Three Bucs players named to NFL’s All-Time Super Bowl team

The playmakers of the Bucs were recognized by CBS Sports when they took up the impossible task of building up an All-Super Bowl team. 

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have had more success than most in making Super Bowls and winning them. The team has made it to those Super Bowls on the shoulders of playmakers on both sides of the ball.

CBS Sports recognized the playmakers of the Bucs when they took up the impossible task of building up an All-Super Bowl team.

CBS Sports took up the task of making an all-time roster in the leadup to the game this coming Sunday. They laid out what it took to make the list in their piece, stating the following were their criteria for building the team:

  • Super Bowl MVPs weighed heavily
  • Multiple Super Bowl appearances are an advantage
  • Did their performance significantly contribute to the success of their team?
  • Was their performance critical to the outcome of the game(s)?

With those criteria set, three Bucs players made the cut from their two Super Bowl wins in franchise history.

The Bucs had two starters on offense in Tom Brady at quarterback and Rob Gronkowski at tight end. While they spent the majority of their Super Bowl careers in New England, their short run in Tampa Bay proved just as fruitful.

On defense, Pro Football Hall of Famer Derrick Brooks was selected as a backup inside linebacker. The starters were Jack Lambert and Ray Lewis, with whom no one could argue. But Brooks is a backup alongside Bears’ legend Mike Singletary.

Not bad company for three of the most impactful Bucs players in franchise history, especially in their two Super Bowl wins.

Former Bucs QB named as semi-finalist for Pro Football Hall of Fame

The Bucs can add another name to the fold in the form of a contributor role from one of their earlier quarterbacks in franchise history.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a long and storied history, including several Hall of Famers like Ronde Barber, Derrick Brooks, and Lee Roy Selmon. In 2025, the Bucs can add another name to the fold in the form of a contributor role from one of their earlier quarterbacks in franchise history.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced nine semi-finalists for its contributor induction spot, and former Bucs quarterback Doug Williams made the cut.

Williams played quarterback for the Bucs from 1978 to 1982. He passed for 73 touchdowns and went 33-33-1 as the team’s starter. He parlayed his time in Tampa Bay into time in Washington, where he made history as the first to start in and win a Super Bowl, he was also named the MVP in that Super Bowl.

Since his playing time ended, he has worked in several front offices and has played a major role in increasing the chances of black quarterbacks succeeding.

WATCH: Every interception from Derrick Brooks’ Hall of Fame career

Relive all 27 of Derrick Brooks’ career interceptions for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers legend Derrick Brooks was one of the best linebackers in NFL history, and he was particularly known for his coverage skills.

A rare combination of speed, athleticism, agility, instincts and ball skills made him a constant threat to pluck any pass out of the air and take it back the other way for a score.

The most iconic moment of Brooks’ Hall of Fame career with the Bucs was a pick-six that sealed their dominant victory over the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl XXXVII, giving Tampa Bay their first Lombardi Trophy in franchise history.

Here’s a look back at all 27 interceptions from Brooks’ career with the Bucs, courtesy of Liam Mitchell (Bucs Vault):

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Who’s your favorite player? Mr. Derrick Brooks

In case you forgot, Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Derrick Brooks was one of the best defenders in NFL history

You’re a true Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan if you remember that commercial, with legendary linebacker Derrick Brooks on a school bus listening to the kids recite all of his on-field accolades.

And there were plenty of them, as Brooks will go down as one of the best defenders in NFL history, and arguably the greatest player to ever wear a Bucs uniform.

A first-round pick out of Florida State in the 1995 NFL draft, Brooks became a foundational piece for what would become one of the most dominant defenses the league has ever seen, leading the Bucs to their first Super Bowl victory.

Check out this amazing highlight reel from Brooks’ career, including the moment the Bucs drafted him:

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29 years ago today, Bucs made NFL draft history

The Bucs’ 1995 draft class will always go down as one of the best in NFL history

Only one time in NFL history has a team picked two Hall of Fame defenders in the first round of the same draft.

It was 1995, the team was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

At the No. 12 overall pick, the Bucs landed Miami defensive lineman Warren Sapp. At the 28th overall selection, Tampa Bay stayed in-state once again with Florida State linebacker Derrick Brooks.

Sapp and Brooks became two of the best players in NFL history at their respective positions, and helped change a losing culture in Tampa Bay, a transformation that culminated with the team’s first Super Bowl win back in 2002.

Those two selections continue to live on as one of the best drafts in NFL history, and easily the most important one the Bucs have ever had.

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ESPN ranks both Bucs’ Super Bowl teams in all-time list

ESPN ranked every championship winner of the Super Bowl era, and both Bucs teams placed fairly high on the list.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have the lowest win-loss percentage in NFL history. Despite this, Tampa Bay has two Super Bowls to its name.

The Bucs put together two of the most impressive Super Bowl victories in recent history − both in pretty lopsided fashion. How does each Tampa Bay championship team rank among all 58 Super Bowl winners? Here’s what ESPN writer Aaron Schatz thinks:

2020 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The 2020 Tampa Bay Buccaneers had nearly all the pieces to call themselves a championship-caliber team. They just needed a quarterback.

So when the Bucs made a splash in free agency and won over QB Tom Brady, they found the final missing piece of the puzzle. Brady hoisted Tampa Bay to its first playoff appearance since 2007, and eventually led the way in a 31-9 Super Bowl victory against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Schatz ranked the Bucs’ 2020 Super Bowl team as the 20th-best championship team of all time. Here’s what he said about the team:

“The Buccaneers were fourth in total DVOA for 2020 although they would have been No. 1 without a single game, a 38-3 stomping at the hands of the Saints in Week 9. Overall, the Bucs were third on offense and fifth on defense.”

Schatz made sure to give credit to the massive turnaround Tampa Bay made after their bye week. The Bucs were 7-5 and won the final four games of the regular season, and then, of course, swept the playoffs.

2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Everything finally came together during the Bucs’ first Super Bowl-winning team. After letting go of HC Tony Dungy in the offseason and trading a first-round pick for former Raiders HC Jon Gruden, Tampa Bay found its footing in the playoffs. The Bucs arguably had one of the best defenses of all time and earned the No. 14 spot amongst championship teams by ESPN.

Here’s what Schatz wrote about the 2002 Bucs:

“This team ranked only 22nd in offensive DVOA. But the Bucs had the best pass defense DVOA ever put up in a full nonstrike season, and the third-best total defense in DVOA history behind the 1991 Eagles and 1986 Bears. Both sides of the ball worked together well once the Bucs got to the postseason, as they won by an average margin of 23.0 points per game.”

Tampa Bay cleared through the NFC, winning 31-6 against the 49ers and 27-10 against the Eagles. Led by 2002 Defensive Player of the Year Derrick Brooks, the Bucs stomped the Oakland Raiders 48-21 in the Super Bowl.

Tampa Bay defensive back Dwight Smith logged two pick-sixes off Rich Gannon, and Bucs WR Keenan McCardell caught two touchdown passes from QB Brad Johnson.

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Florida State announces plans to retire Jameis Winston’s college jersey

Florida State announced plans to retire Jameis Winston’s college jersey at Saturday’s game versus North Alabama:

Now this is cool: Florida State announced plans to retire Jameis Winston’s college jersey at Saturday’s game versus North Alabama, recognizing the New Orleans Saints quarterback for his accomplishments in Tallahassee. Winston led the school to a 14-0 record and a Rose Bowl win back in 2013, setting the stage for a College Football Playoff run in his 2014 sophomore season.

Winston only played two years at Florida State, but he left with the fourth-most career passing yards (7,964) and second-most touchdown passes (65) in school history, plus a 26-1 record.

And now, a decade since he turned pro, Winston will see the jersey he wore honored in an exclusive group. He’s just the eleventh player to earn this recognition at Florida State, joining the likes of Fred Biletnikoff, Derrick Brooks, Terrell Buckley, Warrick Dunn, Marvin Jones, Deion Sanders, Ron Sellers, Ron Simmons, Charlie Ward and Chris Weinke.

Good for him. Winston’s jersey will be retired in a ceremony at the end of the first quarter in Saturday’s home game at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. It’s also senior night, and kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. CT with television coverage on The CW network.

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27 Days, 27 Picks: LB Derrick Brooks

Our second-to-last player in our series is perhaps Tampa Bay’s greatest legend.

In 27 Days, 27 Picks, Bucs Wire will analyze the last 27 Tampa Bay Buccaneers first-round draft picks, one for each day leading up to the 2023 NFL draft. We’ll take a look at the player’s college stats, their pre-draft numbers (either via the NFL Combine or their Pro Day), their NFL stats, some player footage and analysis at the end on whether the pick itself was a good one.

Our next player, like our last one, is a man who needs no introduction — he’s probably Tampa Bay’s greatest NFL export.

Here’s the draft rundown on [autotag]Derrick Brooks[/autotag]:

Grading ceremonial first pitches from current and former Bucs players

As the Tampa Bay Rays are set to play on opening day, we wanted to see which Bucs players threw the best opening pitches on the mound at Tropicana.

It’s opening day, and there’s baseball in Tampa Bay.

The Tampa Bay Rays are set to host the Detroit Tigers for some MLB action on Thursday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, so that got us thinking — of all the former and current Tampa Bay Buccaneers players who got the opportunity to throw out a first pitch, who did the best? So we at Bucs Wire did the natural thing: We rounded up as many videos as we could of current and former Bucs players throwing a first pitch and graded them on the result.

So without further ado, here are five opening pitches from current or former Buccaneers at the Trop and our opinion on how they did:

WATCH: Bucs Hall of Famers congratulate Rondé Barber on his induction

Check out this awesome tribute video for Rondé Barber from his Hall of Fame teammates

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have another Hall of Famer, as legendary defensive back Ronde Barber will be the next member of the franchise to be enshrined in Canton.

To celebrate the occasion, the Bucs released a video of Barber’s Hall of Fame teammates congratulating him on the game’s highest honor.

Watch the video above to see Derrick Brooks, John Lynch, Warren Sapp and Tony Dungy welcome Barber to football heaven.

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