LANDOVER, Md. -- Deion Sanders was having a punt-return season that only a mother could love. His first 16 returns netted only 63 yards, and that doesn't include the five fair catches. It doesn't include one that bounced off his face mask and another that slipped from his hands.
Prime Time looked past his prime at the age of 33. Yet his mother, who sat in the stands, kept telling family, friends and members of the Redskins front office that her son was going to pop a long one in the fourth quarter of Sunday's showdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. That he waited until two minutes into overtime to break the 57-yarder that set up Michael Husted's game-winning, 20-yard field goal meant little.
|  | | Deion Sanders, left, eyes the end zone during his 57-yard punt return in OT. |
Momma was right. She usually is. Her son is only one return away from the 200th of his NFL career. She's watched eight of them go for touchdowns. This one, though, eight yards shy of a touchdown, was every bit as exciting.
"All you doubters," Sanders said after the Redskins' stunning 20-17 victory over the Buccaneers. "We've got room on the bandwagon. I'm taking applications. With all the things you were saying and writing as if I've been trying to get tackled. But that's all right. I forgive you now."
Face it, everyone outside his family was starting to doubt Sanders. Missing was his usual explosion, perhaps the by-product of combining 12 years of NFL football with a baseball career. On Sunday, for example, he averaged 4.8 yards a punt return, a fraction less than halfback Stephen Davis averaged slugging it out against a ferocious Bucs defense.
Once, the ball slipped from his hands. Another time, he slipped on the grass and fell to the ground. Another time, linebacker Jeff Gooch slammed into his side and sent him crashing to the ground. Prime Time was a prime target, and he knew it.
Frustrated, Sanders would slap the ball and toss it after the return. Then he'd come over to the sidelines, grab a cup of Gatorade and talk about his return woes with teammates such as Bruce Smith. Never, though, did he doubt the big return was coming.
"No, I don't feel like I needed one," Sanders said of breaking a long return. "I don't care what you guys are thinking or saying. I believe in me. I wish I could show you the view from the end zone."
All he needed was one block to spring him to the outside. Safety Matt Stevens delivered that block by decking Bucs defensive end John McLaughlin, who is 37 pounds heavier than Stevens. From Sanders' view from the middle of the field, that was just the opening he needed.
"You have to get away from the first guy," said Sanders, who has promised to buy the punt return squad Rolex watches if he scores four touchdowns this year. "Then you get away from the next guy. Then the next guy. Whatever they did, they bounced me to the outside."
As he has done so often, Sanders streaked down the right sideline, zipping by Bucs defender after defender. Still, this time he was caught at the 8, which did matter to him. The Redskins were set up for the win, and Sanders had his honor restored.
He described the return like a woman past her nine months of pregnancy. That's right, Sanders gave birth Sunday to a strapping baby return.
"It was a big one, wasn't she?" Sanders said.
So was the Redskins' victory, which proved how this team has changed since last season. All of a sudden, the Redskins can slug out a defensive battle with the NFL's best.
They held the Bucs to 255 yards of total offense, including a freakish play in which quarterback Shaun King lost control of two balls, picked them up and threw for completions. The Bucs' only passing touchdown came on such a play, a 46-yarder to Reidel Anthony with two minutes remaining in regulation.
"Everybody is talking about the Tampa Bay Bucs defense and rightfully so," Sanders said. "You've all got on Mr. Snyder for making the acquisitions he made. Our weakness last year was defense, and I think we addressed that issue. Give the defense some respect."
Respect has to be given to defensive end Bruce Smith, who constantly harassed King. Rookie LaVar Arrington continues to look more and more like a young Lawrence Taylor with his ability to make big plays. On Sunday, he had five tackles, a sack and a pass defense. Safety Mark Carrier continues to patrol the middle of the field with fierce hits and keeps the secondary in correct alignment.
And moving future Hall of Fame cornerback Darrell Green into the role of being a third cornerback has only made him more of an impact player. He picked off one pass and stripped a fumble from Keyshawn Johnson's hands with 7:33 left in the fourth quarter.
Green came to the sideline, pulled up the short sleeves and his jersey and gave fans a big muscle flex.
"My plays are somewhat limited, so I have to come up with big plays now," Green said. "A lot of people are going to come at me because I'm older than other guys. Believe me, though, I'm not the MVP of this defense. There is a lot of talent out there."
Sanders walked by Green and paid homage to "Grandpa" on the way out. At 3-2, Redskins defenders are becoming family. Asked if his return could have come at a better time, Sanders replied, "Yeah, Monday night."
After all, Sanders may be older, but he's still Prime Time.
John Clayton is the senior NFL writer for ESPN.com.
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