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Reactions Bucs fans remember the heartbreakersCNNSI.com looked at a few of the transactions that made Buccaneers fans shout, "Say It Ain't So." Then we opened the mailbag and let users vent on those and other dirty deals from over the years.Here is a sampling of your reactions:
And the ultimate insult to many Bucs fans: Trent Dilfer wins Super Bowl XXV with the Raven in Tampa! Doug, please stop the pain!
To add a little salt into the Booker Reese wound (make it coarse-ground sea salt, please) ... Chicago used that number one pick from the Bucs to select defensive tackle Dan Hampton. And you know what the "Danimal" was to the Super Bowl Shuffling Bears.
What about Keith McCants, a supposed stud out of Alabama, err dud, and you can't forget about Charles McRae an All-America OT from Tennessee another disaster in Tampa.
Two more Bucs blunders: 1. Drafting Trent Dilfer after Craig Erickson had the best season by a Bucs QB since Doug Williams. Erickson was no Hall of Famer, but with Tampa's defense, he could have gotten them over the hump. The pick should've been used on defense, not at QB. 2. Not picking up Dan Marino prior to the 2000 season. He would've come, but Dungy thought Shaun King was the answer. Again, with that defense, even an aging, brittle Marino would have made the difference.
CNNSI.com only goes back to the mid-'80s with the Bucs. Look back to their creation in '76, and the pick to take Ricky Bell over Tony Dorsett, and that's where the wheels, if there ever were any, fell off. Granted, Bell was fallen by a tragic illness, but Bell over Dorsett? No way. Never. And don't forget, even wide receiver Johnny McKay played for Pappa McKay, who never should have left USC.
Great story on the Bucs. I lived in the Tampa Bay area from 1984 through 1991, and saw the carnage first hand, even going to a preseason game in 1984 at the Old Sombrero, when the Bucs played the Falcons and had Jack Thompson starting at QB. But I believe you left something out. How about all those inept, lame, incredibly dumb coaches who marched through Tampa after John McKay and before Tony Dungy? Leeman Bennett. Goes 4-28 in two seasons as head coach. He probably had a hand in Steve Young's departure. Fired in 1986. Ray Perkins. Went from being Bear Bryant's successor to Tampa Bay's supposed savior. The only highlight of Perkin's stint was Tampa Bay's win over Buffalo in 1988, the only 10-5 final score in league history. Incredibly stupid at drafting players and holding on to the good players (James Wilder). Gets fired in 1990. Richard Williamson. Takes over after Ray Perkins is fired, 13 games into the season. Gets fired after the 1991 season with a 4-15 record. Finally, the story of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers comes down to one man: Hugh Culverhouse. He was the reason Bo Jackson did not come to Tampa. He was the reason Steve Young left at such a cheap price. He was the reason Doug Williams left for the USFL. Had an owner like Malcolm Glazer owned the team from the beginning, hired coaches who knew something, and let the people who knew football control the personnel, Tampa Bay would never have gone through the dismal 1983-1996 nightmare. The day they broke my heart? The day the Bucs hired Leeman Bennett ... or Ray Perkins ... or Richard Williamson ... or was it Sam Wyche? Oh, never mind ...
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