Longtime Bucs captain Gerald McCoy is calling it a career after 11 seasons, he announced Friday.

McCoy was drafted by the Bucs out of Oklahoma with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, and he went on to play for the team from 2010-2019. In that span, he made six Pro Bowls — doing so consecutively between 2012 and 2017. And in nine seasons with Tampa Bay, he racked up 54.5 sacks, which is good for fourth-most in franchise history.

McCoy was a first-team All-Pro selection in 2013, a season that saw him collect a career-high 9.5 sacks and 15 tackles for loss. The 2014 and 2016 seasons included second-team All-Pro honors for him.

The Bucs released McCoy following the 2018 season, as new head coach Bruce Arians and his regime arrived in town. He went on to sign with the division rival Panthers in 2019 before injuries really slowed him down in the following years. He signed with the Cowboys in 2020 before a preseason injury led to him being waived with an injury designation. The 6-foot-4, 295-pound defensive tackle last played in 2021 with the Raiders, though he was limited to just one game due to injury.

Gerald McCoy Spent His Best Years With The Bucs

Bucs DT Gerald McCoy – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

McCoy will always be most remembered for his days in Tampa, and Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds recently wrote about the idea of McCoy retiring as a member of the Bucs. Will Gholston and Lavonte David, former teammates of McCoy’s, wanted to see it happen.

“That would be amazing,” David said. “For me personally, and especially for him, for as long as he played with the Bucs it would be a dream come true. He grew up as a Bucs fan, so it would definitely be a dream come true for him. Gerald still being around here and supporting us definitely means a lot. He came to the [Wild Card playoff] game and was honored as a Buc, and that was incredible.

“A couple of us guys – me and Will – Gerald took us under his wing. I have a ton of respect for Gerald as a player and as a man. He definitely is a guy who I root for and is rooting for us.”

While there was no formal retirement as a member of the Tampa Bay franchise, the announcement video posted to McCoy’s Twitter account featured a lot of Bucs imagery. Whether or not No. 93 will see his name go up in the Bucs Ring of Honor inside Raymond James Stadium is a hot debate topic among the Tampa Bay faithful, but there’s no doubt that his legacy will be looked on more and more favorably as time passes. He was one of the lone bright spots in a rough era for the team, starring both on and off the field.

McCoy was always a major fixture within the Tampa Bay community, working with various foundations throughout the area and always giving back. He was the team’s Walter Payton Man of the Year Award nominee in 2018, his last season in red, white and pewter.

And McCoy, who was always a Bucs fan, returned to those roots this past season. He often live-tweeted games (often to praise David, one of the game’s most underrated players dating all the way back to when they were teammates) and came to Tampa Bay’s playoff game in January to support former teammates and root on the franchise that he still loves to this day.

Following his “thank you” on Twitter, the Bucs posted one of their own for him, along with a highlight reel of some of his most memorable plays: