Tampa Bay Buccaneers

HOF 2016: Trailblazing success carries Dungy to Hall of Fame

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) _ Nine games into his bid to transform the bumbling Tampa Bay Buccaneers into championship contenders, the normally unflappable Tony Dungy reached a boiling point. A 1-8 record was discouraging, but hardly the only disheartening aspect of yet another slow start for a perennial last-place franchise that suffered through 13 consecutive losing seasons before the young coach’s arrival in 1996. The soft-spoken Dungy, who will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, recalled walking into his office after a third consecutive loss by six or fewer points on the road and learning one

Tampa Bay Buccaneers fire coach Lovie Smith after 2 seasons

Jameis Winston had a strong rookie season, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers tripled their victory total from the previous year. Still, it wasn’t enough to save coach Lovie Smith’s job. Smith was fired on January 6 after going 6-10 this season, 8-24 overall in two years running a team that has missed the playoffs eight consecutive years. The late-night announcement came as a surprise because Smith’s job was not considered to be in danger after the Bucs improved from two wins and landing the No. 1 overall draft pick in his first season to rebounding from a slow start to