1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season

McKay had a natural sense of humor that helped him to cope with the pressures of the long losing streak, and it was not unusual for his press conferences to resemble comedy routines. While this may have helped cope with the on-field frustrations,[8] it also served to mask how difficult the experience was for him, a situation his son Rich compared to "taking off in a jet airplane and finding out that neither engine works."[9]

• On hearing about kicker Pete Rajecki's nervousness at playing in front of McKay: "That's unfortunate, as I plan on attending all the games".[10]
• At a postgame press conference: "You guys don't know the difference between a football and a bunch of bananas."[10]
• At the following week's press conference, after a member of the media left a case of bananas at his door: "You guys don't know the difference between a football and a Mercedes-Benz."[10]
• On John Brodie's comment that Steve Spurrier throws one of three passes into the ground: "That's OK, we'll just get shorter receivers."[11]
• "We've determined that we can't win at home and we can't win on the road. What we need is a neutral site."[12]
• "Well we didn't block, but we made up for it by not tackling."[13]
• "We can't stop a pass or a run. Otherwise, we're in great shape."
• When asked how he compared coaching in Tampa to coaching at USC: "It's a three-hour time difference."[14]
• "Mr. Culverhouse has been a great owner. He hasn't come to the dressing room yet to give me any suggestions. Well, I need some advice. I called the Baltimore owner, but he was busy".[15]
• To players planning on staying in Tampa over the offseason: "Stop by my office tomorrow and pick up some fake noses and mustaches so no one recognizes your sorry asses".[16]
• "We'll be back. Maybe not in this century, but we'll be back."[1]

Additionally, assistant coach Dennis Fryzel, when the team was penalized for having 12 players on the field, asked a referee, "Which one was it?"[17] And after injured guard Ira Gordon suffered a neck injury and was sent by McKay to get an X-ray to see what was wrong, Gordon reportedly told McKay, "Coach, I got the x-ray, but I don't feel any better".[18]

I don't know what this pro football mystique is. I've gone to the pro camps. They throw the ball, they catch the ball. Many of them are ex-USC players. I'm not amazed at what they do. I've watched the pros play. They run traps, they pitch the ball, they sweep. What else is there?
- John McKay, Sports Illustrated[14]

Coach McKay had won four national championships while coaching at USC, and he never hesitated to express his lack of awe at the NFL. He earned enemies in the league with his dismissive comments and nonchalant attitude.[19] The league liked to promote the games as having life-or-death significance, and were undercut by a coach who would make statements such as, "You draw Xs and Os on a blackboard and that's not so difficult. I can even do it with my left hand".[20] Such statements made the Buccaneers' road more difficult, as a feeling grew around the league that McKay was a newcomer who needed to be taught a lesson. Linebacker Richard "Batman" Wood echoed those sentiments: "It was a brand-new organization. Who cared about us? They wanted to devastate us, beat us in the ground. And with coach McKay coming from college, they wanted to maybe even play us a little harder."[2] Examples given of opponents using McKay's comments as an excuse to run up the score included the reverse that Denver ran late in a 48–13 victory, and the timeout that Chuck Fairbanks called at the end of the Patriots game to enable Steve Grogan to break the NFL record of season rushing touchdowns by a quarterback.[21] One sports analyst had predicted that McKay's lucrative contract would encourage opposing coaches to run up the score on the Buccaneers, to be able to demonstrate to their team owners that they were deserving of similar money.[22]

Fed up with the attitude that he had to prove himself in the NFL, McKay once drunkenly needled Don Shula by saying, "I think pro coaches should have to prove themselves by winning four national championships in the colleges". He later admitted to having ruffled some feathers in the NFL, but said, "it wasn't as if they didn't deserve it".[7]

Ron Wolf, who had been the Oakland Raiders' Director of Player Personnel since 1963 and was credited with much of their success, was hired as Vice President of Operations.[32] Los Angeles Rams general manager Don Klosterman and former Kansas City Chiefs head coach Hank Stram were early candidates for the job; but Klosterman withdrew, and Stram was interested in a combined coach/general manager position.[33] Wolf was directly responsible for the drafting of 20 of the Raiders' 22 starters, and his effectiveness at scouting talent was believed to be a major reason for the Raiders' being one of the few teams not to belong to a scouting combine.[34] The Buccaneers quickly developed a Raiders flavor, choosing to hire a scouting staff rather than rely on the computerized scouting reports that almost all other teams were using,[35] and hiring Raiders business manager Ken LaRue to serve in the same capacity. One of Wolf's responsibilities was to assist in the hiring of a head coach. Wolf persuaded Culverhouse that it would be better for any prospect to gain a year of experience and knowledge in his present job, rather than be named at expansion time, when there was little or no advantage to having a coach in place.[36]

Wolf named Tom Bass director of player personnel.[37] Bass had previously served as head of scouting and defensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals, the only team apart from the Buccaneers and Raiders that still maintained a human scouting staff instead of using the computerized services,[35] and the team on whose model the Buccaneers' expansion strategy was patterned.[38] Bass was Paul Brown's first coaching hire with the expansion Bengals, and previously had been an assistant under Sid Gillman with the San Diego Chargers, and with Don Coryell at San Diego State.[39] Former McKay assistant and Utah State head coach Phil Krueger was added to the staff, joined shortly thereafter by USC assistants Wayne Fontes and Willie Brown, as defensive backs and receivers coaches, respectively.[40][41] Dennis Fryzel, the last University of Tampa head coach, was added to handle special teams.[42] Denver Broncos assistant Jerry Frei was hired as offensive line coach, becoming McKay's first assistant hired from the professional ranks, and was followed by former New York Jets defensive coordinator Dick Voris, hired initially as defensive line coach.[43][44] Abe Gibron, former head coach of the Chicago Bears and college teammate of McKay at Purdue, was brought on board as a defensive assistant.[45] The staff was completed with the addition of Atlanta Falcons assistant and former Oakland Raiders and Buffalo Bills head coach John Rauch as offensive coordinator.[46] Tampa resident Harry Smith, a trainer with experience working with local college athletes such as John Matuszak and Gary Huff, became the team's strength and conditioning coach.[47]

The list of available players was released only 72 hours before the draft, and included many medical rejects who did not even report to training camp.[9] McKay initially felt that the draft included a higher-than-expected level of talent,[48] joking that "they're in their late 30s. I couldn't be happier".[49] At the time, the NFL allowed existing teams to protect all except three players on their active rosters, leaving very meager options for expansion brethren Buccaneers and Seahawks.[50] While the expansion draft did not include many well-known starters, it included several players who had notoriety with previous professional and college teams:

• Larry Ball and Doug Swift of the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins team. Swift was left unprotected by the Dolphins, and the Buccaneers drafted him, unaware of the previous day's newspaper report that Swift had been accepted into medical school and would be retiring from football.[51]
• Joe Blahak, who played for the 1971 Nebraska Cornhuskers National Championship team and caught an interception in their Orange Bowl win over Alabama.[52]
• Former USC tailbacks Anthony Davis and Manfred Moore. Davis did not report immediately, as he was still under contract to the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League.[53]
• Starting San Diego Chargers guard Ira Gordon.
• Howard Fest, a member of the Cincinnati Bengals 1968 expansion team.[54]
• Harold Hart, the Oakland Raiders running back who had led the AFC in kick returns the previous season.[55]
• Vince Kendrick, the former Florida Gators fullback who had been left unprotected by the Atlanta Falcons due to a knee injury.[56]
• Johnny McKay, former USC wide receiver and son of coach McKay. McKay and Anthony Davis also both played with the Southern California Sun of the World Football League before joining the NFL.[57]
• Dave Pear, who would become the first Buccaneer selected as an All-Pro and would later win a Super Bowl ring with Oakland before retiring and becoming an anti-NFL activist over the league's treatment of injured and disabled former players.[58]
• Pat Toomay, the Buffalo Bills' defensive line MVP and former Dallas Cowboy, who he believed was placed on the expansion list as a form of blackballing due to the publication of his novel The Crunch, noting in a 2014 Sports Illustrated article that the novel "was the kind of thing you write AFTER you retire, not while you're still playing".[59]
• Mike Current and Ken Stone, who would go on to have productive careers with the Dolphins and Cardinals, respectively.
• Mark Cotney and Dave Reavis, who went on to become key starters for the Buccaneers. Cotney said in 2014 that the 1976 team taught him the most of any Bucs team in the 9 years he was a starter at safety, because "we had eight or nine guys that year who belonged in the NFL...you still had to find a way to go out there and bust your ass."

The 1976 NFL Draft was considered to be the worst draft class in many years, with only eight high-quality prospects, as compared to the normal 27 or 28. The popularity of the wishbone offense among college teams left the draft devoid of quarterback prospects:[60] indeed the 1976 quarterback draft class is retrospectively viewed as amongst the worst of all time.[61] A drawing held the previous December gave the Buccaneers the rights to the first overall selection.[62]

As an expansion team, the Buccaneers were given two extra picks in each of the 2nd–5th rounds. Their second 2nd-round pick was traded to the San Francisco 49ers for quarterback Steve Spurrier. Their first 3rd-round pick was traded to Baltimore for cornerback Mike Washington. Their first 4th-round pick and last 5th-round picks were traded to the Los Angeles Rams for linebacker Jim Peterson. Their 8th-round pick was traded to the New York Jets for linebacker Steve Reese.[63]

With the first selection in the draft, the Buccaneers picked Lee Roy Selmon, considered to be the best defensive tackle in Oklahoma history and described as "one of the greatest defensive linemen I have ever watched" by coach McKay.[64] Shortly thereafter, with their second pick of the second round, they took his brother Dewey. The two, who were the two leading tacklers on the 1975 Oklahoma Sooners football team, were the third pair of brothers in NFL history to go to the same team in the same draft.[65] They became the only pair of brothers to play for the same NFL team at the same time until Lyle Blackwood joined his brother Glenn on the Miami Dolphins' roster in 1981.[66] The move prompted brother Lucious Selmon to offer to come out of retirement if Tampa Bay would obtain his NFL rights.[67] The Buccaneers spent their first second-round pick on Florida fullback Jimmy DuBose, and took Colorado offensive tackle Steve Young in the third round.[68] Later-round picks who made the team included defensive back Curtis Jordan, quarterback Parnell Dickinson, and running back George Ragsdale. Carl Roaches, later a Pro Bowl return man for the Houston Oilers, and Tommy West, later the head coach at Clemson and the University of Memphis, were selected by the Buccaneers but did not make the roster.[69]

[114][121]

The Buccaneers, making their NFL debut against the Houston Oilers, averaged less than two yards per offensive play. They were unable to score despite being given good field position by two Oiler fumbles. Steve Spurrier completed 8 of 21 passes for 36 yards, and starting running backs Jimmy DuBose and Louis Carter rushed for 12 yards on 15 carries. Despite being outgained 169 to 8 by the second quarter, they were only behind 7–0 and missed a chance to tie the score when Lee McGriff dropped a Spurrier pass in the end zone. A later drive ended when Spurrier overthrew John McKay, Jr., instead hitting defender C.L. Whittington. A third chance to tie the score was lost when Mark Cotney dropped an interception of a Dan Pastorini pass with a clear path to the end zone. Whittington gave the Buccaneers the ball on the Oiler 11-yard line by fumbling a punt, but then killed the Buccaneers' scoring chances by intercepting another Spurrier pass.[122] Ronnie Coleman ran 25 times for 142 yards for the Oilers. McKay expressed concern over the team's offense after the defeat, and responded to a reporter's taunt of "I thought you said you were going to win some games?" by saying, "Houston has been in the league 6,000 years and still hasn't won a championship. The Bucs will be heard from".[123] It was a day with a bad beginning, middle, and ending for the Buccaneers. The day began with the Buccaneers getting lost in the maze-like Astrodome interior, and ended with the team's charter plane bouncing and rolling before righting itself on landing.[124] In addition, starting tackle Dave Reavis was injured during pregame warmups and was lost for the season.[125]

The San Diego Chargers got 16 first downs, compared to 5 for the Buccaneers. Chargers players and coaches praised the Buccaneers' defense, who held them to 9 points until the final three minutes of the game, saying that they played the equivalent of five-quarters.[13] Three Tampa Bay quarterbacks completed a combined 3 of 8 passes for −4 yards. Buccaneers receiver Bob Moore said, "We're at rock bottom now...but if we start pointing a finger, we'll go 0–14". The Chargers finished with 325 yards of offense to the Buccaneers' 125.[13] Inconsistent blocking was blamed for the offensive problems, a situation that was not helped by the injury to tackle Dave Reavis.[126] Mercury Morris, who had been picked up on waivers by the Chargers from the Miami Dolphins after the Buccaneers' preseason game against the Dolphins, commented that the difference in Buccaneers' offensive line protection between the two games was like watching two different teams. The Buccaneers' lack of speed was also noticeable.[127] The loss marked the first time since 1961 that a professional football team was shut out in the first two games of the season, when the Oakland Raiders were shut out by the same two teams in the same order.[128]

The Buccaneers scored their first points, but were not able to score enough to win, despite statistically outperforming the Buffalo Bills in most phases of the game. The Buccaneers had only three Dave Green field goals to show for seven possessions inside the Bills' 22-yard line. O. J. Simpson, who would rush for a season total of 1,503 yards, was held to only 39 yards on twenty carries.[129][130] The Bills, the highest-scoring team in recent years, were 1 of 12 in third-down conversions, and were surpassed in yardage, first downs, rushing average, and number of total plays.[131] Buffalo took the lead on Bob Chandler's 58-yard reception of a tipped pass. The Buccaneers' 338 yards of offense, a great improvement over their previous two games, coincided with coach McKay's relenting to Steve Spurrier's demands that he be able to call his own plays. Spurrier suffered a bone chip in his throwing hand that made his status questionable for the next week's game.[132]

After taking a 3–0 lead against one of the league's better teams on a Dave Green field goal, the Buccaneers were overwhelmed by the Baltimore Colts in a disastrous second quarter. A Danny Reece interception of a Bert Jones pass was called back due to a roughing-the-passer penalty, and another was dropped by Richard Wood. Cornerback Mike Washington was thrown out of the game for fighting. Cal Peterson and Lee Roy Selmon went out with knee injuries.[133] Film of the game appeared to indicate that the injury to Selmon was intentional.[134] The Colts followed with 9 points in each of the next two-quarters. The Buccaneers finally scored their first two touchdowns of the year, a fumble return by Danny Reece and a 1-yard Charlie Davis run. The Colts set team records with eight sacks, and with 124 penalty yards. They outgained Tampa Bay 458 yards to 89 and 31 first downs to 6. The Buccaneers were only able to complete four passes; wide receiver Lee McGriff was their leading passer with a 39-yard completion. Said McKay afterward, "Field position hurt us badly, dropped passes hurt us badly, no blocking hurt us badly, injuries hurt us badly, and penalties hurt us badly. Otherwise, it was a perfect afternoon."[135]

With four defensive starters out with injuries, the Buccaneers spotted the Cincinnati Bengals a 14–0 first-quarter lead. The defense came together for the last three-quarters, with the only points coming from Tommy Casanova's 25-yard fumble return for a touchdown. Ken Anderson, the AFC's leading passer,[136] was held to 98 yards passing. Lacking healthy linebackers, the Buccaneers abandoned their 3–4 defense in favor of a 4–3.[137] The Buccaneers held a 191–174 yardage advantage over the AFC Central-leading Bengals in the final 45 minutes.[138] The Bengals declined to hand out game balls to any of their players after the win.[15]

Seattle Seahawks linebacker Mike Curtis blocked a field goal that would have sent the game into overtime, guaranteeing a Seahawk victory in what was billed as the "expansion bowl" meeting between two winless, first-year teams. The Buccaneers outgained the Seahawks, 285 yards to 253, but the officials outgained both, with 310 yards in penalties. The 35 penalties (accepted, 41 were thrown by the officials) were two short of the 25-year-old league record. Each team was penalized for holding eight times. Defensive tackle Pat Toomay complained that "the officials made us look like a bunch of idiots".[15] Dan Ryczek was the only Buccaneer lineman not to be called for holding.[139] Tampa Bay running back Louis Carter, stuffed at the goal line, threw the ball to Morris Owens, who dived into the end zone for the first Buccaneer passing touchdown.[15] A tackle by Seahawk punter Rick Engles prevented a touchdown return by Danny Reece that would have won the game for the Buccaneers.[140] An earlier field goal try was blocked by Lyle Blackwood. The game ended with Dave Brown being helped from the field after being hit in the eye by the final penalty flag.[141]

A blocked field goal and extra-point attempt provided the margin of victory for the Miami Dolphins. Ex-Dolphin receiver Morris Owens came back to haunt his old team with three touchdown catches. Starting quarterback Parnell Dickinson threw the first, then was replaced by recently acquired quarterback Terry Hanratty after injuring his ankle. When Hanratty proved ineffective, Steve Spurrier, who had not practiced during the week due to a swollen knee, came off the bench to throw the final two touchdowns. It took a final-minute, 29-yard Garo Yepremian field goal to clinch the game for the Dolphins, whose pass defense had been decimated by injuries. 192 of the Buccaneers' 334 total yards came through the air.[142][143][144] McKay would later point to this game as the high point of the Buccaneers' season.[109] Dolphins linebacker Nick Buoniconti saw it differently, calling the narrow victory "a disgrace" and "the low point in Miami Dolphins' history".[145]

The Kansas City Chiefs credited their defense with the win after holding the Buccaneers to 14 yards rushing. The Buccaneers managed only 2 first downs and 34 yards of total offense before exploding for three touchdowns in the final ten minutes.[146] The Buccaneers were mistake-prone and ineffective throughout the first three-quarters. Ken Stone was penalized for roughing on a missed field goal in the first quarter, with the result that the Chiefs got a second chance to kick it. The special teams allowed Henry Marshall to return a punt 59 yards, setting up the Chiefs' second touchdown. They got 14 first downs and 162 yards in the final 15 minutes, scoring on an Essex Johnson run and passes from Steve Spurrier to Johnny McKay and Jack Novak. Coach McKay felt that the difference was that the team did not begin giving effort until the fourth quarter. McKay also felt that the Chiefs left themselves vulnerable by trying to run up the score. Bert Cooper, filling in at linebacker for an injured Steve Reese, was consistently exploited in the passing game.[147] McKay later threatened to fire players who he felt were giving a slack effort, specifically referring to a Chiefs kickoff that rolled all the way to the 4-yard line, with no Buccaneers trying to recover it. Spectators booed the team, and one threw a dead bird at Spurrier as he returned to the locker room after the game. Buccaneer defenders found some consolation in having held the AFC's top offensive team to only 13 points.[148] Defensive end Council Rudolph played, despite the death of his father the previous evening.[149]

With the score tied 10–10, Buccaneer linebacker Cal Peterson suffered a career-ending injury untouched when his knee gave out while running in an interception for what would have been a touchdown.[150][151] Lee Roy Selmon also suffered a season-ending knee injury.[152] After taking a 13–10 lead on a Dave Green field goal, the injury-riddled Buccaneers were doomed by an 181⁄2 minute span in which the Broncos scored 38 points.[153] Coach McKay accused Broncos coach John Ralston of running up the score and stormed off of the field, refusing to shake hands with him after the game. He later referred to Ralston as a "horse's ass" and said, "I don't like any part of him. His day is coming".[13] Ralston responded by pointing out that most of the Broncos points came on fumble recoveries and interceptions. McKay later revealed his thoughts on the team's likely high draft position, saying "This team needs a catalyst. Ricky Bell can run through a wall".[13]

In what was according to coach Lou Holtz a prearranged move, New York Jets rookie quarterback Richard Todd was replaced by Joe Namath late in the first quarter. Namath responded with a passing display that gave the Jets a 24–0 halftime lead. Saying that his players were "polite" to Namath, coach McKay compared the Buccaneers to a junior-high team, and said that the only thing they did better than the Jets was to be the first team on the field after halftime. Clark Gaines rushed for 103 yards for the Jets. The Buccaneers' three quarterbacks combined for 171 yards passing, more than the Jets' quarterbacks, but the Buccaneers failed to score for the fourth time in the season.[154] As the score rose, the press box announcer began calling out records set during the game, which included the Jets' first shutout in Shea Stadium.[155] This was considered to be the Buccaneers' last good chance to win a game, with their four final opponents all in playoff contention. The Jets' 34 points were nearly a third of their season total of 110 after ten games, and a fifth of their season total of 169.[156]

Strong first-half play left the Buccaneers tied 7–7 with the Cleveland Browns at halftime, but they failed to maintain the intensity for the second half of the game. A screen pass from Steve Spurrier to Essex Johnson caught the blitzing Cleveland linebackers out of position for a 13-yard touchdown. The solid blocking of the first half gave way to the Cleveland rush in the second half, and Spurrier was replaced with Parnell Dickinson in the fourth quarter. Dickinson wound up leaving the game with a season-ending knee injury on a play in which he threw an interception to Terry Brown.[157][158] Two Browns players were ejected for fighting, in a game in which several Buccaneers complained of cheap shots being taken. Dave Pear said, "If I had a gun, I would have shot them both in the head", of two Cleveland players who tried to take out his knees.[134]

The Oakland Raiders, with an NFL-best 11–1 record, scored three touchdowns before the Buccaneers got their third first down. Mark van Eeghen scored on two 1-yard runs. A 2-yard Ed Williams touchdown run tied the score at 7–7 after the Buccaneers recovered a fumble at the Oakland 14-yard line in the first quarter. A Dave Green field goal made the score 21–10 at halftime, but Ken Stabler threw for two third-quarter touchdowns for the Raiders. Steve Spurrier finished the Buccaneers' scoring with a fourth-quarter touchdown pass to Morris Owens.[159] Dewey Selmon suffered a serious knee injury, the Buccaneers' 14th of the season, on the first play of the game.[152]

John McKay gave ex-Steelers quarterback Terry Hanratty the start against his former team, saying that Hanratty's familiarity with the Steelers' schemes made him the best choice. "I don't know if I'm doing him a favor or not", said McKay, who compared the game to Custer's last stand.[160] Hanratty was pulled in favor of Steve Spurrier in the second half. McKay later told reporters critical of Hanratty's performance, "You guys should take a Sunday off and play behind our offensive line. They just poured in on us."[161] Rocky Bleier ran for 118 yards and three touchdowns, and Terry Bradshaw completed two touchdown passes to Lynn Swann.[162] Franco Harris, with 55 yards rushing, became the fourth player both to rush for 5,000 yards in four seasons, and to gain 1,000 yards four or more times. The Steelers jumped out to a quick 21–0 lead, helped by two early Tampa Bay turnovers deep in their own territory. Pittsburgh players, some of whom could still remember having gone 0–13 after winning their opener in 1969, described the game as "strange", but declined to comment on the Buccaneers' play. The Buccaneers managed only 85 yards of offense against a Steeler team that needed the win to maintain their playoff chances.[163]

This game had the distinction of being what is believed to be the largest points spread in NFL history, as Pittsburgh was favored by 24. This record was surpassed in 2013 when the Denver Broncos were favored in a 28-point spread against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Though the Broncos won the game, they did not cover (winning only 35–19) leaving Pittsburgh with the largest point spread covered by a favourite.[164] This was the only game in NFL history in which a favorite has covered a spread of more than 20 points until the Dallas Cowboys covered as 22 point favorites against the Miami Dolphins in 2019.

Two fumbles deep in New England Patriots territory overcame a stubborn Buccaneer effort. The Patriots' 260 rushing yards stood for years as the most allowed in a game by the Buccaneers, while their total of four pass completions remains the least by a Tampa Bay opponent. New England came from behind twice on Andy Johnson touchdown runs, and took the lead for good on Sam Hunt's 58-yard return of a Steve Spurrier interception. Johnson's first touchdown run was a 69-yarder that set a club record. Patriots quarterback Steve Grogan set an NFL record with four seconds left, rushing for his 12th touchdown of the year. The Buccaneers also set an NFL record, by becoming the only team to go winless in a 14-game season.[165][166][167]