1976 is known for 0-14, and 1977 is known for 0-26 and the first two wins in the last two games. But in 1978, with new QB Doug Williams rocket arm, the Bucs finally had a little offense to go with that Defense. In game one, a home game vs the New York Giants, the first pass was a deep Bomb from Williams; incomplete. The crowd erupted with applause, because they saw the Bucs FINALLY had a QB who could throw the ball deep. Doug's next pass was a Pick 6 the other way! He would get knocked out of the game and miss the next weeks game too; both Losses.
But then came week 3, Tampa Bay at Minnesota. The Vikings had won just about every Central Division championship in recent memory. They went to 4 SuperBowls in the 70s. ...and the Bucs beat them! In fact midway through the year, Tampa Bay was 4-4 and talking playoffs. But in week 10, Fred Dryer of the then Los Angeles Rams had a late hit on him and broke Doug Williams Jaw. He would miss every game but the last, and the Bucs would only win one more the rest of the year. The team was finally competitive though, and in 1979 the once 0-26 Bucs were only a TD and FG away from the SuperBowl!
Tampa Bay was in the Playoffs 3 out of 4 years, and then Hugh Culverhouse refused to pay money to keep Doug Williams, who as a starter was making less money than a few backups. The Bucs let him go, and let go of winning as well as the rest is history; 14 consecutive losing seasons until Tony Dungy and Rich McKay stepped in.
Its not up to par with some of the movies I've made lately. In fact, its not even a movie really, just a video collection of some splash plays. But for those who are going to be voting for Ring Of Honor players soon, some may have never seen the OLD orange Bucs. So sit back, and watch the first set of Bucs players making a difference on Sundays, and then you can match names to faces come Ring Of Honor Voting day!
First Generation Buc Players from Niko H on Vimeo.