Tampa Bay Buccaneers · Franchise era 4 of 7
After the first title: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers story
Franchise era
2005—2013
After the first title
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The story in one sentence
Tampa Bay won two more divisions but could not rebuild the champion's core as the roster cycled through young quarterbacks.
Intermittent winners give way to another reset
Ronde Barber, Cadillac Williams and Gerald McCoy gave the era its recognizable core.
Its ending created the conditions for building an offense.
Timeline
How it unfolded
Before 2005
What came before
The Tampa 2 defense restored the franchise, and Jon Gruden's arrival supplied the offense and edge needed to dominate Super Bowl XXXVII.
2006-01-07
Wild Card: Washington Commanders vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2008-01-06
Wild Card: New York Giants vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers
After 2013
What came next
Evans and David produced elite careers through losing seasons while the franchise assembled pieces that would become vital to a sudden contender.
The core