Who is the best coach in Tampa Bay Buccaneers history?

[michael89156]

Who is the best coach in Tampa Bay Buccaneers history?

by Sander on Jul 1, 2012 12:41 PM EDT in Commentary





Scott Halleran - Getty Images
 NBC studio analyst Tony Dungy looks on during the Super Bowl XLVI Broadcasters Press Conference at the Super Bowl XLVI Media Canter in the J.W. Marriott Indianapolis on January 31, 2012 in Indianapolis.




Here's one topic to pass the time: which coach is the best coach in Tampa Bay Buccaneers history? The Bucs have had a few good coaches, but the list is hardly long and exhaustive. Every fan hopes that Greg Schiano is the next name on that list, but for now he's just the new coach. As for the best coach in Bucs history - there really are only three candidates: John McKay, Tony Dungy and Jon Gruden.



John McKay (1976-1984):
 
The first coach in Tampa Bay Buccaneers history, McKay went 44-88-1 in his nine years in the NFL. That's a pretty disappointing record, but the circumstances he had to work under were far from ideal. Expansion teams were incredibly talent-deficient when McKay took over, yet he still managed to get the Buccaneers to the NFC Championship in just their fourth year of existence. And he did that while being limited by one of the cheapest owners in pro football history in the form of Hugh Culverhouse. The Bucs' owner was so cheap that he let their franchise quarterback walk rather than pay him a competitive salary - it's a miracle McKay even managed to win a playoff game under those circumstances. And, of course, we mustn't forget the quotes. Oh, the many, many hilarious quotes. After being asked about the team's "execution" he once quipped "I'm all for it."



Tony Dungy (1996-2001)
 
Tony Dungy is the man who is often given credit for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' turnaround. He was brought in by the Glazers to completely overhaul the franchise, and he did so in short order. After a slow start his combination of tough, fundamentally sound defense and ball-control offense produced an unknown era of success in Bucs history. Year after year the team got to the playoffs, and made a splash once there. The closest his teams got was the NFC Championship in 1999, when they lost a ridiculously close game against the Greatest Show on Turf Rams. But despite Dungy's success in re-building the franchise, he couldn't quite get to the Super Bowl - and that's what eventually got him fired. Still, a 54-42 record after nearly two decades of consecutive double-digit losing seasons in Tampa is incredibly impressive.



Jon Gruden (2002-2008)
 
Gruden was the man who got the Buccaneers a Super Bowl win, but that win will never completely be seen as his win. It was, after all, still Tony Dungy's defense that provided the basis for the incredible 2002 season. But we can't ignore Gruden's accomplishments that season: he inspired the entire team and built his own offense which delivered a substantial contribution. Gruden didn't really win with Dungy's team, although he may have won with Dungy's defense - but it was still Gruden's Buccaneers that won. Unfortunately for Gruden, he didn't come close to repeating 2002's success in later seasons, never winning another playoff game with the Bucs. He won two more division titles and finished his time with the Bucs with a 57-55 record.

So, who do you think is the best coach in Bucs history?






Poll
Who is the best coach in Buccaneers history?

 


5%                       John McKay                      12 votes
.

73%                    Tony Dungy                  171 votes
.

21%                     Jon Gruden                      50 votes


233 votes Total






http://www.bucsnation.com/2012/7/1/3128288/who-is-the-best-coach-in-tampa-bay-buccaneers-history

[tripblood]

Dungy and Gruden split.

Dungy built the foundation but without Gruden we wouldn't. Have gotten over the top.

I loved our offense in 2002.

[olafberserker]

I say Dungy, but Gruden should be a much closer 2nd.

[dbrooks55]

Such a hard debate...Dungy turned the team around and built a contender...yet I don't think we win a superbowl without Gruden. Ultimately winning the superbowl is the ultimate goal so I give the nod to Gruden for delivering!!

[DefenseWins]

This should go well

[NotDeadYet]

   Got it right.
   Yes, Dungy likely would NOT have gotten that Lombardi sticking to BAU by refusing to recognize what a BAD offense he had and fixing it.
   OTOH, Gruden would NOT likely have been able to BUILD the team from ground zero the way Dungy did...
   Bottom line; we needed BOTH of them to have their "moments in time" here in Tampa Bay!

[bashear]

Tough call. Went with Dungy, but hard not to vote for the guy who actually won the SB.

[The Anti-Java]

Tough call. Went with Dungy, but hard not to vote for the guy who actually won the SB.

Same here, but something about Gru rubs me the wrong way.

[BucBalla85]

Gruden. He won the big game. Dungy would have been if he won it here.

[Escobar06]

It's amazing to me that after this many years Dungy still gets credit for the "foundation", and from "starting from ground zero", when Wyche is the man who deserves the credit. Sapp, Brooks, and Lynch were the foundation, all three were here before Dungy arrived. How can a fan of the Buccaneers not know that?

[CyberDilemma]

It's amazing to me that after this many years Dungy still gets credit for the "foundation", and from "starting from ground zero", when Wyche is the man who deserves the credit. Sapp, Brooks, and Lynch were the foundation, all three were here before Dungy arrived. How can a fan of the Buccaneers not know that?

By "foundation" they mean by putting in place a system and culture, much the same way that Schiano is trying to accomplish with the Bucs. Yes, Brooks, Sapp and Lynch were here before Dungy but the team stunk and so did they until Dungy came along and instilled a hard-work-ethic and discipline and an environment for learning. Schiano inherited a whole bunch of young top draft picks, too, but they haven't accomplished anything yet. Are you gonna give Morris the credit for that if Schiano turns things around and builds a consistent winner? I don't think so. Wyche, Gruden, Morris....they all had their moments but none of them could build a consistent winner nor a winning "culture" like Dungy did.

[Escobar06]

It's amazing to me that after this many years Dungy still gets credit for the "foundation", and from "starting from ground zero", when Wyche is the man who deserves the credit. Sapp, Brooks, and Lynch were the foundation, all three were here before Dungy arrived. How can a fan of the Buccaneers not know that?

By "foundation" they mean by putting in place a system and culture, much the same way that Schiano is trying to accomplish with the Bucs. Yes, Brooks, Sapp and Lynch were here before Dungy but the team stunk and so did they until Dungy came along and instilled a hard-work-ethic and discipline and an environment for learning. Schiano inherited a whole bunch of young top draft picks, too, but they haven't accomplished anything yet. Are you gonna give Morris the credit for that if Schiano turns things around and builds a consistent winner? I don't think so. Wyche, Gruden, Morris....they all had their moments but none of them could build a consistent winner nor a winning "culture" like Dungy did.

Dungy wouldn't have built a winner without Sapp, Brooks, or Lynch. That's just a fact. Those three players made the scheme, without them neither the culture or system would have mattered. In fact I'm pretty certain that we never would have even made the playoffs under Dungy without those three players. People want to talk about Dungy being a better coach than Gruden while at the same time claiming Gruden won with Dungy's players. That's so ass backwards it's not even funny. If Dungy was a better coach than Gruden, he would have had more success than Gruden had with "his" players, right?

You're right, I won't give Raheem credit for anything. That's because he was clearly way out of his league coaching an NFL team. We all witnessed what an undisciplined mess the team became. The final 10 weeks of the season were very close to being the worst 10 weeks in franchise history. It really doesn't matter though, there aren't many players he left behind that will be worth a damn. That's why the Raheem/Wyche comparison is flawed. Wyche left us not only three of the best players in our history, but three of the best players in NFL history at their positions.

[CyberDilemma]

It's amazing to me that after this many years Dungy still gets credit for the "foundation", and from "starting from ground zero", when Wyche is the man who deserves the credit. Sapp, Brooks, and Lynch were the foundation, all three were here before Dungy arrived. How can a fan of the Buccaneers not know that?

By "foundation" they mean by putting in place a system and culture, much the same way that Schiano is trying to accomplish with the Bucs. Yes, Brooks, Sapp and Lynch were here before Dungy but the team stunk and so did they until Dungy came along and instilled a hard-work-ethic and discipline and an environment for learning. Schiano inherited a whole bunch of young top draft picks, too, but they haven't accomplished anything yet. Are you gonna give Morris the credit for that if Schiano turns things around and builds a consistent winner? I don't think so. Wyche, Gruden, Morris....they all had their moments but none of them could build a consistent winner nor a winning "culture" like Dungy did.

Dungy wouldn't have built a winner without Sapp, Brooks, or Lynch. That's just a fact. Those three players made the scheme, without them neither the culture or system would have mattered. In fact I'm pretty certain that we never would have even made the playoffs under Dungy without those three players. People want to talk about Dungy being a better coach than Gruden while at the same time claiming Gruden won with Dungy's players. That's so ass backwards it's not even funny. If Dungy was a better coach than Gruden, he would have had more success than Gruden had with "his" players, right?

You're right, I won't give Raheem credit for anything. That's because he was clearly way out of his league coaching an NFL team. We all witnessed what an undisciplined mess the team became. The final 10 weeks of the season were very close to being the worst 10 weeks in franchise history. It really doesn't matter though, there aren't many players he left behind that will be worth a damn. That's why the Raheem/Wyche comparison is flawed. Wyche left us not only three of the best players in our history, but three of the best players in NFL history at their positions.

Did you ever stop to think that those 3 players may not have become the best players in the NFL history at their positions if they didn't have Dungy to coach and mentor them? None of them were exactly setting the world on fire until they had been under his tutelage for a couple of years. Look at all the top 1st round talent the Bucs have on the team now. Wouldn't you agree their talent has been floundering up until now? Has Mccoy lived up to his billing? Talib? Freeman? Coaching matters and culture matters (see New England for an example). Dungy only had one losing season his entire coaching career with the Bucs. Can Wyche, Gruden or Morris make that claim?...and Dungy inherited a perennial loser which Gruden or Morris didn't.

[Escobar06]

It's amazing to me that after this many years Dungy still gets credit for the "foundation", and from "starting from ground zero", when Wyche is the man who deserves the credit. Sapp, Brooks, and Lynch were the foundation, all three were here before Dungy arrived. How can a fan of the Buccaneers not know that?

By "foundation" they mean by putting in place a system and culture, much the same way that Schiano is trying to accomplish with the Bucs. Yes, Brooks, Sapp and Lynch were here before Dungy but the team stunk and so did they until Dungy came along and instilled a hard-work-ethic and discipline and an environment for learning. Schiano inherited a whole bunch of young top draft picks, too, but they haven't accomplished anything yet. Are you gonna give Morris the credit for that if Schiano turns things around and builds a consistent winner? I don't think so. Wyche, Gruden, Morris....they all had their moments but none of them could build a consistent winner nor a winning "culture" like Dungy did.

Dungy wouldn't have built a winner without Sapp, Brooks, or Lynch. That's just a fact. Those three players made the scheme, without them neither the culture or system would have mattered. In fact I'm pretty certain that we never would have even made the playoffs under Dungy without those three players. People want to talk about Dungy being a better coach than Gruden while at the same time claiming Gruden won with Dungy's players. That's so ass backwards it's not even funny. If Dungy was a better coach than Gruden, he would have had more success than Gruden had with "his" players, right?

You're right, I won't give Raheem credit for anything. That's because he was clearly way out of his league coaching an NFL team. We all witnessed what an undisciplined mess the team became. The final 10 weeks of the season were very close to being the worst 10 weeks in franchise history. It really doesn't matter though, there aren't many players he left behind that will be worth a damn. That's why the Raheem/Wyche comparison is flawed. Wyche left us not only three of the best players in our history, but three of the best players in NFL history at their positions.

Did you ever stop to think that those 3 players may not have become the best players in the NFL history at their positions if they didn't have Dungy to coach and mentor them? None of them were exactly setting the world on fire until they had been under his tutelage for a couple of years. Look at all the top 1st round talent the Bucs have on the team now. Wouldn't you agree their talent has been floundering up until now? Has Mccoy lived up to his billing? Talib? Freeman? Coaching matters and culture matters (see New England for an example). Dungy only had one losing season his entire coaching career with the Bucs. Can Wyche, Gruden or Morris make that claim?...and Dungy inherited a perennial loser which Gruden or Morris didn't.

Dungy inherited a perennial loser, but the players most responsible for the turnaround were already here. I forgot about Nickerson, he was also here before Dungy. Do you honestly believe Dungy's new "culture" would have been worth a damn without Brooks, Sapp, Lynch, or Nickerson? His offenses didn't amount to much, and his best defensive players were already in place. I'm not saying he didn't do anything, but what he did do has been highly overrated for awhile now.

Gruden also took over a team on the decline, and a team that spent zip most of his tenure. Do you not believe Gruden would have had the same success if he took over in 96 instead of Dungy? Conversely, do you believe Dungy would have won us a Super Bowl if he took over in 2002?

[BucfanNC12]

I say Dungy. When he arrived we gone from a laughing stock to respected competitors. Also many of his assistant coaches later became HC in the league. Yeah he didn't when us a Superbowl but he did bring us respect around the league. Sometime we lacked for a very long time.