PHILADELPHIA -- At about 4:15 p.m. on Sunday, the sun will creep behind the western rim of Veterans Stadium, the twilight shadows will slide along Pattison Avenue, the wind will arrive from the mighty Delaware River and Eagles fans -- often called the children of a lesser god -- will begin to snarl and growl with a fury few NFL fans can match.

At that moment, it will be gut-check time for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Soon thereafter, we will find out which Bucs team shows up at the Vet. The 5-1 Bucs enjoying a resurgent season under head coach Jon Gruden? Or the team that has been eliminated from the playoffs at Veterans Stadium the last two years, losing by a combined score of 52-12?

	Jon Gruden is 5-1 in his first six games as Buccaneers head coach.

"It's left a bad taste in our mouths, made for a long offseason two years in a row and we want to get rid of that taste," said fullback Mike Alstott, who rushed for 126 yards in the Bucs' home victory over Cleveland last Sunday.

"We've had some bad memories up there," said safety John Lynch. "They've sent us home for the year -- twice. But I also understand that this is the 2002 Bucs and it's the 2002 Eagles."

Indeed, this Bucs team is led by a guy who knows Philly. Gruden spent two years in Philadelphia as the offensive coordinator under Ray Rhodes. He knows the special psychology of playing at the Vet -- the maniacal fans, the problematic turf, even the unpredictable outbreaks of infestation.

"Yeah, they've got rats down in that place; I've seen them running around," said Gruden.

And he wasn't talking about the Philly media.

Gruden also understands how to win there. Last October, he led the Raiders into town, ran the ball 47 times for 202 yards, including 17 carries by fullback Zack Crockett, and Oakland won 20-10.

But the last two times the Bucs visited the Vet, under former head coach Tony Dungy , the Eagles kept them out of the end zone, which clearly accelerated Dungy's dismissal. What's more, the Eagles have had a week off to stew about their loss in Jacksonville on Oct. 6. And under Andy Reid, the Eagles are 3-0 after a bye week.

And here's another stat that jumps out: The Eagles have gone 35 straight games without two straight losses. That's the longest current streak in the NFL. So, Reid knows how to recover.

"They're going to be very, very prepared coming off a bye," Gruden said Wednesday. "Donovan McNabb is as good a quarterback as there is in the league right now. He creates plays. He's a master of their system. I think Antonio Freeman gives them another playmaker and gives them another added gun. I think the rookie, Brian Westbrook, is a hidden edge for them."

After Gruden finished ticking off what the Eagles can do on offense, he answered the question everybody wants to know: Will the Bucs score an offensive touchdown on Sunday and end the two-year drought at the Vet?

"Hey, all you got to do is put their defense on and watch how they've played at home," said Gruden. "Right now, they're playing extremely well on defense. They're giving up a couple of scores at home, but very lopsided victories against Dallas and Houston. They apply a lot of pressure and I know that Philly crowd will be excited and loud. So it's tough on an opposing offense to negotiate in the noise, but we've got to be at our best."

I interrupted him. "Jon, can you guarantee your fans you will score at least one touchdown?"

"I make no guarantees, man," Gruden replied. "We'll get what we deserve."

Under Gruden, the Bucs offense has not yet lived up to his advanced billing. Alstott's 126-yard day against Cleveland was the first 100-yard rushing game by a Bucs back all season. Free agent running back Michael Pittman has proven to be a solid -- sometimes spectacular -- receiver but he has not provided the kind of consistently high production in the running game that Gruden hoped for. That may be a function of the injuries and constantly shuffling on the offensive line. The Bucs are ranked 27th in the league in rushing yards per attempt -- just 3.6.

If past is prologue, however, Sunday's game could be breakout time for Pittman and Alstott -- especially considering how Gruden used Oakland's running game to demolish Philly last season.

The Eagles have had injuries up the middle. Defensive tackle Corey Simon is back after missing two weeks with a sprained ankle. And defensive coordinator Jim Johnson has yet to settle on a middle linebacker. Veteran Levon Kirkland, perhaps because of the Bucs' running threat, will start again at the mike linebacker after being benched for Barry Gardner in the first quarter in Jacksonville because of a blown pass coverage assignment.

As for the Bucs' passing game, it's a work in progress, perhaps because they are overreliant on it. Quarterback Brad Johnson has 208 pass attempts, second most in the NFC behind Brett Favre.

	“	There's a bounce to us. It's a different attitude, a difference to how we talk. Just everything is different. You feel it. It's like a buzz going on and everybody knows exactly where they're supposed to be and exactly how we're going to fit in, and exactly what they're trying to do to us, and we're going to counter it because we're throwing punches. We're throwing knockout punches right now -- and it's tough. ”
		— Warren Sapp, Bucs DT on Tampa Bay's defense

Under Jim Johnson, the Eagles defense has been one of the toughest in the league to throw against. They have given up only five touchdown passes. The Bucs, however, have given up only two. In fact, Tampa Bay's defense has not surrendered a touchdown of any kind on the road this season. What's more, the defense has not allowed an opposing team into the end zone in three straight games.

"We're healthy this year," said Warren Sapp, who suffered through myriad ailments last year and this year has six sacks, tied for second in the league. Linebacker Derrick Brooks, who also suffered through injuries last season, is also at full strength. He has returned three interceptions for touchdowns.

With Sapp and Brooks healthy, Monte Kiffin's defense can work like it's supposed to, especially now that defensive tackle Anthony (Bugger) McFarland has been playing more and more like a true nose tackle.

"They will double Mac a lot," said Kiffin, "and that frees up Warren. Warren travels over and under, but always on the guard. And Brooks travels with him. Brooks always stacks. Brooks always stacks behind No. 99. No. 99 and No. 55 are always together. And he (Sapp) keeps that guard off No. 55 and that's why 55 runs at the ball so well."

"There's a bounce to us," said Sapp. "It's a different attitude, a difference to how we talk. Just everything is different. You feel it. It's like a buzz going on and everybody knows exactly where they're supposed to be and exactly how we're going to fit in, and exactly what they're trying to do to us, and we're going to counter it because we're throwing punches. We're throwing knockout punches right now -- and it's tough."

Knocking Donovan McNabb off his game right now will be much tougher, and Sapp knows it.

McNabb has had three meaningful games against Sapp & Co. In his first game, McNabb was a rookie and was yanked by Reid in a 19-5 loss at the Vet in September 1999.

Since then, McNabb has been the Bucs' personal nightmare. In Philly's two lopsided playoff wins, McNabb threw four touchdown passes and ran for another. Those five trips to the end zone for No. 5 earned Sapp's respect -- the kind No. 99 has for another longtime rival, the guy who wears No. 4 in Green Bay, Brett Favre.

"I tell you, if you put Favre back in that position that Donovan is -- what is this, his fourth year? -- McNabb's much better," said Sapp. "Five-finger Chi-town is special. He's the ultimate weapon in this league."

For McNabb, there has been no magic formula to beating the Bucs, who have won five straight this season.

"I think it's because we've been able to come out and start fast," he said. "Then they have to go back to the sideline and try to figure a way to stop you."

For two straight years, the Bucs haven't figured that out. For two straight seasons, on a cold winter's night, the Vet was their final stop. On Sunday, as the sun goes down and the October chill settles in, Tampa Bay will find out whether the Buc stops here.

Sal Paolantonio covers the NFL for ESPN.