NFL Team by Team Guide: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay was established in 1974 and joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team along with Seattle. The Buccaneers became the first team in the Super Bowl era to go winless during the regular season (0-14). Tampa Bay actually lost 26 straight games before winning its first in the 1977 season.
The Bucs then became the first post-merger expansion team to win a division title, a playoff game, and host and play in a conference championship game. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Bucs enjoyed a great period of success. It was during that time that the team won its first and only Super Bowl (XXXVII in 2002).
Nationally televised Bucs’ games can be seen on FOX Sports and CBS as well as networks like ESPN, NBC Sports, and the NFL Network. Usually at least once a season, Tampa Bay can be seen on Sunday Night Football, Monday Night Football, or Thursday Night Football. Fans can watch nearly the complete Bucs schedule using a live streaming service such as fuboTV or HULU.
Home of the Buccaneers
The Buccaneers originally played at Tampa Stadium. They remained there until 1997 when the team’s current home – Raymond James Stadium – was built. The stadium features a 103-foot, 43-ton replica of a pirate ship. Raymond James Stadium seats 65,618 fans for home games.
Championship History
The Bucs have made the postseason just 10 times in franchise history. Six of the team’s trips to the NFL playoffs have come as the result of a division championship (1979, 1981, 1999, 2002, 2005, and 2007).
Tampa Bay has won just a single conference championship. That came in 2002 when the Bucs won their only Super Bowl in franchise history.
Best of the Buccaneers
Three of the best players in Tampa Bay history all won the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award. The first to do so was the franchise’s first-ever draft pick Lee Roy Selmon. The first overall pick in the 1976 draft, Selmon earned five All-Pro honors, six Pro Bowls, and was named the Defensive Player of Year in 1979.
The Bucs’ next Defensive Player of the Year winner was defensive tackle Warren Sapp. Tampa Bay’s first pick in the 1995 draft, Sapp had 12.5 sacks in 1999 to earn the DPOY. He was a four-time first-team All-Pro and earned seven trips to the Pro Bowl. He was a crucial part of the Super Bowl XXXVII team and was selected to the Hall of Fame in 2013.
Tampa Bay had another first-round selection in the 1995 draft and used it on LB Derrick Brooks. It was a wise choice. Brooks would earn 11 Pro Bowl berths, nine All-Pro honors, and was the league Defensive Player of the Year in 2002. Along with Sapp, he was part of the Tampa Bay defense that helped the Bucs win their first and only Super Bowl in 2002. Brooks played his entire 14-year NFL career with Tampa Bay and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2014.