Warrick Dunn and the Bucs will try to control the clock.

A conservative offensive approach, placing a premium on running the ball and throwing high-percentage passes, was good enough to get the team to the NFC Championship Game.

Now they'll try to win the title by doing the same thing.

"Everybody says this and that about our offense. But there are a lot of offenses that put up a lot of points that are home right now," rookie quarterback Shaun King said.

"What we do, I think is effective. I think we have to do it a little better. But I like what we do on offense."

The St. Louis Rams are two-touchdown favorites to beat the Bucs on Sunday, primarily because of the huge disparity between the offensive numbers the teams posted this season.

The Rams were the highest-scoring team in the NFL, averaging nearly 33 points. The Bucs were the lowest scoring team to make the playoffs, averaging just a little less than 17 points.

St. Louis scored 66 touchdowns during the regular season. Tampa Bay had 27.

Nevertheless, coach Tony Dungy and his players aren't fazed by the underdog role, saying it's understandable because St. Louis has been so dominant.

The Bucs rallied from a 13-point deficit to beat Washington 14-13 in Saturday's NFC divisional game. But they only gained 44 yards on the ground and 186 total against the league's 30th-ranked defense.

Besides having the NFL's most prolific offense, the Rams were sixth in defense, including a No. 1 ranking against the run.

Dungy said he doesn't have a preconceived notion of how many points his offense will have to produce to keep pace with the Rams. Instead, he said the Bucs have to focus on simply doing whatever it takes to win.

"You never know how the game's going to go," the coach said.

"I think everyone said last week, the one thing we couldn't do was get behind Washington. We got behind 13 points, and we won. I don't know if we're going to have to score a lot of points or not. But we're going to have to score one more than they do some way."

Despite not being able to move the ball consistently against the Redskins, King became the first rookie quarterback in 23 years to win a playoff game.

He avoided costly mistakes and took advantage of two turnovers Tampa Bay converted into second-half touchdowns to wipe out a 13-0 deficit.

That's typical of what the team has been able to do in winning nine of its last 10 games, particularly since King replaced the injured Trent Dilfer six games ago.

"When the game's on the line, when it's most critical, we've found guys to make plays," offensive coordinator Mike Shula said. "When things don't happen for you early, you've got to keep your poise and believe they will if you stick with the plan."

Dungy said one of the keys against the Rams will establishing the running game with Mike Alstott and Warrick Dunn. Another will be sustaining drives to keep the explosive St. Louis offense off the field.

"And defensively, we've got to hold the fort down," the coach said. "We can't let them spurt out and get 17 points ahead, where we've got to abandon what we do on offense."

King, 5-1 as Tampa Bay's starter, likes the Bucs' chances of getting the job done.