The Buccaneers long history of Pro Bowling

0

The NFL All Star game is otherwise referred to as the OTHER bowl game. Unlike the Super Bowl, the Pro Bowl has never been much of a competitive game. That doesn’t mean that getting selected to the team is any less of an honor. Back when the entire league was razzing Tampa Bay about their uniforms, seeing Bucco Bruce show up in the all star game was great. Then the team went and changed uniforms and seeing the skull and cross swords became more common.

 

Buccaneer Sightings

The first Tampa Bay Buccaneer to play in the Pro Bowl was NT/DT Dave Pear in 1978. The most Buccaneers to ever make the squad for a single game was 9 in 2000. Those players were Derrick Brooks, Warren Sapp, Mike Alstott, John Lynch, Warrick Dunn, Jeff Christie, Donnie Abraham, Randall McDaniel, and Martin Gramatica.

Derrick Brooks would make the most Pro Bowls in team history, going to 11  from 1996-2008. Missing only in 2007. Warren Sapp would make the squad 7 times. Lee Roy Selmon, Mike Alstott, and Gerald McCoy would make 6 appearances.

Positional Domination

With 16 other teams in each conference and only so many positions to fill, it always seems special when a team has more than one player for the same position in a Pro Bowl. The Buccaneers had 2 defensive backs in 2000 when Donnie Abraham and John Lynch both went to Hawaii. Linebackers Hardy Nickerson and Derrick Brooks would both represent together in 1997, 1998, and 1999. The RB tandem of WD-40, Warrick Dunn and Mike Alstott would get both get a lei in 1997 and 2000.

2019 is the first year the Buccaneers have 2 WR’s to make the Pro Bowl. This is Mike Evans 3rd Pro Bowl and Chris Godwin’s 1st. The only other Tampa Bay wide receivers to go to the Pro Bowl were Mark Carrier-1989, Keyshawn Johnson-2001, Keenan McCardell-2003, and VJax, Vincent Jackson in 2012.

No Strings Attached

The fact that a team with a bum for a quarterback has 2 wide receivers with over 1,000 yards receiving and selected to the Pro Bowl is a mystery. The first time I remember seeing two WR’s make the same Pro Bowl was the “Marks Brothers” in 1984. Both Mark Clayton, and Mark Duper of the Miami Dolphins made it to Hawaii. The bum throwing them the biscuit that year was none other than Dan Marino. Come to think of it there are similarities in the offenses.

Its been a minute since the Buccaneers could expect multiple players to make the Pro Bowl from year to year. With the game now in Orlando and the team on the rise, Buccaneer fans can expect to see more Pro Bowl selections in the future. But fans are hoping to see them playing in the OTHER bowl game.

picture credit: Buccaneers.com

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail