CINCINNATI, Dec. 2 (UPI) -- Safety John Lynch forced and recovered a fumble to set up Martin Gramatica's 21-yard field goal 5:06 into overtime Sunday, lifting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 16-13 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.
After limiting the Bengals to one first down in their first five possessions of the second half, Tampa Bay allowed Cincinnati to move 64 yards for the tying score, capped by Jon Kitna's six-yard pass to Corey Dillon with eight seconds remaining in regulation.
The Bucs drove into Cincinnati territory on their first possession of the extra session, but Brad Johnson was sacked by linebacker Brian Simmons on third and three from the 30, taking them out of field goal range.
Mark Royals' punt pinned Cincinnati at the four and on the next play from scrimmage, Lynch stripped Dillon and recovered at the four. Lynch also had a key interception in last week's win at St. Louis to seal a victory.
"They tried to run the ball down our throats," Lynch said. "I saw the ball lying there. I thought I would pick the ball up and run it in, then thought, no."
"The ball was in my hands and I came up short," Dillon said. "But I'll tell you what, I'm going to win more games than I lose and that's a promise. I'm devastated, but I can't lay back and hang my head. We have next week. We have to keep fighting."
Tampa Bay coach Tony Dungy immediately called on Gramatica, who missed two field goals earlier in the game, to produce the winning points.
"I told them at the beginning of the week that this one would be tougher than the one in St. Louis," Dungy said. "Only 12 percent of the teams that go on the road in a short week get a win."
Backup tight end Todd Yoder returned a blocked punt 11 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter for Tampa Bay (6-5), which has won consecutive games for the first time this season to move over the .500 mark.
Neil Rackers kicked field goals of 23 and 41 yards for the Bengals (4-7), who suffered their fourth straight loss.
It looked like the Bucs were in control after Gramatica made a 48-yard field goal 2:37 into the fourth quarter, giving Tampa Bay a 13-3 advantage.
With their offense ineffective and with the crowd at Paul Brown Stadium growing increasingly impatient, the Bengals finally got moving later in the period, going 36 yards in seven plays.
Kitna had a 15-yard pass to rookie Chad Johnson and Dillon a 16-yard run to the Tampa Bay 23. But the drive stalled and Rackers kicked a 41-yard field goal with 4:29 remaining, pulling the Bengals within 13-6.
Tampa Bay had a chance to run out the clock, but went three-and-out on its ensuing possession.
Kitna, who struggled for much of the game, engineered a 14-play, 64-yard drive to tie it. He kept the march alive by finding Darnay Scott for four yards on fourth and four that moved the ball to the Tampa Bay 19. Three plays later, Kitna found Warrick for 13 yards on third and 10 to the six.
Without a timeout, Kitna spiked the ball before finding Dillon, who barely got over the goal line for the tying score. The play was reviewed but the call stood, sending the game into overtime. It was the Bengals' first offensive touchdown in their last 10 quarters.
Kitna, who was pulled in last week's loss at Cleveland, finished 19 of 38 for 144 yards.
On the game's opening possession, it looked like the Bengals would cure some of their offensive woes. They moved 70 yards in 14 plays, a drive that took more than eight minutes.
But on second and goal from the one, Dillon lost four yards and Kitna threw incomplete on third down, bringing on Rackers for a 23-yard field goal. Dillon carried 23 times for 79 yards.
Tampa Bay embarked on an 18-play drive that lasted into the second quarter on its first offensive possession. But the march ended with Gramatica missing a 43-yard field goal.
The Bengals went three-and-out on their next possession and Tampa Bay came up with a big special teams play to take the lead.
Cornerback Ronde Barber came off the end of the line and blocked Nick Harris' punt. Yoder scooped up the ball at the 11 and ran to end zone for a touchdown, giving Tampa Bay a 7-3 lead with 9:17 left in the half.
The Bucs were ahead by only four points at halftime, despite Johnson playing flawlessly. Johnson completed all 12 of his passes in the half and 14 in a row overall before throwing his first incompletion with 12:06 left in the third quarter. He finished 26 of 33 for 231 yards.
"Our line actually did a good job," said Johnson, who was sacked six times. "I thought we moved the ball pretty effectively. It just happened that some things happened in the red zone."
Gramatica connected from 38 yards 3:06 into the third quarter, extending the Bucs' lead to 10-3.
