The Associated Press

TAMPA, Fla. - Keyshawn Johnson leaned forward and smiled to emphasize his point. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver was frustrated at times this season because he wasn't playing a bigger role in coach Jon Gruden's offense. But who wouldn't be thrilled to be one victory away from the Super Bowl?

Certainly not Keyshawn.

"I thought it would be the best season I've had," Johnson said. "It didn't go as planned, so it became a little disappointing. But at the end of the day, in all the disappointment, there's success and happiness when you're sitting in the NFC championship game.

"If people don't see me as happy, then whatever. My goal is to try to win a Super Bowl."

Johnson led the Bucs with 76 receptions for 1,088 yards and five touchdowns. He averaged a career-best 14.3 yards per catch and scored four more TDs than he did in 2001, when he caught 106 total passes.

Still, the seventh-year pro thought he could have done more, especially in the West Coast offense Gruden brought to Tampa Bay from the Oakland Raiders.

"You just thought that because of the system, you would be more involved at all times. It didn't happen that way," Johnson said. "So you almost set yourself up for failure by believing in something, then it doesn't happen. But you still wind up going to the NFC championship game."

Johnson insists he doesn't have a problem with Gruden, who shrugs off questions about the receiver's so-called unhappiness.

"If he's unhappy, I don't know why," Gruden said. "He's our first option on almost everything we do. He's our leading receiver, we're in the playoffs, and we need him."

Johnson caught a team-high five passes for 85 yards in Tampa Bay's 31-6 second-round playoff victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Considering the success he has had against the Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs the past two years, he expects to be heavily involved in Sunday's NFC championship game.

The Eagles held the Bucs without a touchdown in both of those games. But Johnson had nine receptions for 181 yards.

"I think the coaches lean on me a little bit more in the playoffs," Johnson said. "I'm fine with that. Any time I get the opportunity, I'm going to deliver. The bottom line is I don't stink up the joint. I'm consistent. You can't pull out a film where I've just stunk up the joint."

Philadelphia cornerback Bobby Taylor believes Johnson presents a challenge for the Eagles' secondary, as do Tampa Bay receivers Keenan McCardell and Joe Jurevicius.

"It's going to be a tough task for us," Taylor said. "We feel like we can match up well against them, but that doesn't promise us we're going to have success."

One of the keys Sunday will be Tampa Bay's ability to handle Philadelphia's pass rush, particularly when the Eagles blitz.

Johnson is annoyed when he hears predictions that the Bucs will not be able to handle the pressure, in part, because Tampa Bay's receivers will not be able to consistently break free from Taylor and fellow Pro Bowl cornerback Troy Vincent.

"Look, the Eagles have a great secondary. They have three deserving Pro Bowlers, so they must be good," Johnson said.

"But you think Keenan McCardell played 11 years in this league and caught over 600 balls by being unable to get separation? As many years as I have been in this league, with the kind of numbers I have put up, you don't think I can get separation? Same with Joe.

"Some people don't know what they're talking about."

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