The 1984 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 9th season in the National Football League the 9th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 9th and final season under head coach John McKay. They improved on their 2–14 season and finished 6–10, but missing the playoffs for the second straight season.
The team attempted to address the problems faced in the disappointing 1983 season. For the first time, the team renegotiated the contracts of players in their option years, which kept discontent over salaries to a minimum. An assistant coach was added to perform the functions of an offensive coordinator. A strength coach was added, which improved the players' physical conditioning in hopes of avoiding the constant injuries that occurred in 1983.McDonald, Tim. "The Bucs". St. Petersburg Evening Independent. 31 Aug 1984 A healthy, stable offensive lineup developed the maturity to sustain long drives in pressure situations, and head coach John McKay began to move away from his long-criticized conservative play-calling and open up the offense.McDonald, Tim. "Is 'bumbling Bucs' tag a name of the past?" St. Petersburg Evening Independent. 8 Oct 1984 This was the first time that the team's offense finished the season ranked higher than their defense.Tampa Bay Buccaneers Team Encyclopedia – Pro-Football-Reference.com Their offensive output is still the third-highest in team history (as of 2010), and was not matched by another Buccaneer team until 2003.Tampa Bay Buccaneers Stats at NFL.com
James Wilder Sr., who Lawrence Taylor called "the best running back I've ever played against in my life",Associated Press. "Bucs Fall to Giants". Ocala Star-Banner. 22 Sep 1984 set team and NFL records while serving as the focal point of the team's offense. Steve DeBerg emerged as a stable, confidence-inspiring on-field leader.Huang, Nathan. "DeBerg's confidence rubs off on Bucs". St. Petersburg Evening Independent. 6 Oct 1984 Kevin House continued to perform as one of the league's best wide receivers, while Gerald Carter emerged as a solid complement.Zier, Patrick. "Importance of passing game becoming clear to Bucs". The Lakeland Ledger. 20 Sep 1984 Hugh Green, described by Mike Ditka as "one of the best two linebackers in the game" (with Lawrence Taylor),Achenbach, Jim. "Call Them The Bad News Bucs". The Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 22 Oct 1984. continued to dominate until sidelined by a midseason automobile accident.Wire Services. "Buccaneers' Green Injures Eye in Wreck, To Miss 2 Weeks". The Palm Beach Post. 5 Oct 1984 Dave Logan became the youngest of only four defensive linemen in NFL history to score four touchdowns, and began to be spoken of as a potential All-ProScanlon, Dick. "Bucs' Logan earning All-Pro consideration". The Lakeland Ledger. 7 Oct 1984 until sore knees limited his movement later in the season.Zier, Patrick. "Buccaneers' report card just average". The Lakeland Ledger. 2 Nov 1984 Lee Roy Selmon made the Pro Bowl in what would turn out to be his final season. However, as the team's best defensive players began to fall to injuries, they became prone to late-game collapses. In addition, the mental errors that had characterized the team from the outset contributed to a number of close losses.Lasswell, Doug. "Resignation Catches Bucs By Surprise". The Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 6 Nov 1984 McKay experienced health problems during the season, and found the constant losing too much to bear. On November 5, the only coach in Buccaneer history announced that he would resign at the end of the season.Scheiber, Dave. "McKay resigns as Bucs coach". St. Petersburg Times. 6 Nov 1984
Offseason
Coaching changes
When the Green Bay Packers' failure to make the playoffs resulted in the firing of coach Bart Starr and his entire staff, the Buccaneers hired John Brunner, the offensive backfield coach of the Packers' NFC-leading offense. McKay had stated previously that he would never hire an offensive coordinator, so Brunner was given the title "Offensive Moderator", although his duties were those of a coordinator. Defensive coordinator Wayne Fontes was promoted to assistant head coach, the first Buccaneer coach to be given such a title. This added administrative duties to his coordinator responsibilities and increased the perception that Fontes was being groomed to succeed McKay. McKay announced that all other assistants would be retained, with the exception of special teams coach Frank Emanuel, who had left to become defensive coordinator of the USFL Jacksonville Bulls.Mizell, Hubert. "Bucs name Brunner offense 'moderator', elevate Fontes". St. Petersburg Times. 11 Jan 1984Zier, Patrick. "Bucs name Brunner to offense". The Lakeland Ledger. 11 Jan 1984 Emanuel's vacated position was filled by running backs coach Jim Gruden, then by former Buccaneer defensive tackle Bill Kollar when Gruden replaced Ken Herock as director of player personnel.Holliman, Ray. "Kollar rejoins Bucs as kicking teams coach". St. Petersburg Times. 21 Jun 1984 Herock, who had been involved with Buccaneer scouting since 1976 and had worked with the Oakland Raiders before that, was given much of the credit for the expansion Buccaneers' quick rise to playoff contention. Nevertheless, he was rebuffed by team owner Hugh Culverhouse when he requested a pay raise, and accepted Howard Schnellenberger's offer to take the same position with the ill-fated USFL Washington Federals."Bucs Replace Herock With Coach Gruden". The Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 13 Jun 1984Zier, Patrick. "Bucs come up with dumbest move yet". The Lakeland Ledger. 12 Jun 1984 Joe Diange was hired as a strength and conditioning coach, in hopes of avoiding a repeat of the previous season's rash of injuries.McDonald, Tim. "Bucs' mini-camp deserves more than a cursory glance". St. Petersburg Evening Independent. 24 May 1984
Personnel changes
Star Canadian Football League quarterback Warren Moon met with the Buccaneers and was reportedly impressed with their organization, but eventually chose to sign with the Houston Oilers, where he reunited with his former Edmonton Eskimos coach Hugh Campbell.Zier, Patrick. "Moon makes a pass over Tampa". The Lakeland Ledger. 12 Jan 1984 The team also attempted to sign Bobby Hebert, the Michigan Panthers quarterback who led the USFL in passing."Hebert plans shift". The New York Times. 24 Mar 1984 The team was eventually able to obtain displaced Denver Broncos quarterback Steve DeBerg, who rejected a contract offer from the USFL Denver Gold. The free agent DeBerg signed with the Broncos, and was then traded to Tampa Bay for a pair of draft choices.Associated Press. "DeBerg shuns USFL; makes deal with Bucs". St. Petersburg Evening Independent. 25 Apr 1984 The previous season's opening-day starting quarterback Jerry Golsteyn was released, then recalled and traded to the Los Angeles Raiders for defensive back Irvin Phillips.Zier, Patrick. "Bucs send Golsteyn to Raiders". The Lakeland Ledger. 22 May 1984
Veteran fullback Scott Dierking was acquired from the New York Jets for a 1985 fifth-round draft choice."Bucs Get Dierking From Jets". The Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 18 Apr 1984 The team refused to honor Jimmie Giles' request to be traded, although he had reportedly been offered as trade bait at one point in the DeBerg deal.Staff Writer. "Jimmie Giles now wants traded, but Bucs not willing". St. Petersburg Times. 11 Apr 1984 Giles' disgruntlement dissipated when the team offered him a new contract, signing him through the 1986 season.Zier, Patrick. "Giles once again a happy Buc". The Lakeland Ledger. 26 May 1984 Obed Ariri, a former Chicago Sting soccer player who had set an NCAA record of 63 field goals at Clemson, was signed to compete with Bill Capece for the placekicker spot."Bucs Get 2 Kickers To Try Out For Team". The Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 27 Apr 1984 Neal Colzie, the 1982 team MVP, was released before the start of training camp. McKay stated that the team did not have room for two older safeties, and felt that Colzie was being outperformed by Mark Cotney.Zier, Patrick. "Bucs open camp, trouble ahead?". The Lakeland Ledger. 5 Juln 1984
NFL draft
The previous season's trade for Jack Thompson left the team without a first-round pick, in a draft which had already been stripped of talent by USFL teams. The Los Angeles Express alone had signed seven players with first-round potential. Need areas were believed to include linebacker, the secondary, running backs, and the offensive line.Zier, Patrick. "Bucs in no position to bluff". The Lakeland Ledger. 1 May 1984
Pick Round Player Position School302Keith BrownerLinebackerUSC573Fred AcornCornerbackTexas1074 (from San Diego)Mike GunterRunning backTulsa1124 (from the Raiders)Ron HellerOffensive tacklePenn State1426Chris WashingtonLinebackerIowa State1697Jay CarrollTight endMinnesota1988Fred RobinsonDefensive endMiami (FL)2259Rick MalloryGuardWashington25410Jim GalleryKickerMinnesota28111Blair KielQuarterbackNotre Dame31012Thad JemisonWide receiverOhio State
Draft trades
The Buccaneers' 1st-round pick had been traded to the Cincinnati Bengals in exchange for quarterback Jack Thompson. Their 4th-round pick was traded to the San Francisco 49ers the previous year, in exchange for their 1983 6th-round pick. The first of their two 4th-round picks came from the San Diego Chargers, as part of the David Lewis trade. The second came from the Los Angeles Raiders, for Charley Hannah. A fourth 4th-round pick, obtained from San Diego for Dewey Selmon, was traded to the Denver Broncos in exchange for quarterback Steve DeBerg. Their 5th-round pick was traded to the Dallas Cowboys for linebacker Danny Spradlin.
Draft selections
The Buccaneers drafted USC linebacker Keith Browner with their first pick, the second pick of the second round. Brother of NFL players Ross and Joey Browner, Keith was considered to be a talented but underachieving college player who had been expected to be taken in the first round.Goodall, Fred. "Browner Taken As Buccaneers First Choice". The Daytona Beach Morning Journal. 2 May 1984 Some observers questioned the selection of Browner, as Boomer Esiason, the only quarterback in the draft expected to have impact potential, was still available.Zier, Patrick. "One has to wonder about Bucs' first pick". The Lakeland Ledger. 1 May 1984 With the secondary aging, the Buccaneers made Texas cornerback Fred Acorn the earliest-drafted defensive back in team history. Acorn was considered a project, as he started only one season for the Longhorns, but the Buccaneers' secondary was believed to be strong enough to afford the luxury of drafting a player who would take time to develop. Acorn was drafted for his speed, with a 40-yard dash time that had been clocked as low as 4.2 seconds.Holliman, Ray. "Bucs pick Texas' Acorn as insurance for future". St. Petersburg Times. 2 May 1984 Mike Gunter, the Tulsa all-time rushing leader, was taken in the fourth round. He was another player who had been projected to be drafted much higher, as high as fourth overall, according to one publication. He was very productive as a college player, but was unproven as a receiver, and lacked the ability to evade tacklers or to accelerate at the line of scrimmage.Holliman, Ray. "Gunter considered 4th-round surprise". St. Petersburg Times. 2 May 1984 Jim Gallery became the first kicker ever drafted by the team. The team approached the draft with a goal of improving overall speed, and felt that they'd achieved that with their selections of Acorn and the linebackers.Lasswell, Doug. "Bucs Hope Draft Will Speed Things Up". The Sarasota Herald-Tribune. 13 May 1984
Supplemental draft