2007 Recap

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished the season atop the NFC South with a 9-7 record. The season came to an end in the wild card game, which the Bucs lost to the New York Giants.

The Buccaneers were characterized by a stingy defense that only allowed 16.8 points a game. The team played well under Jeff Garcia’s leadership. His 94.6 quarterback rating performance earned him a trip to the Pro Bowl and the Bucs expect him to have a similar year in 2008. Ernest Graham held down the running back position with 898 yards and 10 touchdowns, but the Buccaneers signed RB Michael Bennett and RB Warrick Dunn in the offseason as insurance.

The team continues to pick up defensive players, sigining DB Eugene Wilson, DE Marquis Douglas, and LB Tedy Lehman. The Bucs will likely use the 20th pick in the 2008 draft to add a receiver or return specialist.

Team History

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were founded in 1976 as an expansion team for the NFL. They began their existence with 26 straight losses and 14 consecutive losing seasons after a brief successful batch of seasons in the late 70s and early 80s.

The Bucs began to turn thongs around in 1996 with the hiring of Tony Dungy as head coach. The coach implemented the famed Cover 2 defense and made the Buccaneers a title contender from 1996 to 2005. Dungy left the Bucs in 2001 after another disappointing playoff loss. His replacement, John Gruden, led the team to its first Super Bowl victory in 2002 with a 48-21 victory over the Oakland Raiders.