1979 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
| 1979 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | John McKay |
| Owner | Hugh Culverhouse |
| Home field | Tampa Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 10–6 |
| Division place | Won NFC Central |
| Playoff finish |
Won Divisional Playoffs (Eagles) 24–17 Lost Conference Championship (Rams) 0–9 |
| Pro Bowlers | DE Lee Roy Selmon |
| AP All-Pros | LB Dewey Selmon (second-team) |
| Team MVP | HB Ricky Bell |
The 1979 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the team's fourth in the National Football League. After having won just seven games in the previous three seasons combined, the 1979 Buccaneers won ten games making this their first winning season. They finished as NFC Central division champions, and won the first playoff game in franchise history.
The Buccaneers added offensive threats to complement their solid defense; a healthy Doug Williams played his first full season and Ricky Bell became the team's first 1,000-yard back, rushing for a career-high 1,263 yards.
The 1979 team not only posted their first winning record, but earned a playoff spot by winning the NFC Central division title. The playoff spot was secured in the final week in a rain-sodden game against the Kansas City Chiefs, with the only score being a 19-yard field goal by Neil O'Donoghue. They then recorded their first-ever playoff win by defeating the Philadelphia Eagles behind Bell's 142 yards rushing. Tampa Bay hosted the 1979 NFC Championship Game the following week, but lost 9–0 to the Los Angeles Rams.
The Buccaneers had no selection in the first round, that pick having been traded to the Chicago Bears for defensive end Wally Chambers (the Bears used the pick to select Dan Hampton). The Buccaneers had extra picks in the second and third rounds in return for trading nose tackle Dave Pear to the Oakland Raiders. They also had extra third and fifth round picks from the Houston Oilers, as part of the 1978 trade for the Buccaneers' first overall pick. They received a third-round pick from the Baltimore Colts in return for running back Dan Hardeman. The Buccaneers' own third-round pick went to the Miami Dolphins as NFL-ordered compensation for signing Randy Crowder. Defensive end Council Rudolph was traded to the Dolphins in return for an eighth-round pick. Other picks were traded as follows: round 4 to the Detroit Lions for Rockne Freitas, round 5 to the Seattle Seahawks, round six to Oakland for Rik Bonness, round seven to the Washington Redskins for Frank Grant, round eight to the New York Jets for Darrell Austin, and round ten to the San Francisco 49ers for Jim Obradovich.
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