Your Team, Your Passion
May 26th, 2026
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BY IRA KAUFMAN
If you’re an original Buccaneer season-ticket holder who still attends games, take a bow. You’ve been through a lot of ups and downs.
Your loyalty to the franchise is commendable and you owe it to yourself to watch “Raise the Flags,” playing all this week on NFL Network. It’s a 10-part series documenting 50 years of Buc football — the high, the lows and the in between.
This organization has been around for a half-century and any Buc fan knows how it all began, an 0-26 start that made Tampa Bay a running joke for Johnny Carson on The Tonight Show.
When the Bucs fell 20-0 at Houston in their first regular-season game on Sept. 12, 1976, the top-rated show on television was “Happy Days.” The No. 1 song on the charts was “Shake Your Booty.”
The first inkling of happy days came during the magical 1979 season, when Lee Roy Selmon led a marauding defense that drove Tampa Bay to within one win of a Super Bowl appearance. That was an early high point for a franchise that went on to win two championships.
Considering the Browns, Lions, Texans and Jaguars have never even made a Super Bowl appearance, that’s no small achievement.
Along the way, there have been 13 head coaches and 15 playoff berths. You’ve been through 3-a-days with Ray Perkins and the MRSA outbreak that marked the 2013 season under Greg Schiano.
The Bucs have kicked off the NFL Draft five times, with mixed results. Selmon was the first of five Tampa Bay players to earn a bust in Canton. Ricky Bell’s hard running was a key to the success of the 1979 team. Bo Jackson never showed. Vinny Testaverde didn’t find success until he left Tampa and Jameis Winston threw too many darned interceptions.
The documentary goes into detail on the Jackson fiasco in 1986 and all the ramifications. During a pre-draft dinner, Jackson told Steve Young he would not report to One Buc Place under any conditions. When Young relayed that edict to Hugh Culverhouse, Tampa Bay’s owner refused to believe him.
“If you lose the first pick in the draft and get nothing out of it, it’s a killer,” former Bucs director of player personnel Ken Herock says on the documentary, deftly directed by Trent Cooper. “It’s a roster killer, it’s a team killer, it’s a coach killer.”
Adding another layer to the Doug Williams curse, Jackson’s spurning of the Bucs contributed to a 14-year playoff drought. A 12-year playoff gap (2008-2019) spanned the final season of the Jon Gruden era and the arrival of Bruce Arians in 2019.
There are plenty of reasons to cheer as Tampa Bay captured 10 division titles and celebrated 17 winning seasons. Both Super Bowl victories were decided early and emphatically by elite defenses that hunted down league MVP Rich Gannon and future Hall of Famer Patrick Mahomes.
In between those moments of glory, the Bucs often tested the patience of their fans.
Overall, the Bucs have posted a record of 326-466-1 for a winning percentage of .412 that ranks last among 32 franchises. The Seahawks, who also began play in 1976, are 416-376-1 and coming off their second Super Bowl triumph.
The Bucs have never ranked No. 1 in scoring or total offense. On defense, they’ve finished on top three times in each category.
Despite the departure of Mike Evans, the 2026 Bucs should have a stellar attack if the line in front of Baker Mayfield avoids the injury bug that undermined last year’s offense.
Who knows what the next half-century of Buc football will look like? For now, we have this entertaining documentary to enjoy. It was commisioned by Buc ownership, led by Ed Glazer, and if you haven’t seen all 10 segments, consider yourself deprived.
This franchise has had its share of happy days … and more than its share of despair. Through it all, Buc fans remain resolute — this is their team and their passion.
Yes, it’s been a heck of a ride.
May 26th, 2026 at 10:26 am
Sage … ‘Overall, the Bucs have posted a record of 326-466-1 for a winning percentage of .412 that ranks last among 32 franchises.’
Nice history lesson Ira, although lines like that above are rather depressing (lowest winning percentage is disheartening). Having been a Bucs’ fan for almost 45 years, I’ve learned to look forward not backwards (THAT gets depressing).
Looking forward, NFL Spin Zone dot com had an excellent piece this morning by Lou Scatagalia titled ‘2026 NFL Season: Full season predictions with records, playoffs, and Super Bowl’. They did a fairly detailed analysis of each division, and had the Bucs winning the NFC South with a 10-7 record. The others in the division …
o Saints (#2 … 9-8 record)
o Panthers (#3 … 6-11 record)
o Falcons (#4 … 5-12 record)
They had us as the #4 seed in the NFC for playoffs, but I liked what they said about our chances …
“Bucs don’t have a Super Bowl-caliber group, but a home playoff game could get them into the Divisional Round.’
May 26th, 2026 at 10:26 am
It would be nice if Xfinity & the NFL Network made peace and showed the darn things!
May 26th, 2026 at 10:38 am
Highest of highs. Lowest of lows.
2 SB wins is remarkable. Ask Minnesota and Buffalo.
But mediocrity now seems to be acceptable.
Fix it.
May 26th, 2026 at 10:44 am
Been a hardcore fan since the first win in 1977. It’s been rough.
May 26th, 2026 at 11:56 am
Now we’re back in the doldrums losing football under Bowles.
May 26th, 2026 at 12:00 pm
I want to know what the Glazers are going to do about the $246 for a ticket in the nose bleeds. That kind pricing removes my chances of ever going to a game again. We used to try to make it to 1 or 2 games a year. But I just can’t afford that plus parking, food and merch at all.
May 26th, 2026 at 12:01 pm
That documentary comes off as a Glazer P.R. pat on the back.
May 26th, 2026 at 12:23 pm
1000x better in being a jets,giants,Yankees red Sox saints and of course a steelers fan! GO Bucs!
May 26th, 2026 at 12:37 pm
I started being a fan in 1997 when I moved here. To me that was about the perfect time to jump onboard since I got to see Alstott and that defense shred people for a long while and got both Super Bowls. Grew up a Bills fan and not sure they are ever going to get over the hump. It was nice to switch and finally support a winning team in the Super Bowl I can tell you that!
May 26th, 2026 at 12:38 pm
Being born and raised in Massachusettes I liked the Patriots because the old Schaefer Stadium was only a 15 minute drive from my house. I also liked the Cowboys because they were always on TV and they almost always won. I moved here in Orlando in 1979, but it took me a while to warm up to the BUCS. By the 1981 or 82 season is moved to Lakeland and could drive to Tampa I was totally hooked. Then we had the Screwy Hewey/Doug Williams fiasco and the Bayou curse, but I still rooted for the Bucs
May 26th, 2026 at 12:41 pm
I just binged the whole thing last night with my son and let me tell you guys, I fully understand why the Glazers are sticking with Licht and Bowles. Watching the revolving door of coaches an GMs in the lost decade was depressing and sad. Some success is better than NO success.
May 26th, 2026 at 12:48 pm
Also, if the Bucs happen to be totally healthy for the playoffs they have plenty of talent to carry them to a Super Bowl win. It would require some luck, but it’s not outside the realm of possibility. The key is an ultra strong offensive line. If they play at top form all season and our players keep developing on the line we will be a very hard team to beat!
May 26th, 2026 at 1:20 pm
Don’t care to watch the documentary! I’ve been a fan since 76! I’m 11 year-old boy from Bradenton and full of joy to have our own NFL team! Have enjoyed the ups and been discouraged by the downs….. and close to giving up on this team as long as Bowles is in charge .
May 26th, 2026 at 1:24 pm
“Overall, the Bucs have posted a record of 326-466-1 for a winning percentage of .412 that ranks last among 32 franchises. ”
Proof positive that Bowles has added zero to this franchise.
It was .402 before him and .412 with him as HC\DC.
All hail the .010 win percentage increase thanks to the guru of defense!!!
Time for another extension!!!!
May 26th, 2026 at 3:13 pm
I’ve been a season ticket holder since 1976. My dad threw me over the wall when we beat St. Louis(Cardinals) at home in 1977 and I now watch with my own sons in our seats every game. It’s always funny to read various Joe Bucs Fan readers ridicule Bowles or Baler when they have no clue how bad things were under Leeman Bennett, Richard Williamson, Ray Perkins or Lovie Smith. They have never watched Spurrier, Jerry Golstyn or Jack Thompson throw a ball but feel compelled to talk about short comings of current players. They can read Ira, Stroud or Joe Bucs fan but never ran to get the newspaper to read McEwen and see what had happened to the Buc Bomber in the Sparkman cartoon each Monday in the sports section of the Trib. They never waited to see if Howard Cosell just happened to mention the Bucs on the MNF highlights.The owners now are miles from Culverhouse and created the professional organization that the team requires in the most successful sports league on the planet. When they won that first Super Bowl there were people actually weeping in my living room after a lifetime of watching truly awful football at times. This team is in good hands, has good ownership and if fun to care about. When the Bucs win the third trophy at some time in the future, there will be teams still working to win one. Keep it in mind when so many experts write how bad or mediocre this team is or will be. It’s been worse.
May 26th, 2026 at 4:54 pm
Oldest I would love to talk football with you! Excellent post!
May 26th, 2026 at 7:24 pm
I was ten years old when the Bucs first played in 1976, but even at my age, you couldn’t miss the excitement surrounding the Bucs…even if they were losing. But the losing made the winning feel that much better. The 1979 season was special, particularly since the NFL did expansion teams no favors in those days…. unlike the treatment more recent expansion teams have received with extra draft picks and free agency.
I bought my season tickets in 1997, just before Raymond James opened. That was intentional. I wanted to pick my seats, which I did, and I’ve been in those seats ever since (Section 218, in the shade). Both of my boys have been attending games their entire lives. I have pictures from each year. The Bucs have been a big presence in my life, and I hope that one day one of my son’s will take the tickets and keep the tradition going for another generation.
Despite my misgivings about Bowles, I do feel that the team will be much better this year. I am a huge Ruben Bain fan! Dudes an animal! The defense will improve.
May 27th, 2026 at 1:37 pm
Good stuff Ira! I choose to remember that even during the lean years before Ray Jay that we had very large crowds cheering loudly for the good plays even when we were losing. We had real football fans who loved the fact that we had an NFL team in Tampa. Before they got kicked to the curb for casual fans with deep pockets and all the folks from somewhere else cheering for the visitors.
Go Bucs!