20 points against this defense," Gruden said of the Eagles. "That's a fact. I think it's an NFL record. When you play Philadelphia, when you start studying the tape, it doesn't matter who you are. You have to come in here and play carefree, error-free football to win. You have to make some big plays in the process. We weren't able to do that today."

The Bucs' longest offensive play was 18 yards. The story has repeated itself for years when the Eagles play the Bucs. The Bucs should bounce back against the Panthers, but they may have to do it without Brad Johnson.

John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.