In this series, I will be looking at the history of coaches, quarterbacks, rushers, and receivers for all 32 franchises. For coaches and quarterbacks, I will be looking at how much their franchise’s career records (regular season only) would change if we removed the games with that person. For rushers and receivers, I will note how many times that player was the team’s leading rusher/receiver over the course of their time with that franchise (regular plus postseason).
Previous Teams:
AFC East: Dolphins, Bills, Jets, and Patriots
NFC East: Cowboys, Eagles, Giants, and Redskins
AFC North: Steelers, Browns, Ravens, and Bengals
NFC North: Packers, Vikings, Bears, and Lions
AFC South: Jaguars, Colts, Texans, and Titans
NFC South: Panthers, Falcons, Saints
The Tampa Bay Bucs have only had two coaches with a winning record in franchise history. Jon Gruden won the team’s lone Super Bowl, of course, but otherwise he isn’t too interesting to analyze: he went 57-55 as the team’s head coach.
That leaves Tony Dungy, clearly the best regular season coach in the history of the franchise. Under Dungy, Tampa Bay won 56% of their games; without him, the Bucs have won just 36% of their games. During his 6 seasons, the Bucs were tied for the 9th-best record in the league; in the previous six years, Tampa Bay won just one out of every three games, making them one of the league’s worst teams. But with Dungy, the more interesting question is did he do his best work here or with the Colts? Dungy had a better record in Indianapolis and coached there longer, but he certainly had a tougher task considering what he inherited at both spots. By this analysis, it’s almost perfectly even: Dungy improved the Colts’ all-time winning percentage by 3.0%, and he improved Tampa Bay’s mark by 2.9%. Dungy is the only coach to improve two teams by such a large amount; Don Shula is the only other head coach to improve two teams by at least two percent, and for him, the Colts were also his other team (Andy Reid ranks third by this metric; he improved the Eagles by 2.1% and the Chiefs by 1.8% so far). How bad have the Bucs coaches been? Dirk Koetter ranks as the third-best both by this metric and overall winning percentage, two facts I can’t wrap my head around.
| Ovr Rk | Coach | G | W | L | T | HC Win % | FrG | FrW | FL | FrT | Fr W% | Win% w/o HC | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Tony Dungy | 96 | 54 | 42 | 0 | 0.563 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.356 | 2.9% |
| 27 | Jon Gruden | 112 | 57 | 55 | 0 | 0.509 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.361 | 2.5% |
| 159 | Dirk Koetter | 48 | 19 | 29 | 0 | 0.396 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.385 | 0.1% |
| 280 | Greg Schiano | 32 | 11 | 21 | 0 | 0.344 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.387 | -0.2% |
| 294 | Raheem Morris | 48 | 17 | 31 | 0 | 0.354 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.388 | -0.2% |
| 307 | Sam Wyche | 64 | 23 | 41 | 0 | 0.359 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.388 | -0.3% |
| 382 | Richard Williamson | 19 | 4 | 15 | 0 | 0.211 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.39 | -0.5% |
| 419 | Ray Perkins | 60 | 19 | 41 | 0 | 0.317 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.392 | -0.7% |
| 422 | Lovie Smith | 32 | 8 | 24 | 0 | 0.25 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.392 | -0.7% |
| 491 | John McKay | 133 | 44 | 88 | 1 | 0.335 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.398 | -1.2% |
| 494 | Leeman Bennett | 32 | 4 | 28 | 0 | 0.125 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.398 | -1.3% |
The quarterback situation in Tampa Bay is… interesting to say the least. Five quarterbacks have started 50+ games for the Bucs: all were first round picks, two were first overall picks, and none of them produced a winning record in Tampa Bay. Brad Johnson had the most sustained success at 26-23, while Shaun King — yes, really — at 14-8 is the most games over .500. But because the franchise has been so bad, Trent Dilfer at 38-38 has improved the team’s winning percentage the most. In games started by anyone but Dilfer, Tampa Bay has a 0.371 winning percentage; overall, the franchise has a 0.385 winning percentage. Like Dilfer, Doug Williams won a Super Bowl with another team, and his 33-33-1 record with the Bucs also stands out as positive. Meanwhile, Steve DeBerg stands out as the most extreme on the other side, dropping the team’s winning percentage by one percent.
| Ovr Rk | QB | G | W | L | T | QB Win % | FrG | FrW | FL | FrT | Fr W% | Win% w/o QB | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | Trent Dilfer | 76 | 38 | 38 | 0 | 0.500 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.371 | 1.5% |
| 50 | Doug Williams | 67 | 33 | 33 | 1 | 0.500 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.373 | 1.3% |
| 55 | Brad Johnson | 49 | 26 | 23 | 0 | 0.531 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.374 | 1.1% |
| 74 | Shaun King | 22 | 14 | 8 | 0 | 0.636 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.377 | 0.8% |
| 83 | Jeff Garcia | 24 | 14 | 10 | 0 | 0.583 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.378 | 0.7% |
| 91 | Brian Griese | 21 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 0.571 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.379 | 0.6% |
| 188 | Josh Freeman | 59 | 24 | 35 | 0 | 0.407 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.383 | 0.2% |
| 200 | Chris Simms | 15 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0.467 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.384 | 0.2% |
| 202 | Rob Johnson | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.384 | 0.2% |
| 274 | Jim Zorn | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.384 | 0.1% |
| 374 | John Reaves | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.500 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.385 | 0% |
| 375 | Tim Rattay | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.500 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.385 | 0% |
| 383 | Jameis Winston | 54 | 21 | 33 | 0 | 0.389 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.385 | 0% |
| 397 | Ryan Fitzpatrick | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0.400 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.385 | 0% |
| 473 | Luke McCown | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0.333 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | 0% |
| 483 | Craig Erickson | 29 | 11 | 18 | 0 | 0.379 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | 0% |
| 527 | Gary Huff | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0.333 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | 0% |
| 623 | Parnell Dickinson | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | -0.1% |
| 624 | Terry Hanratty | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | -0.1% |
| 625 | Mike Boryla | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | -0.1% |
| 626 | Jeff Carlson | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | -0.1% |
| 627 | Eric Zeier | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.386 | -0.1% |
| 824 | Mike Rae | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0.200 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.387 | -0.1% |
| 886 | Jerry Golsteyn | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.387 | -0.2% |
| 887 | Joe Ferguson | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.387 | -0.2% |
| 888 | Byron Leftwich | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.387 | -0.2% |
| 916 | Bruce Gradkowski | 11 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0.273 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.387 | -0.2% |
| 965 | Jeb Blount | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.388 | -0.2% |
| 966 | Randy Hedberg | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.388 | -0.2% |
| 1021 | Josh Johnson | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.388 | -0.3% |
| 1029 | Mike Glennon | 18 | 5 | 13 | 0 | 0.278 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.388 | -0.3% |
| 1061 | Chris Chandler | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.389 | -0.3% |
| 1119 | Jack Thompson | 16 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 0.188 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.390 | -0.5% |
| 1120 | Josh McCown | 11 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0.091 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.390 | -0.5% |
| 1151 | Vinny Testaverde | 72 | 24 | 48 | 0 | 0.333 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.392 | -0.6% |
| 1158 | Steve Young | 19 | 3 | 16 | 0 | 0.158 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.392 | -0.7% |
| 1164 | Steve Spurrier | 12 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0.000 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.392 | -0.7% |
| 1198 | Steve DeBerg | 37 | 8 | 29 | 0 | 0.216 | 676 | 260 | 415 | 1 | 0.385 | 0.395 | -1% |
The team has only a slightly better history at running back. James Wilder is probably the running back who had the most success with the team: not only did he lead the team in rushing yards a franchise-high 63 times, but he also is the only Bucs player to ever finish as the top fantasy player at his position (he ranked 1st in 1984). But Wilder played when the Bucs were horrible, and by one measure had the worst record of any star running back in NFL history. It says a lot that about this franchise that Doug Martin — who disappointed in 4 of 6 years with the team — ranks second by this metric, and is overwhelmingly the leader in percentage of games where he led the team in rushing.
| Rusher | First Yr | Last Yr | Leading Rusher | Total Games | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Wilder | 1981 | 1989 | 63 | 115 | 55% |
| Doug Martin | 2012 | 2017 | 59 | 68 | 87% |
| Warrick Dunn | 1997 | 2008 | 55 | 97 | 57% |
| Mike Alstott | 1996 | 2006 | 49 | 168 | 29% |
| Cadillac Williams | 2005 | 2010 | 42 | 71 | 59% |
| Reggie Cobb | 1990 | 1993 | 41 | 60 | 68% |
| Michael Pittman | 2002 | 2007 | 41 | 92 | 45% |
| Errict Rhett | 1994 | 1997 | 34 | 54 | 63% |
| Ricky Bell | 1977 | 1981 | 31 | 62 | 50% |
| LeGarrette Blount | 2010 | 2012 | 22 | 40 | 55% |
| Earnest Graham | 2004 | 2011 | 22 | 100 | 22% |
| Jerry Eckwood | 1979 | 1981 | 20 | 50 | 40% |
| Peyton Barber | 2016 | 2018 | 20 | 47 | 43% |
| Gary Anderson | 1990 | 1993 | 13 | 53 | 25% |
| Lars Tate | 1988 | 1989 | 12 | 30 | 40% |
| James Owens | 1981 | 1984 | 11 | 42 | 26% |
| William Howard | 1988 | 1989 | 11 | 31 | 35% |
Tampa Bay has had a few standouts at wide receiver, led most prominently by current star Mike Evans. The young star wide receiver turns just 26 next week on August 21st, and he’s already the team’s all-time leader in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns (and he’ll surpass Wilder as the franchise’s leader in receptions this year). Keyshawn Johnson and Joey Galloway were Hall of Very Good wide receivers who had success both for Tampa Bay, Dallas, and another team. Tight end Jimmie Giles played for a long time with the Bucs and made four Pro Bowls, and was about the closest thing the team had to a consistent fantasy star until Evans: he had five seasons as a top-12 fantasy tight end.
The table below shows how many games each player led Tampa Bay in receiving yards. Evans set the new franchise mark last season, and will surely go down as the best offensive player in Bucs history.
| Receiver | First Yr | Last Yr | Leading Receiver | Total Games | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Evans | 2014 | 2018 | 36 | 77 | 47% |
| Keyshawn Johnson | 2000 | 2003 | 35 | 62 | 56% |
| Joey Galloway | 2004 | 2008 | 35 | 68 | 51% |
| Mark Carrier | 1987 | 1992 | 34 | 88 | 39% |
| Kevin House | 1980 | 1986 | 34 | 96 | 35% |
| Jimmie Giles | 1978 | 1986 | 28 | 125 | 22% |
| Vincent Jackson | 2012 | 2016 | 27 | 63 | 43% |
| Lawrence Dawsey | 1991 | 1995 | 23 | 57 | 40% |
| Mike Williams | 2010 | 2013 | 21 | 54 | 39% |
| Bruce Hill | 1987 | 1991 | 19 | 57 | 33% |
| Courtney Hawkins | 1992 | 1996 | 19 | 77 | 25% |
| James Wilder | 1981 | 1989 | 18 | 115 | 16% |
| Morris Owens | 1976 | 1979 | 17 | 60 | 28% |
| Michael Clayton | 2004 | 2009 | 17 | 85 | 20% |
| Gerald Carter | 1981 | 1987 | 17 | 102 | 17% |
| Kellen Winslow | 2009 | 2011 | 16 | 48 | 33% |
| Jacquez Green | 1998 | 2001 | 15 | 60 | 25% |
| Antonio Bryant | 2008 | 2009 | 14 | 29 | 48% |
| Horace Copeland | 1993 | 1997 | 13 | 60 | 22% |
| Reidel Anthony | 1997 | 2001 | 11 | 76 | 14% |
| Keenan McCardell | 2002 | 2003 | 10 | 33 | 30% |
| Warrick Dunn | 1997 | 2008 | 10 | 97 | 10% |
That’s it for the Buccaneers version of this series along with the entire AFC and NFC South divisions. Please leave your thoughts in the comments.