Oh, to be a Buccaneer fan in 2019. Gone are the days where fans would have to adjust the rabbit ears on the television antenna to make the WTOG44 signal clearer. When WFLA Channel 8 started covering the preseason that, too, was a step up. A classic move was going to the preseason game and watching the re-broadcast at 1 AM the next morning. Of course, these were different times. There were only twenty-something channels that mostly turned to snow after midnight but this was Buccaneers football. Definitely “must-see TV”.
Besides local stations in each market airing preseason football, the NFL Network has fully jumped into preseason coverage. With 14 live games and 64 games total on the NFL Network, there is always football to watch on the telly throughout the preseason. Set your DVR properly and one could watch the first quarter of every teams preseason game. Not into seeing Johnny Doe’s fighting for the seventh receiver position for the Seattle Seahawks? Then grab the remote and get to programming.
The NFL Network family all around the globe will have the chance to see the Buccaneers live this preseason with Friday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the August 23rd game against the Cleveland Browns being televised live. By the end of this preseason, maybe football fans everywhere will know what Buccaneer fans already know: This is a pretty darn talented team and one that should be taken seriously.
Know This
Buccaneer fans know that this is a progression. First, it was the underwear Olympics back in March. Followed by the draft in April. Next, there were rookie minicamps and OTAs. Veteran QBs meeting receivers on high school football fields and beaches in foreign countries just to throw the pigskin. Now training camp is in full swing and the first preseason games are on the docket.
While local markets will air various preseason games around the country on Friday night, the Tampa Bay/Pittsburgh game will be the one in the national spotlight. Tampa Bay has come a long way since rabbit ears and snowy pictures. Oh, to be a Buccaneer fan in 2019. It’s a pretty great thing.
