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Record: 10-6-0, Finished 2nd in NFC Central Division
NFL Season Summary
Scored 299 points (18.7/g), 23rd of 30 in the NFL.
Allowed 263 points (16.4/g), 2nd.
Differential of 36 points (2.2/g), 12th.
Expected W-L: 9.2-6.8.
Takeaway/Giveaway Differential +3 (0.2/g), 12th.
Coached by Tony Dungy (10-6-0)
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1997 Statistics / Starters & Roster / Games & Schedule / Team Draftees
| Pos | Age | Yrs | GS | Summary of Player Stats | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Starters | Complete Team Stats | |||||
| QB | Trent Dilfer* | 25 | 3 | 16 | 217 for 386, 2,555 yards, 21 td, 11 int, & 33 rushes for 99 yards and 1 td | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 6th pick / 1994 |
| RB | Warrick Dunn* | 22 | Rook | 10 | 224 rushes for 978 yards, 4 td, & 39 catches for 462 yards and 3 td | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 12th pick / 1997 |
| FB | Mike Alstott*+ | 24 | 1 | 15 | 176 rushes for 665 yards, 7 td, & 23 catches for 178 yards and 3 td | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 2nd / 35th pick / 1996 |
| WR | Reidel Anthony | 21 | Rook | 12 | 35 catches for 448 yards, 4 td, & 5 rushes for 84 yards and 0 td | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 16th pick / 1997 |
| WR | Horace Copeland | 26 | 4 | 11 | 33 catches for 431 yards, 1 td | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 104th pick / 1993 |
| WR | Karl Williams | 26 | 1 | 7 | 33 catches for 486 yards, 4 td, & 1 rush for 5 yards and 0 td | |
| TE | Jackie Harris | 29 | 7 | 11 | 19 catches for 197 yards, 1 td | Green Bay Packers / 4th / 102nd pick / 1990 |
| TE | Dave Moore | 28 | 5 | 7 | 19 catches for 217 yards, 4 td | Miami Dolphins / 7th / 191st pick / 1992 |
| LT | Paul Gruber | 32 | 9 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 4th pick / 1988 |
| LG | Jim Pyne | 26 | 2 | 14 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 7th / 200th pick / 1994 |
|
| C | Tony Mayberry* | 30 | 7 | 16 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 108th pick / 1990 |
|
| RG | Jorge Diaz | 24 | 1 | 16 | 1 fumble recovered | |
| RT | Jason Odom | 23 | 1 | 16 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 96th pick / 1996 |
|
| Defensive Starters | ||||||
| LDE | Chidi Ahanotu | 27 | 4 | 15 | 10.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 6th / 145th pick / 1993 |
| LDT | Brad Culpepper | 28 | 5 | 16 | 8.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | Minnesota Vikings / 10th / 264th pick / 1992 |
| RDT | Warren Sapp* | 25 | 2 | 15 | 10.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 12th pick / 1995 |
| RDE | Regan Upshaw | 22 | 1 | 15 | 7.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 12th pick / 1996 |
| LLB | Rufus Porter | 32 | 9 | 10 | 0.5 sacks, 0 interceptions, 0 fumbles recovered | |
| LLB | Jeff Gooch | 23 | 1 | 5 | ||
| MLB | Hardy Nickerson*+ | 32 | 10 | 16 | 1.0 sacks, 0 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Pittsburgh Steelers / 5th / 122nd pick / 1987 |
| RLB | Derrick Brooks* | 24 | 2 | 16 | 1.5 sacks, 2 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 28th pick / 1995 |
| LCB | Donnie Abraham | 24 | 1 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 5 interceptions, 1 fumble recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 71st pick / 1996 |
| RCB | Anthony Parker | 31 | 8 | 14 | 1.0 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | |
| SS | John Lynch* | 26 | 4 | 16 | 0.0 sacks, 2 interceptions, 2 fumbles recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 82nd pick / 1993 |
| FS | Charles Mincy | 28 | 6 | 9 | 0.0 sacks, 1 interception, 1 fumble recovered | Kansas City Chiefs / 5th / 133rd pick / 1991 |
| FS | Melvin Johnson | 25 | 2 | 7 | 0.0 sacks, 1 interception, 0 fumbles recovered | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1995 |
| Special Teams Starters | ||||||
| K | Michael Husted | 27 | 4 | 0 | 13 of 17 field goals & 32 of 35 extra points | |
| P | Sean Landeta | 35 | 12 | 0 | 54 punts for a 42.1 average, 1 blocked | |
| PR | Karl Williams | 26 | 1 | 7 | 46 punt returns for a 13.0 average and 1 td | |
| KR | Reidel Anthony | 21 | Rook | 12 | 25 kick returns for a 23.7 average and 0 td | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 16th pick / 1997 |
| Age | Pos | G | GS | Wt | Ht | College/Univ | BirthDate | Yrs | Drafted (tm/rnd/yr) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Donnie Abraham | 24 | DB | 16 | 16 | 190 | 5-10 | East Tennessee State | 10/8/1973 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 71st pick / 1996 |
| Chidi Ahanotu | 27 | DE-DT | 16 | 15 | 283 | 6-2 | California | 10/11/1970 | 4 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 6th / 145th pick / 1993 |
| Mike Alstott*+ | 24 | RB | 15 | 15 | 248 | 6-1 | Purdue | 12/21/1973 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 2nd / 35th pick / 1996 |
| Reidel Anthony | 21 | WR | 16 | 12 | 178 | 5-11 | Florida | 10/20/1976 | Rook | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 16th pick / 1997 |
| Ronde Barber | 22 | DB | 1 | 0 | 184 | 5-10 | Virginia | 4/7/1975 | Rook | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 66th pick / 1997 |
| Tommy Barnhardt | 34 | P | 6 | 0 | 228 | 6-2 | East Carolina,North Carolina | 6/11/1963 | 10 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 9th / 223rd pick / 1986 |
| Greg Bellisari | 22 | LB | 14 | 0 | 236 | 6-0 | Ohio State | 6/21/1975 | Rook | |
| Tony Bouie | 25 | DB | 16 | 1 | 188 | 5-10 | Arizona | 8/7/1972 | 2 | |
| Derrick Brooks* | 24 | LB | 16 | 16 | 235 | 6-0 | Florida State | 4/18/1973 | 2 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 28th pick / 1995 |
| Horace Copeland | 26 | WR | 13 | 11 | 200 | 6-3 | Miami (FL) | 1/2/1971 | 4 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 104th pick / 1993 |
| Brad Culpepper | 28 | DT | 16 | 16 | 275 | 6-1 | Florida | 5/8/1969 | 5 | Minnesota Vikings / 10th / 264th pick / 1992 |
| Eric Curry | 27 | DE | 6 | 1 | 270 | 6-5 | Alabama | 2/3/1970 | 4 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 6th pick / 1993 |
| John Davis | 24 | TE | 8 | 2 | 257 | 6-4 | Emporia State | 5/14/1973 | Rook | Dallas Cowboys / 5th / 2nd pick / 1994 Supp |
| Jorge Diaz | 24 | G | 16 | 16 | 308 | 6-4 | Texas A&M-Kingsville | 11/15/1973 | 1 | |
| Trent Dilfer* | 25 | QB | 16 | 16 | 225 | 6-4 | Fresno State | 3/13/1972 | 3 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 6th pick / 1994 |
| Warrick Dunn* | 22 | RB | 16 | 10 | 180 | 5-9 | Florida State | 1/5/1975 | Rook | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 12th pick / 1997 |
| Jerry Ellison | 26 | RB | 16 | 0 | 204 | 5-10 | Tennessee-Chattanooga | 12/20/1971 | 2 | |
| Kenneth Gant | 30 | DB | 9 | 0 | 195 | 5-11 | Albany State (GA) | 4/18/1967 | 7 | Dallas Cowboys / 9th / 221st pick / 1990 |
| Jeff Gooch | 23 | LB | 14 | 5 | 226 | 5-11 | Austin Peay State | 10/31/1974 | 1 | |
| Paul Gruber | 32 | T | 16 | 16 | 292 | 6-5 | Wisconsin | 2/24/1965 | 9 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 4th pick / 1988 |
| Patrick Hape | 23 | TE-FB | 14 | 3 | 262 | 6-4 | Alabama | 6/6/1974 | Rook | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 5th / 137th pick / 1997 |
| Jackie Harris | 29 | TE | 12 | 11 | 244 | 6-4 | La-Monroe | 1/4/1968 | 7 | Green Bay Packers / 4th / 102nd pick / 1990 |
| Brice Hunter | 23 | WR | 3 | 0 | 206 | 6-2 | Georgia | 4/21/1974 | Rook | Miami Dolphins / 7th / 251st pick / 1996 |
| Michael Husted | 27 | K | 16 | 0 | 190 | 6-0 | Virginia | 6/16/1970 | 4 | |
| Tyoka Jackson | 26 | DE-DT | 12 | 0 | 280 | 6-2 | Penn State | 11/22/1971 | 3 | |
| Melvin Johnson | 25 | DB | 16 | 7 | 198 | 6-0 | Kentucky | 4/15/1972 | 2 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 2nd / 43rd pick / 1995 |
| Marcus Jones | 24 | DE-DT | 7 | 1 | 286 | 6-6 | North Carolina | 8/15/1973 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 22nd pick / 1996 |
| Andrew Jordan | 25 | TE | 2 | 0 | 260 | 6-6 | Western Carolina | 6/21/1972 | 3 | Minnesota Vikings / 6th / 179th pick / 1994 |
| Sean Landeta | 35 | P | 10 | 0 | 215 | 6-0 | Towson State | 1/6/1962 | 12 | |
| Tyrone Legette | 27 | DB | 16 | 1 | 179 | 5-9 | Nebraska | 2/15/1970 | 5 | New Orleans Saints / 3rd / 72nd pick / 1992 |
| John Lynch* | 26 | DB | 16 | 16 | 220 | 6-2 | Stanford | 9/25/1971 | 4 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 82nd pick / 1993 |
| Jason Maniecki | 25 | DT | 10 | 0 | 291 | 6-4 | Wisconsin | 8/15/1972 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 5th / 140th pick / 1996 |
| Tony Mayberry* | 30 | C | 16 | 16 | 293 | 6-4 | Wake Forest | 12/8/1967 | 7 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 108th pick / 1990 |
| Frank Middleton | 23 | G | 15 | 2 | 330 | 6-4 | Arizona | 10/25/1974 | Rook | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 3rd / 63rd pick / 1997 |
| Charles Mincy | 28 | DB | 16 | 9 | 195 | 6-0 | Washington | 12/16/1969 | 6 | Kansas City Chiefs / 5th / 133rd pick / 1991 |
| Dave Moore | 28 | TE | 16 | 7 | 250 | 6-2 | Pittsburgh | 11/11/1969 | 5 | Miami Dolphins / 7th / 191st pick / 1992 |
| Hardy Nickerson*+ | 32 | LB | 16 | 16 | 230 | 6-2 | California | 9/1/1965 | 10 | Pittsburgh Steelers / 5th / 122nd pick / 1987 |
| Jason Odom | 23 | T | 16 | 16 | 307 | 6-5 | Florida | 3/31/1974 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 96th pick / 1996 |
| Anthony Parker | 31 | DB | 15 | 14 | 181 | 5-10 | Arizona State | 2/11/1966 | 8 | |
| Pete Pierson | 26 | T | 15 | 0 | 314 | 6-5 | Washington | 2/4/1971 | 2 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 5th / 136th pick / 1994 |
| Rufus Porter | 32 | LB-DE | 11 | 10 | 228 | 6-1 | Southern | 5/18/1965 | 9 | |
| Jim Pyne | 26 | G-C | 15 | 14 | 290 | 6-2 | Virginia Tech | 11/23/1971 | 2 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 7th / 200th pick / 1994 |
| Shelton Quarles | 26 | LB | 16 | 0 | 225 | 6-1 | Vanderbilt | 9/11/1971 | Rook | |
| Errict Rhett | 27 | RB | 11 | 0 | 210 | 5-11 | Florida | 12/11/1970 | 3 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 2nd / 34th pick / 1994 |
| Reggie Rusk | 25 | DB | 4 | 0 | 190 | 5-10 | Kentucky | 10/19/1972 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 7th / 221st pick / 1996 |
| Warren Sapp* | 25 | DT | 15 | 15 | 303 | 6-2 | Miami (FL) | 12/19/1972 | 2 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 12th pick / 1995 |
| Alshermond Singleton | 22 | LB | 12 | 0 | 250 | 6-2 | Temple | 8/7/1975 | Rook | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 4th / 128th pick / 1997 |
| Robb Thomas | 31 | WR | 16 | 1 | 175 | 5-11 | Oregon State | 3/29/1966 | 8 | Kansas City Chiefs / 6th / 143rd pick / 1989 |
| Regan Upshaw | 22 | DE | 15 | 15 | 265 | 6-4 | California | 8/12/1975 | 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 1st / 12th pick / 1996 |
| Steve Walsh | 31 | QB | 12 | 0 | 207 | 6-3 | Miami (FL) | 12/1/1966 | 8 | Dallas Cowboys / 1st / 1st pick / 1989 Supp |
| Steve White | 24 | DE | 15 | 1 | 270 | 6-2 | Tennessee | 10/25/1973 | 1 | Philadelphia Eagles / 6th / 194th pick / 1996 |
| Karl Williams | 26 | WR | 16 | 7 | 177 | 5-11 | Texas A&M-Kingsville | 4/10/1971 | 1 | |
| Jerry Wunsch | 23 | T-G | 16 | 0 | 339 | 6-6 | Wisconsin | 1/21/1974 | Rook | Tampa Bay Buccaneers / 2nd / 37th pick / 1997 |
| Floyd Young | 22 | DB | 12 | 1 | 179 | 6-0 | Texas A&M-Kingsville | 11/23/1975 | Rook | |
| Team Total | 26.1 | 16 | 238.8 | 6-1.5 | 3.2 |