History of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
This article details the history of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers American football franchise.
Origins
In 1971,
Ralph Wilson, owner of the Buffalo Bills franchise, courted interests in Tampa Bay who approached him about moving the Bills to Tampa Bay. Wilson was frustrated in his inability to gain a new stadium for his franchise. He considered Memphis, Tennessee and Seattle, Washington as possible sites in addition to Tampa Bay.[4]
McCloskey quickly became dissatisfied with the financial arrangement with the NFL, and backed out of the deal a month later.[5] Hugh Culverhouse, a tax attorney from Jacksonville who had failed in his bid to buy the Los Angeles Rams, received the Tampa franchise.[6]
The new Tampa Bay franchise was named the “Buccaneers” or "Bucs," a reference to the pirates who frequented Florida's Gulf coast during the 17th century. The team's first home was Tampa Stadium, which had been expanded to seat 72,000 fans.[7]
Seasons 1976–1978
The Buccaneers joined the
In the 1977 season, the Buccaneers were shut out six times. In Week 13, the Buccaneers won their first regular-season game, defeating the New Orleans Saints on the road 33–14. The win was highlighted by three interceptions returned for touchdowns, an NFL record at the time. The Buccaneers followed the victory with a win at home over the St. Louis Cardinals during the final week of the season.
Seasons 1979–1982
The Buccaneers began the 1979 season with five consecutive victories and the team featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated.[8]
The team won its final game against the Kansas City Chiefs to make the playoffs. Finishing with a 10–6 record, the Bucs had their first winning season, and won the Central Division in a tiebreaker over the Chicago Bears. The Bucs upset the Philadelphia Eagles 24–17 in the divisional round of the 1979 playoffs.[9] The will allowed the Bucs to host NFC Championship Game in Tampa, where the team lost to the Rams 9–0.
In 1980, the Bucs had five wins, 10 losses, and a tie against the Green Bay Packers.
The last game in the 1981 season was against the Detroit Lions. The winner would take the Central Division crown and the loser would miss the playoffs. The Lions had not lost at home all season. The Bucs trailed early, but an 84-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Doug Williams to wide receiver Kevin House, and a fumble recovery for a touchdown by David Logan sealed the win for the Bucs and a place in the 1981 playoffs. The Dallas Cowboys defeated the Bucs 38–0 in the divisional round.
Starting the 1982 season, the Bucs went 0–3 before a players strike shut down the NFL for seven weeks. When the league resumed play, the Bucs won five of its next six games and qualified for the expanded playoff slate. In the first round, the Bucs lost 30–17 to the Cowboys in Dallas.
Seasons 1983–1996
Doug Williams' salary of $120,000 made him the lowest-paid starting quarterback in the NFL in the 1982 season.[10] At the end of the season, Williams asked for a raise to $600,000 per season. Culverhouse offered $400,000. Williams left the Bucs to play for the Oklahoma/Arizona Outlaws in the USFL.
The Bucs started the 1983 season by losing its first nine games which knocked the out of playoff contention. They finished with a 2–14 record.
In 1986, the Bucs had the first pick in the draft and chose Auburn athlete and 1985 Heisman Trophy winner Vincent Edward "Bo" Jackson despite Jackson having told the Bucs that if they drafted him, he would not play for them. Jackson disliked Culverhouse because the Bucs flew him to Tampa for a physical and a visit at the team's expense during his senior year at Auburn and led him to believe that the NCAA and Southeastern Conference had approved the trip. No approval had been sought or granted, and the trip cost Jackson his eligibility during his senior baseball season. Jackson believed the Bucs deliberately tried to sabotage his baseball career so he would pursue professional football and be available as a first-round draft pick for the Bucs.[11]
The front-office woes affected the team regardless of who was brought in to coach. McKay stepped down at the end of
Largely due to the Bucs’ wretched showings on the field, attendances were typically among the lowest in the league. Usually, the only times that games attracted crowds anywhere near capacity were when the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers came to town and brought thousands of their fans with them. Both teams had large followings in Tampa Bay due to the large number of Midwestern expatriates in the area. As a result, most Bucs home games were blacked out locally. At one point, 32 home games in a row from 1982 to 1986 – all or part of five seasons – were not televised locally.
It wasn't until the hiring of Sam Wyche that Bucs fans had reason for optimism. Wyche had coached the Cincinnati Bengals to a Super Bowl appearance, when Cincinnati might have won if not for a fourth quarter comeback engineered by 49ers QB Joe Montana. Wyche did not have immediate success in Tampa, and even his bold “five-dash-two” (indicating five wins and two losses) declaration in his final season with the Bucs proved premature. However, Wyche deserves credit for drafting three key players who would later prove to be the core of the team's renewed success on defense – Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks and John Lynch.
Things only really began to change, however, after Culverhouse died of lung cancer in 1994.
New ownership, Tony Dungy, and a return to contention (1996–2001)
Despite the profitability of the Buccaneers in the 1980s, Culverhouse's death revealed a team close to
However, in a last-minute surprise,
1996 season: Dungy’s first year
During Dungy's first season in
The 1997 season: Back to the playoffs
Everything finally came together in
1998–2001: “The New Sombrero”
The
Offensive woes
In spite of Dungy's success at coaching Tampa Bay into a winner, one of the consistent criticisms from the media and from fans—and later, from players including
Rather than choose from the pool of strong offensive coordinators available at the end of the 2000 campaign (including former Redskins coach Norv Turner), Dungy decided to elevate his receivers coach Clyde Christensen to the position. It can be argued that this controversial decision was the final nail in the coffin for Dungy's tenure. Although the team achieved a 9–7 winning record in 2001, they barely made it into the playoffs as the lowest-seeded wild card. To add insult to injury, the Bucs were once again blown out by the Eagles—this time, 31–9.
Frustrated with the team's inability to reach the Super Bowl despite a league-dominating defense, Malcolm Glazer fired Dungy the following day—a decision that created more controversy among devoted players and fans. Despite whatever weaknesses that may have been ascribed to him, Dungy was highly respected around the league as a man of solid character and a coach to whom players were fiercely loyal. Dungy went on to coach the Colts to the
Jon Gruden, the Super Bowl, and beyond (2002–2008)
Dungy was soon hired as the head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, while the Bucs mounted a prolonged and much-maligned search for his replacement. Several potential candidates were offered the job, including University of Florida head coach Steve Spurrier, Bill Parcells and Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Marvin Lewis. Spurrier jumped to the Redskins when he was offered the most lucrative salary package ever offered to an NFL head coach, and Parcells eventually passed on the Bucs’ offer—the second time he had done so in the history of the franchise. Bucs general manager Rich McKay threw his support behind Lewis, and his hiring appeared so certain that the Ravens held a going-away party for him.[22] The Glazer brothers were so displeased with the selection of a yet another defensive-minded coach that they overruled McKay and took control of the candidate search themselves. They made it clear that their top choice was Jon Gruden. The problem was that he was still under contract to the Oakland Raiders.
While talks with the Raiders were secretly underway, the Glazers publicly pursued another respected offensive mind, San Francisco 49ers head coach Steve Mariucci. Just when initial reports indicated that Mariucci had agreed to become both the Bucs' head coach and general manager, Raiders owner Al Davis agreed to release Jon Gruden to Tampa Bay. Observers suggested that the Glazers' offer to Mariucci was merely a clever bargaining tactic: since Davis' large ego is well documented, it was very likely he wouldn't allow such a blockbuster trade to take place so near his turf. If the tactic didn't work, then the Bucs would still get the type of head coach the Glazers desired.
The Glazers’ shrewd move eventually paid off in acquiring Gruden, but it cost the team dearly. The team hired Gruden away from the Raiders on February 20, 2002, but the price was four
The 2002 season: Super Bowl champions
Upon his arrival in Tampa, Gruden immediately went to work, acquiring former Jacksonville Jaguars wide receiver Keenan McCardell, and running back Michael Pittman from the Arizona Cardinals. The Bucs needed to improve their sluggish offense, as the league's sweeping realignment sent the Bucs to the new NFC South division, along with the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints.
The offensive retooling worked, and combined with the league's top defense, the 2002 campaign was the Buccaneers’ most successful season to date. They won the NFC South title with a 12–4 record—the team's best ever—then defeated the San Francisco 49ers in what became coach Steve Mariucci’s last game with that franchise. In a surprising upset, the Bucs won their first NFC Championship on the road against the Eagles in the last NFL game ever played at Veterans Stadium. Cornerback Ronde Barber capped off the win by intercepting a Donovan McNabb pass and returning it 92 yards for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter. Philadelphia fans could only watch in stunned silence.
The Bucs went on to rout Gruden’s former team, the
2003 and 2004: Front-office tensions
Soon after the Super Bowl victory, a growing number of press reports indicated Gruden's lack of patience with general manager McKay. McKay was a major architect of the Bucs rebuilding effort over the previous ten years, and he, like Gruden, had long-established ties to the Tampa Bay area. However, during the 2003 season, the Gruden-McKay relationship deteriorated as the Bucs struggled on the field. In November, Keyshawn Johnson was deactivated by the team ten games into the season for his conduct, which included sideline arguments with Bucs coaches and players. Johnson was eventually traded to the Dallas Cowboys for wide receiver Joey Galloway.
Johnson's unusual deactivation was a definitive sign that Gruden had indeed gained control. In December, the Glazers allowed McKay to leave the Bucs before the end of the regular season, and he promptly joined the Falcons as president and general manager. Thus, McKay watched his first game as a Falcons executive sitting next to owner Arthur Blank in a Raymond James Stadium skybox. The Falcons defeated the Bucs 30–28, another sign of how the season had spiraled downward. Despite opening the season with a Monday night win over the Eagles in Philadelphia's new stadium, Lincoln Financial Field, the Bucs finished the season 7–9. Combined with the Raiders' dismal 4-12 performance, neither Super Bowl team reached the playoffs that year.
Before the 2004 training camp, personnel issues and the salary cap became primary concerns. Gruden successfully lobbied the Glazers to hire his former general manager from Oakland, Bruce Allen. After Allen's arrival in the Bucs' front office, the team announced that it would not re-sign two of their best defensive players—John Lynch and Warren Sapp—before the regular season even started. Both of their contracts were expiring, and younger players could fill their positions. Lynch was released after medical exams indicated ongoing injury problems. Many Bucs fans were stunned by the move, as Lynch was a very popular player whose aggressive, intelligent play earned him several Pro Bowl appearances. He was also well regarded for his philanthropic work in the Tampa Bay area. Lynch was quickly signed by the Denver Broncos, where he had consecutive injury-free Pro Bowl seasons. Sapp signed with the Oakland Raiders, where he played in a limited role in 2004, and sat out much of the 2005 season with injuries. Since wide receiver Keenan McCardell refused to play until he was given a better contract or traded, he was sent to the San Diego Chargers for draft compensation.
The distracted Bucs began the 2004 season with a 1–5 record, their worst start since Gruden arrived. The fading accuracy of kicker Martin Gramatica didn't help matters, as the team lost many close games en route to a 5–11 record, making the Bucs the first NFL team to follow up a Super Bowl championship with back-to-back losing seasons. The lone highlights of 2004 were the high-quality play of rookie wide receiver Michael Clayton and the return of Doug Williams, who joined the Bucs front office as a personnel executive.
The 2005 season: Another division crown
In the
With their 2005 campaign marking the Buccaneers' 30th Season in the NFL, the team won their first four games before entering a midseason slump hampered by a season-ending injury to starting QB
The Bucs followed up with important wins over their NFC South division rivals, sweeping both the
The Bucs sent three veteran players to the
2006
After winning their division in 2005, the Bucs suffered through an abysmal
There was more to the lost season than just injuries however, as most of the players put on injured reserve had been done so after the team's 0–3 start, and offensive shutouts in the first two games in which no touchdowns were scored by the Buccaneers. The departure of several key defensive coaches and assistants didn't bode well with players, who complained to some in the media of not being able to hear coaches in team meetings.
Inconsistent and unorganized are how some players referred to one of the newcomers, who most players had a hard time making the transition from long-time favorites Rod Marinelli and others. Some believe the problems in 2006 were rooted in recent years mistakes, lack of salary cap room to bring in high impact free agents, lack of top 50 draft picks over the last 5 or 6 years due to trades, and maybe even a failure to properly assess talent resulting in a lack of contribution from second day draft picks in recent history.
The Bucs started off the season 0–3, with QB Chris Simms throwing only one touchdown against seven interceptions. In the third game of the season, a last-minute loss to the Carolina Panthers, Simms's spleen was ruptured, and he was placed on injured reserve for the rest of the season. After their bye week, the Bucs elected to start rookie quarterback Bruce Gradkowski, a 6th round pick from Toledo.
Gradkowski started off performing decently. People who in hindsight claim the Bucs should have started the more experienced Tim Rattay forget the Bucs nearly upset the New Orleans Saints, and then went on to win two narrow victories: one, against the Cincinnati Bengals, winning on an overturned call resulting in a touchdown; and another against the Philadelphia Eagles, thanks to Matt Bryant’s 62-yard field goal. After these victories, though, Gradkowski’s performance declined. After a 3–17 loss to the New York Giants in heavy winds, the Bucs proceeded to lose five of their next six games, leading them to a record of 3–10 (0–6 in their division). In the loss to the Atlanta Falcons, Gradkowski was replaced in the 4th quarter by Rattay.
In the first half of the Bucs’ next game, against the Chicago Bears, Gradkowski was again replaced by Rattay, who led the team from a 24–3 deficit to a score of 31–31, with three touchdowns in the fourth quarter. However, the Bucs then lost the game in overtime, 34–31. Rattay was then named the new starting quarterback for the last two games for the season. The Bucs finished their season with a 4–12 record, tied for third worst in the NFL.
The Bucs sent three players to the
2007: A return to grace
In 2007, the Bucs signed veteran quarterback
The
Tampa Bay were set to host the New York Giants at Raymond James Stadium for their second home playoff game in three seasons. They began well opening up the scoreboard with the first touchdown of the game, which was a 1-yard Earnest Graham run. However, the Giants outscored the Bucs 24-0 until the last three minutes of play, when Jeff Garcia completed a touchdown pass to Alex Smith to bring the Bucs back to just a ten-point deficit, although an interception by R. W. McQuarters with two minutes left, sealed the victory for Giants. In the end the Buccaneers had been held to 271 yards of total offense and 3 turnovers, and lost the game 24–14.
2008
On January 28, the Buccaneers re-signed head coach Jon Gruden and GM Bruce Allen through the 2011 season. Also during the offseason, the Buccaneers expressed interest in acquiring QB Brett Favre from Green Bay, but he eventually signed with the New York Jets instead. The 2008 regular season began with a loss to New Orleans, followed by three wins, a loss to Denver, two more wins, a defeat in Dallas, and four wins over the Chiefs, Vikings, Lions, and Saints. At 9–3, the Buccaneers were close to guaranteeing their place in the playoffs, with 4 games remaining in the season. However, they fell to Carolina on Monday Night Football, which ended their chances of successfully repeating as division champions. They next lost to Atlanta in overtime, followed by their first home loss of the season to San Diego.
The final week of the season still held playoff hopes, although it would take a Buccaneers win over Oakland coupled with a Dallas loss. The Buccaneers couldn't hold their 4th quarter lead against the Raiders, and lost 31–24. Adding insult to injury, Dallas lost their final game against Philadelphia, giving the Eagles the final wild card playoff spot over Dallas and the Bucs. Having finished 9–7 and missing the playoffs, Jon Gruden was fired January 16, 2009, almost one year to the date he received a contract-extension. GM Bruce Allen was fired on the same date as well. This would usher in a wholesale change of coaches and players leading up to the 2009 season, with Raheem Morris being elevated to head coach on January 17.
A Coaching Carousel and Out of the Playoffs (2009-2018)
Raheem Morris era (2009 to 2011)
2009
In 2009, the Bucs lost seven consecutive games including an international series game with New England in London. In week nine, the team defeated the Green Bay Packers 38–28 after a pair of touchdown passes by rookie quarterback Josh Freeman. Tampa Bay lost four consecutive games before they defeated Seattle in week 15 and New Orleans in week 16. The team lost its last game against Atlanta to finish 3–13.
2010
The Buccaneers got off to a 2–0 start in 2010 by beating Cleveland and Carolina, but lost to Pittsburgh 38–13. Following their bye week, they beat the Bengals in Cincinnati 24–21. The Bucs faced defending Super Bowl champion Saints at home and were defeated 31–6. The next week the Bucs topped the Rams 18–17. The Bucs defeated the Arizona Cardinals on the road 38–35. With the Bucs and the Atlanta Falcons tied for first place in the division at 5–2, a matchup in Atlanta gave the Bucs a chance to take sole possession of first place. Trailing 27–14 in the second half, Bucs returner Micheal Spurlock returned a Falcons kickoff for a touchdown to put the Bucs within a touchdown of the lead. The game came down to a fourth-down attempt to score from the Falcons one-yard line. Rookie running back LeGarrette Blount was stopped up the middle and gave the Falcons the close victory. The Bucs defeated the Carolina Panthers at home 31–16 before beating the San Francisco 49ers 21–0. The next week, the Bucs lost a road game to the Baltimore Ravens 17–10. The Bucs played the Falcons on national television and lost 28–24.
At 7–5, the Bucs had not defeated an opponent with a winning record. In a rainy outing at Washington, the Bucs won 17–16 then lost to Detroit Lions at home. The Bucs defeated the eventual NFC West champion Seattle Seahawks 38–15 in Tampa.
In the last week of the regular season, the Bucs needed a win against the New Orleans Saints in the
The season marked a seven-game improvement over the previous one, but no Buccaneers were selected to the Pro Bowl.
2011
The Buccaneers went into 2011 with high expectations, but they ended up not materializing. Things began on an ominous note when they lost at home in Week 1 to the Lions, who had beaten them the previous December and denied them a playoff appearance. At the bye in Week 7, the Bucs were 4–3 and looked promising to make a postseason push. All of that changed rapidly when they abruptly collapsed and ended up not winning another game for the rest of the season for the longest losing streak in franchise history since 1977. On January 2, 2012, Morris was fired as head coach of the Buccaneers after a 4–12 season, including losing their last ten games.[25]
2012 and 2013: Greg Schiano era
About three weeks after firing Raheem Morris, the Buccaneers hired Greg Schiano from Rutgers as the new head coach. During his introductory conference he stated “There will be Buccaneer men, and there will be a Buccaneer Way.” The phrase “The Buccaneer Way” became a slogan amongst fans and local media, describing the new regime and attitude. The team filled out the coaching staff with new faces, including Mike Sullivan, Bill Sheridan, and Butch Davis. In 2013, Dave Wannstedt was also added as special teams coach. In the first day of free agency, the club signed top prospects Vincent Jackson and Carl Nicks, as well as Eric Wright. The $140 million committed to the team during that 24-hour period is considered the largest investment the Glazer family has put into the team going back almost a decade.
The team would finish the 2012 season at 7–9, notably ranking first in rushing defense. The rushing offense was highlighted by the breakout performance of Doug Martin. After two seasons of game day local television blackouts, the improved team began seeing increased attendance and attention, and some blackouts lifted. Six games were blacked out in 2012. For the three-year period of 2010-2012 the Bucs led the NFL in local television blackouts with 19 (Cincinnati was second with 11). Schiano's coaching style, however, drew criticism at the end of a game against the Giants (Schiano's New Jersey homecoming). With the Bucs losing by seven points, but no longer able to stop the clock with a timeout, Schiano ordered his defense to continue to aggressively tackle quarterback Eli Manning, who was taking a knee to end the game, in the hopes of causing a turnover. Those actions prompted Giants coach Tom Coughlin to verbally reprimand Schiano when the two met at midfield after the game. Schiano did not apologize to Coughlin or the Giants, and the team repeated the tactic several times during the season.
Coming into the 2013 season, fans and analysts had better than average expectations for Tampa Bay. They were expected to improve their record, and potentially make a playoffs run. The predictions proved unfounded, as numerous issues on and off the field saw the team collapse. During training camp, a reported rift began to divide Schiano and quarterback Josh Freeman. After an 0–3 start, Freeman was benched, and ultimately released. Schiano started rookie Mike Glennon, but the team continued to lose. The fans' confidence of Schiano began to decay rapidly, and after an 0–8 start, the team finally got its first win of the season on a Monday night against Miami. A brief win streak saw improvements with Glennon at quarterback, and Bobby Rainey took over at running back with stellar numbers after Doug Martin went down with a shoulder injury. There were no blackouts in 2013, as the Glazers bought up the necessary tickets for two of the games to get to the 85% threshold needed to prevent local blackouts.
Despite some individual improvements, and some impressive performances by members of the defense, the team dropped the last three games of the season, and finished 4–12. The team ranked last or near the bottom in almost every offensive category. On December 30, 2013, Schiano and general manager Mark Dominik were fired.[26]
2014 and 2015: Lovie Smith and Jason Licht era
On January 1, 2014, Lovie Smith was hired as the new head coach of the Buccaneers, replacing Greg Schiano. Smith had previously spent 5 seasons with the Buccaneers from 1996 to 2001 coaching the linebackers under Tony Dungy. During his first news conference with the Bucs, Smith talked about restoring the quality of the team from the late 1990s and early 2000s: “There was a certain brand of football you expected from us”, Smith said. “You know we would be relentless. There was a brand of football that you got from us each week at Raymond James Stadium. It was hard for opponents to come in and win. We have gotten away from that a little bit, and it’s time ... for us to become a relevant team again."
On January 21, 2014, Jason Licht was hired as the new general manager, replacing Mark Dominik.
The Bucs began the 2014 season 0–3, including a 56–14 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday Night Football. With second-year quarterback Mike Glennon as the starter, the Bucs earned its first victory of the season in Pittsburgh against the Steelers 27–24. The Bucs lost the next four games, two overtime loses against the New Orleans Saints and the Minnesota Vikings, a loss to the Baltimore Ravens and a loss against the Cleveland Browns.
Going into week 10 at 1–8, veteran free agent quarterback Josh McCown returned as starter for the Bucs' game against the Falcons, which resulted in a 27-17 loss. The Bucs won 27–7 against the Washington Redskins. The Bucs lost the next three games and were eliminated from the playoffs. The Bucs finished 2–14, securing the first-overall draft pick in the 2015 NFL draft.
Despite the team's record, first-round draft pick wide receiver Mike Evans had more than 1,000 receiving yards and became the youngest NFL player to record more than 200 receiving yards in a single game. Vincent Jackson had more than 1,000 yards receiving, which represented Tampa Bay's first pair of 1,000 yard receivers in a season.
After the 2014 season, Tampa Bay hired Ben Steele to become the team's new offensive quality control coach and former Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator, Dirk Koetter.
With the first overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft, the Bucs selected Jameis Winston from Florida State.
On January 6, 2016, Smith was fired by the Buccaneers after posting a record of 8–24 in his two seasons, including a 6–10 record in the 2015 season.
2016-2018: Dirk Koetter era
On January 15, 2016, Dirk Koetter was promoted from offensive coordinator to become the new head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.[27]
The Bucs finished 9-7 with Koetter as head coach, but won only 10 games in the next two seasons, and on December 30, 2018, the team fired Koetter as head coach.[28]
Bruce Arians and Tom Brady era (2019-present)
2019: Bruce Arians' first year as head coach
In the 2019 off-season the Buccaneers signed former Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians out of retirement to a four-year contract.[29] They signed offensive tackle Donovan Smith, linebacker Shaquil Barrett, linebacker Deone Bucannon and former first-round pick wide receiver Breshad Perriman.[30]
In Arians' first season as head coach, the team finished the season 7–9.[31] Winston ended his season with more than 5,000 passing yards, 33 touchdowns and 30 interceptions, becoming the first quarterback in NFL history to simultaneously throw for more than 30 touchdowns and interceptions in the same season.[32]
2020: Super Bowl victory
In the 2020 off-season, the Bucs signed six-time Super Bowl champion and former New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady to a two-year, $25 million per year guaranteed salary with $4.5 million in incentives per year.[33] Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski came out of retirement to play for the Buccaneers.[34]
Brady led the team to an 11–5 record in 2020 and a playoff berth for the first time since 2007, defeating the Washington Football Team in the wild card round to win their first postseason game since their Super Bowl-winning 2002 season. The Bucs defeated division rivals New Orleans Saints and eliminated the top-seeded Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game to win their first conference title in 18 years. With the win, the Bucs advanced to Super Bowl LV against the Kansas City Chiefs, as the first wild card team to appear in the Super Bowl since the 2010 Green Bay Packers won Super Bowl XLV, and the first team in NFL history to play the Super Bowl in their home stadium.[35] The Buccaneers defeated the Chiefs 31–9 for second Super Bowl victory.[36] Brady won his NFL-record fifth Super Bowl MVP award.
2021: Coming up short
The Buccaneers ended 2021 with a 13-4 record. They defeated the Philadelphia Eagles to begin the postseason, but lost 30-27 to the Los Angeles Rams to end the season.
2022: End of an era
On February 2, 2022, Brady announced his retirement from professional football, only to return 40 days later for a 23rd NFL season. The Bucs finished the season 8-9, and was the No. 4 seed in the NFC. The Bucs lost to the Dallas Cowboys 31-14 to complete the season.
References
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{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Martin, Buddy (April 24, 1974). "Rozelle Says It's Definite - NFL Will Expand Now". news.google.com. St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg Times. Page 25 in Archive, Section C (Sports Section) of Original Publication. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
- ^ Wallace, William N. (October 31, 1974). "Tampa Gets N.F.L Franchise; Seattle Next On Expansion List". The New York Times. p. 58. Retrieved January 10, 2024.
- ^ "Memphis, Tampa express interest in Buffalo Bills". Spartanburg (SC) Herald. Associated Press. January 15, 1971. p. 14.
- ^ Mizell, Hubert. “Economics drive McCloskey out”. St. Petersburg Times. 6 December 1974
- ^ ‘Tampa Owner Happy Fellow”; in The Evening News; December 6, 1974; p. 98
- ^ Donovan, Michael Leo. Yankees to Fighting Irish: What’s Behind Your Favorite Team’s Name. Rowman & Littlefield, 2003. p.55
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- ^ "SI.com -- Sports Illustrated Covers -- Jan. 7, 1980 --". Archived from the original on 2007-06-12. Retrieved 2007-03-11.
- ^ Donahue, Ben (2022-04-15). "The Life And Career Of Doug Williams (Story)". Pro Football History. Retrieved 2024-01-11.
- ^ Greg Auman. "When Bucs blew it by drafting Bo Jackson". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
- Seattle Times, January 9, 1995, p. C7
- ^ Henderson, Joe; Fay, Bill and Yasinskas, Pat; ‘Bucs go shopping Orlando officials say it is one of at least two cities the Buccaneers are considering as a new home if a stadium is not built in Tampa’; Tampa Tribune, November 2, 1995, p. 1
- ^ ‘Orlando Won’t Build to Land Bucs’; USA Today, December 3, 1995, p. C4
- ^ Donovan, John; ‘Will Rams’ fate start NFL dominos falling? Los Angeles exit may affect Bengals’; Cincinnati Post, April 5, 1995, p. 1D
- State Journal Register, December 8, 1995, p. 40
- Cincinnati Post; January 18, 1996, p. 1C
- ^ Garber, Greg; ‘Is There Interest in the City: Bucs’ Management Has Visited Hartford’; Hartford Courant, December 28, 1995, p. D1
- Washington Post, April 2, 1996, p. D3
- ^ "SI.com -- Sports Illustrated Covers -- Sep. 8, 1997 --". Archived from the original on 2007-02-12. Retrieved 2007-03-11.
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- ^ "2021 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Schedule | ESPN".
- ^ "Bucs fire coach Raheem Morris". ESPN.com. January 2, 2012. Retrieved 2012-01-02.
- ^ "Greg Schiano and GM Mark Dominik fired by Buccaneers". CBS Sports. December 30, 2013. Retrieved December 30, 2013.
- ^ "Dirk Koetter Named Buccaneers Head Coach". Buccaneers.com. January 15, 2016.
- ^ "Dirk Koetter fired by Buccaneers". PFT. December 30, 2018.
- ^ Wells, Adam (January 8, 2019). "Ex-Cardinals HC Bruce Arians Officially Named Buccaneers Coach". Bleacher Report. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ Laine, Jenna (March 7, 2019). "Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 2019 free-agent signings: Perriman, Bucannon fill holes". ESPN. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ "TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS 2019 SCHEDULE". NFL. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ "Jameis Winston Stats". ESPN. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ Belson, Ken (March 20, 2020). "Tom Brady Becomes a Tampa Bay Buccaneer". New York Times. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ "Rob Gronkowski agrees to come out of retirement to play in Tampa Bay with Tom Brady". CNN. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
- ^ "Buccaneers will be first team to play in Super Bowl at home stadium". National Football League. Retrieved January 25, 2020.
- ^ "Super Bowl LV Main Page". National Football League. Retrieved February 9, 2020.