Some Tampa Bay Buccaneers players both past and present found themselves on the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team.
The NFL and the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced the 52 players and two head coaches selected to the 2010s All-Decade Team, and, not surprisingly, new Bucs quarterback Tom Brady was named to the squad. Brady was just one of eight players unanimously selected to the team. The two head coaches were Peter Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks and Brady’s old coach in New England, Bill Belichick.
Brady’s inclusion on the list isn’t a major surprise. In fact, several Bucs players made the list, but as Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times points out, all those players joined the Bucs late in their careers.
Take a look.
#GoBucs have NO original members of the NFL's All Decade team. Tom Brady, Longan Mankins, Darrelle Revis and Ndamukong Suh all made the team and joined the Bucs late in their careers.
Breaking down the best defensive and special teams players to play for the Rams during the 2010s.
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Despite an up-and-down decade on offense, the Rams have had one of the better defenses in the NFL since Jeff Fisher took over as head coach in 2012. They had a fearsome pass rush even before Aaron Donald arrived and their secondary has always been a tough out for opposing quarterbacks. The Rams became known for their defensive identity before Sean McVay arrived, and they continued to shine under McVay and Wade Phillips.
There are a lot of players deserving of a spot on the Rams 2010s All-Decade Team, at least compared to the other side of the ball. To choose this group, we only factored in the achievements of a player during their time with the Rams between 2010-2019. For example, Chris Long’s first two years with the Rams did not affect his status on this list.
You can read the selections for offense here. We’ll start with the defensive line, and we’ll end with special teams.
Defensive end/EDGE: Robert Quinn (2011-2017) & Chris Long (2010-2015)
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Since the Rams ran two different styles of defense last decade, we’ll be combining some positions here. But this is one of the most obvious choices of the entire list.
Robert Quinn’s 2013 season was one for the ages. Quinn recorded 19 sacks, 23 tackles for loss, 34 quarterback hits, seven forced fumbles, and even scored a touchdown. He was named a First-Team All-Pro, the only All-Pro selection of the decade for a Rams defensive player not named Aaron Donald, and won the PFWA Defensive Player of the Year award.
The rest of Quinn’s tenure with the Rams wasn’t too shabby. He totaled 62.5 sacks in his seven years with the team, which is tied for the fourth-most in franchise history. He’ll likely go down as one of the more underrated Rams.
Though Chris Long’s numbers weren’t as flashy as Quinn’s, he was a perfect complement to him on the other side of the defensive line. In addition 45.5 sacks and 56 tackles for loss during his six years with the Rams last decade, Long was a locker room leader, a team captain, and a well-respected teammate. Players have long been vocal about how much they enjoyed playing with him.
Despite spending eight seasons with the Rams, Long will be remembered for what he accomplished in his three seasons after leaving. He won back-to-back Super Bowls with the Patriots and Eagles in addition to being selected as the Walter Payton Man of the Year in his final NFL season. Regardless, the bulk of his career starts happened with the Rams, and he’s more than deserving of a spot on this list.
Breaking down the best offensive players to play for the Los Angeles (and St. Louis) Rams during the 2010s.
(Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
The 2010s were quite an eventful decade for the Rams franchise. They played in two different cities, had the first overall pick twice, played in a Super Bowl, drafted a generational talent and a massive bust in the first round of the same draft, won two games in a season, hired a coach who produced a timeless meme, and hired another coach who changed how teams hire coaches in the NFL.
There were some incredible highs and some devastating lows. This list is no different. There are players on this list that would make anybody’s overall NFL All-Decade team, and there are players on this list that maybe shouldn’t have even been starting games in the NFL. The Los Angeles/St. Louis Rams of the 2010s were a rollercoaster ride. This list will give you a chance to relive it.
To select our All-Decade Team, we only considered what players did between the 2010 and 2019 seasons. For example, when considering Steven Jackson, we wouldn’t take into account his entire career with the Rams, just his three years playing for the team this decade.
Let’s get into it, starting with the offense.
Quarterback: Jared Goff (2016 – 2019)
(Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
Goff is the only real option here. In his three full seasons as the Rams starting quarterback, Goff threw for 13,130 yards while completing 63% of his passes. He tossed 82 touchdown passes against 35 interceptions and added five touchdowns on the ground. His rookie season may have been abysmal, but Goff bounced back with two very impressive seasons in 2017 and 2018. He was the first Rams quarterback to be selected to back-to-back Pro Bowls since Kurt Warner in 2000-2001.
Most importantly, he’s helped the team win football games – something the Rams’ other QBs from last decade struggled to do. The Rams have put together three straight winning seasons for the first time since the days of the Greatest Show on Turf. Goff played a significant role in leading the Rams to a 13-3 record and a Super Bowl appearance in 2018. He holds a 33-14 record as the Rams starting quarterback since 2017.
Goff left a lot to be desired in 2019, but his overall tenure with the Rams has been a success. Let’s hope he can return to form in 2020 and cement himself as the quarterback for next decade’s team.
