1994 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season

1994 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
1994 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
Owner	the Hugh Culverhouse estate
General manager	Rich McKay
Head coach	Sam Wyche
Home field	Tampa Stadium
Results
Record	6–10
Division place	5th NFC Central
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Team MVP	LT Paul Gruber
	← 1993; Buccaneers seasons; 1995 →;

The 1994 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 19th season in the National Football League (NFL). The year began with the death of owner Hugh Culverhouse. Ownership was transferred to a three-man board of trustees. Season ticket sales dwindled, and rumors of the team's location were a persistent distraction all year. At mid-season, the new ownership removed all personnel responsibilities from coach Sam Wyche, and gave them to Vice President Rich McKay, who they named general manager. They also put the team up for sale.^[1] On the field, Errict Rhett became the first rookie in the team's history to rush for 1,000 yards, despite not starting until the ninth game of the season.

The Buccaneers had one of the weakest offenses in the league, even while led by a coach who had consistently produced top offenses while with the Cincinnati Bengals.^[2] At 2–9, most people in the Bay area were ready to hang Wyche and pack his bags, but the defensive line improved as Eric Curry finally matured in the second half of the season, and the Bucs began their first 4-game winning streak in 15 years. It started with an overtime win against the Minnesota Vikings. Two wins over the Washington Redskins and one over the Los Angeles Rams set up a big game in Tampa against the Green Bay Packers, who were trying to secure a playoff spot. "We've arrived", Wyche announced prematurely.^[3] The final game was called "Orange Pride Day", and was attended by 65,000 fans (although many were rooting for the visitors), most of whom expected it to be the last football game in Tampa. The Packers won, 34–19.^[1]

Offseason

NFL Draft

Pick	Round	Player	Position	School
6	1	Trent Dilfer	Quarterback	Fresno State
34	2	Errict Rhett	Running back	Florida
69	3	Harold Bishop	Tight end	LSU
136	5	Pete Pierson	Offensive tackle	Washington
165	6	Bernard Carter	Linebacker	East Carolina
200	7	Jim Pyne	Center	Virginia Tech

Preseason

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers went 2–2 in the pre-season, winning their first game against the Bengals at home. After a loss to Seattle Seahawks on the road, the Bucs beat cross state rival Miami Dolphins in game three. The last game of the preseason was lost to the New York Jets by one point. Expectations were for a break even season in 1994.

Personnel

Staff

1994 Tampa Bay Buccaneers staff

Front office

Vice president of football administration – Rich McKay
Director of player personnel – Jerry Angelo
Director of college scouting – Tim Ruskell

Head coaches

Head coach/director of football operations – Sam Wyche

Offensive coaches

Quarterbacks – Turk Schonert
Running backs – Willie Peete
Wide receivers – David Culley
Offensive line – Bob Wylie
Quality control – Mike Mularkey

Defensive coaches

Defensive coordinator – Floyd Peters
Defensive line – Ken Clarke
Linebackers – Maxie Baughan
Defensive backs – Johnnie Lynn

Special teams coaches

Special teams/tight ends – George Stewart

Strength and conditioning

Strength and conditioning – Brad Roll

^[4]

Roster

**1994 Tampa Bay Buccaneers roster**
Quarterbacks (QB) 12 Trent Dilfer 7 Craig Erickson 11 Casey Weldon Running backs (RB) 43 Rudy Harris 33 Anthony McDowell FB 32 Errict Rhett 31 Mazio Royster 30 Vernon Turner 46 Vince Workman Wide receivers (WR) 88 Horace Copeland 82 Tyree Davis 80 Lawrence Dawsey 84 Charles Wilson 87 Lamar Thomas Tight ends (TE) 86 Tyji Armstrong 89 Harold Bishop 83 Dave Moore		Offensive linemen (OL) 62 Ian Beckles G 76 Scott Dill T/G 74 Paul Gruber T 79 Sean Love G 61 Tony Mayberry C 70 Charles McRae G/T 69 Pete Pierson T 60 Jim Pyne G 67 Mike Sullivan T Defensive linemen (DL) 72 Chidi Ahanotu DE 73 Brad Culpepper DT 75 Eric Curry DE 71 Santana Dotson DT 90 Milton Jones DE 94 Toddrick McIntosh DE 95 Keith Powe DE 92 Shawn Price DT 77 Mark Wheeler DT 91 Karl Wilson DE		Linebackers (LB) 57 Jeff Brady MLB 27 Barney Bussey OLB 93 Demetrius DuBose OLB 55 Lonnie Marts OLB 56 Hardy Nickerson MLB Defensive backs (DB) 28 Curtis Buckley CB 23 Marty Carter FS 25 Tony Covington SS 39 Charles Dimry CB 22 Thomas Everett FS 26 Rogerick Green CB 47 John Lynch FS 35 Martin Mayhew CB 38 Mike McGruder CB Special teams 53 Ed Brady LS 5 Michael Husted K 4 Dan Stryzinski P		Practice squad 68 Joel Crisman G 37 Jerry Ellison RB 42 Vidal Mills S Reserve 81 Jackie Harris TE (IR) 85 Courtney Hawkins WR (IR) 45 Tony Stargell CB (IR) 53 active, 3 inactive, 3 practice squad Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Regular season
Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Game site	Attendance	Record
1	September 4	at Chicago Bears	L 21–9	Soldier Field	61,844	0–1
2	September 11	Indianapolis Colts	W 24–10	Tampa Stadium	36,631^[a]	1–1
3	September 18	New Orleans Saints	L 9–7	Tampa Stadium	45,522^[a]	1–2
4	September 25	at Green Bay Packers	L 30–3	Lambeau Field	58,551	1–3
5	October 2	Detroit Lions	W 24–14	Tampa Stadium	38,012^[a]	2–3
6	October 9	at Atlanta Falcons	L 34–13	Georgia Dome	52,633	2–4
7	Bye
8	October 23	at San Francisco 49ers	L 41–16	Candlestick Park	62,741	2–5
9	October 30	Minnesota Vikings	L 36–13	Tampa Stadium	42,110^[a]	2–6
10	November 6	Chicago Bears	L 20–6	Tampa Stadium	60,821^[a]	2–7
11	November 13	at Detroit Lions	L 14–9	Pontiac Silverdome	50,814	2–8
12	November 20	at Seattle Seahawks	L 22–21	Kingdome	37,466	2–9
13	November 27	at Minnesota Vikings	W 20–17 (OT)	Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome	47,259	3–9
14	December 4	Washington Redskins	W 26–21	Tampa Stadium	45,121^[a]	4–9
15	December 11	Los Angeles Rams	W 24–14	Tampa Stadium	34,150^[a]	5–9
16	December 18	at Washington Redskins	W 17–14	RFK Stadium	47,315	6–9
17	December 24	Green Bay Packers	L 34–19	Tampa Stadium	65,076^[a]	6–10
Note: Division opponents in bold text

Standings

NFC Central
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA	STK
⁽³⁾ Minnesota Vikings	10	6	0	.625	356	314	W1
⁽⁴⁾ Green Bay Packers	9	7	0	.563	382	287	W3
⁽⁵⁾ Detroit Lions	9	7	0	.563	357	342	L1
⁽⁶⁾ Chicago Bears	9	7	0	.563	271	307	L1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	6	10	0	.375	251	351	L1

Season summary

Week 13 at Vikings

Week Thirteen: Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2–9) at Minnesota Vikings (7–4)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Buccaneers	7	7	0	3	3	20
Vikings	0	9	0	8	0	17

at Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Date: November 27, 1994
Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
Game weather: Indoors (dome)
Game attendance: 47,250
TV: FOX
Box Score, Box Score

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Buccaneers	Passing	Craig Erickson	20/38, 254 Yds, TD, INT
	Rushing	Errict Rhett	24 Rush, 55 Yds, TD
	Receiving	Courtney Hawkins	6 Rec, 80 Yds, TD
Vikings	Passing	Warren Moon	24/46, 286 Yds, TD, INT
	Rushing	Terry Allen	16 Rush, 54 Yds
	Receiving	Qadry Ismail	6 Rec, 101 Yds, TD

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	TB	MIN
1	11:14	3	6		Buccaneers	Errict Rhett 1-yard touchdown run, Michael Husted kick good	7	0
2	13:36	12	61		Vikings	23-yard field goal by Fuad Reveiz	7	3
2	8:16	9	49		Vikings	21-yard field goal by Fuad Reveiz	7	6
2	5:13	8	55		Buccaneers	Courtney Hawkins 14-yard touchdown reception from Craig Erickson, Michael Husted kick good	14	6
2	0:33	10	53		Vikings	51-yard field goal by Fuad Reveiz	14	9
3	5:24	14	86		Buccaneers	-yard field goal by Michael Husted	17	9
4	2:27	3	52		Vikings	Qadry Ismail 40-yard touchdown reception from Warren Moon, 2-point pass good	17	17
OT	12:52	1	0		Buccaneers	22-yard field goal by Michael Husted	20	17
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							20	17

Notes

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h blacked out locally

References

^ ^a ^b Stroud, Rick (September 11, 2005). "30 Seasons: 1976–2005. From Sinking Ship to World-Class Cruise". St. Petersburg Times.
^ Lieber, Jill (December 5, 1994). "The NFC Central". Sports Illustrated.
^ Lieber, Jill (December 26, 1994). "The NFC Central". Sports Illustrated.
^ 2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Media Guide. pp. 44–46. Archived from the original on March 15, 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2010.

This article relating to an American football season is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[blacked-5] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h blacked out locally

[Stroud,_Rick_2005-1] Stroud, Rick (September 11, 2005). "30 Seasons: 1976–2005. From Sinking Ship to World-Class Cruise". St. Petersburg Times.

[2] Lieber, Jill (December 5, 1994). "The NFC Central". Sports Illustrated.

[3] Lieber, Jill (December 26, 1994). "The NFC Central". Sports Illustrated.

[4] 2009 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Media Guide. pp. 44–46. Archived from the original on March 15, 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2010.

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v t e Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Founded in 1976 Based and headquartered in Tampa, Florida
Franchise	Franchise Seasons History Coaches All-time roster Starting quarterbacks Draft history Expansion draft First-round draft picks Broadcasters
Stadiums	Tampa Stadium Raymond James Stadium
Culture	Hugh Culverhouse Malcolm Glazer Tampa 2 Captain Fear A Triumph of the Heart: The Ricky Bell Story
Lore	0–26 Snow Bowl 2020 NFC Championship Game Tom Brady's return to New England
Rivalries	Atlanta Falcons Carolina Panthers Green Bay Packers Miami Dolphins New Orleans Saints
Wild card berths (4)	1997 2000 2001 2020
Division championships (9)	1979 1981 1999 2002 2005 2007 2021 2022 2023
Conference championships (2)	2002 2020
League championships (2)	2002 (XXXVII) 2020 (LV)
Hall of Famers	Lee Roy Selmon Steve Young Randall McDaniel Warren Sapp Derrick Brooks Tim Brown John Lynch Ron Wolf Tony Dungy Ronde Barber
Retired numbers	55 63 99
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: National Football Conference Division: South Division