Warren Sapp and the Bucs defense will face a huge challenge in St. Louis.

After all, the explosive Rams (14-3) led the NFL in offense this season and will face the low-scoring Bucs (12-5) at home where St. Louis remained unbeaten Sunday with a 49-37 victory over Minnesota on Sunday.

But for anyone who thinks the Rams essentially assured themselves a trip to Super Bowl XXXIV in Atlanta, the Bucs offer this message: Remember last year when Atlanta upset the Vikings in the title game on the road.

"People had pretty much conceded Minnesota the NFC Championship. They were undefeated at home, had only lost one game, and it looked like they couldn't be stopped. That's why you have to go play," Bucs coach Tony Dungy said. "I'm sure we'll be underdogs, and probably deservedly so. But we'll go up there with a lot of confidence. We'll be ready to play."

Defense has carried Tampa Bay all season, and Dungy knows it'll take a near flawless performance to beat the Rams, who scored a league-high 526 points while gaining nearly 401 yards per game.

The Bucs, who advanced to the NFC title game with a 14-13 victory over Washington, were 28th in offense (265.9) and scored the fewest points (270) among teams making the playoffs.

"For us to win, we're going to have to slow them down," Dungy said. "I don't think we'll be able to win an 80-point game like they had today. No question, we're going to have to play our best defensive game of the year because this is an explosive offense, a unit that's used to scoring points. But we've played teams like that this year."

Including the Redskins, who were held to 157 yards and couldn't get the ball into the end zone Saturday.

"They had a couple of drives ... but we just feel if you can't score touchdowns on us, you're not going to beat us," linebacker Hardy Nickerson said. "When we needed to come up with the big plays, we did."

The Bucs forced two turnovers and allowed just 26 yards in the second half. Washington's only TD came on Brian Mitchell's playoff-record 100-yard kickoff return.

"If we can dictate the pace, slow the game down and slow them down, I think it's going to be to our advantage," Dungy said. "I'm sure they're going to try to come out and get up on us and speed the game up and make big plays. It will be contrasting styles."

The coach said St. Louis probably is the best team, all-around, that he has seen this season. But facing NFC Central rivals Minnesota and Green Bay twice each during the regular season, and stopping the Redskins in the playoffs gives Dungy confidence that his team won't feel overwhelmed.

The Rams have four Pro Bowl selections on offense, including league MVP Kurt Warner and Offensive Player of the Year Marshall Faulk. The Bucs counter with four on defense, including Defensive Player of the Year Warren Sapp and fellow All-Pro selections Derrick Brooks and John Lynch.

"We've played against some explosive teams. I think our guys are used to that. It won't be anything different," Dungy said.