2014 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season

The 2014 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 39th season in the National Football League (NFL). It was also the first season under head coach Lovie Smith, replacing Greg Schiano, who was fired at the end of the 2013 season. It was also the first season under general manager Jason Licht, following the departure of Mark Dominik, after a disappointing 2013 season. It also marked the first season under new ownership since 1994, after longtime owner Malcolm Glazer died on May 28, 2014. Glazer's sons took over team operations.

The Buccaneers tried to improve their record of 4–12 of last season, but failed after tying their number of losses when they lost to Carolina in Week 15. Following a 2–14 record, their worst since 1986, the Buccaneers finished last overall in the NFC and tied with the Titans for the worst record of the 2014 season, but was statistically (via a tiebreaker) last overall for the 2014 NFL season, thus earning the right to the first overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft.

The Buccaneers did not win a single home game in 2014, going 0–2 during the preseason and 0–8 in the regular season at Raymond James Stadium.

2014 draft class

2014 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Draft

Round	Selection	Player	Position	College
1	7	Mike Evans	Wide receiver	Texas A&M
2	38	Austin Seferian-Jenkins	Tight end	Washington
3	69	Charles Sims	Running back	West Virginia
4	None — see draft trades below
5	143	Kadeem Edwards	Guard	Tennessee State
	149	Kevin Pamphile	Offensive tackle	Purdue
6	185	Robert Herron	Wide receiver	Wyoming
7	None — see draft trades below

Draft trades

• The Buccaneers traded their fourth-round selection (No. 104 overall) along with their 2013 first-round selection (13th overall) to the New York Jets in exchange for cornerback Darrelle Revis on April 21, 2013.
• The Buccaneers traded their seventh-round selection (No. 221 overall) and a 2015 fifth-round selection to the Buffalo Bills in exchange for the Bills' 2014 fifth-round selection (No. 149 overall).
• The Buccaneers traded their original sixth-round selection (No. 183 overall) to the Chicago Bears in exchange for offensive tackle Gabe Carimi on June 9, 2013. The Buccaneers later acquired a new sixth-round selection (No. 185 overall) in a trade that sent wide receiver Mike Williams to the Buffalo Bills on April 4, 2014.

Season summary

Offseason & preseason

Immediately after being named the new head coach, Lovie Smith began overhauling personnel. The primary goal was to reinstall the Tampa 2 defensive scheme that brought the club success during the late 1990s and early 2000s. Among the key cuts were Davin Joseph,^[1] and Darrelle Revis.^[2] Among the many new signings were quarterback Josh McCown, defensive end Michael Johnson and cornerback Alterraun Verner.

On August 26, the Buccaneers traded with New England for guard Logan Mankins.^[3] The Buccaneers finished the preseason only 1–3, but were still picked by some media members to be much-improved, and to even be a wild card contender.^[4][5]

September

The Buccaneers started the Lovie Smith Era off on a low note, losing on opening day to Carolina, then losing in the last minute to the Rams in week 2. In week three, the team was humiliated on a nationally televised Thursday night game, 56–14 to division rival Atlanta. Smith stated afterwards he was "embarrassed"^[6] by the performance, and said the loss was so terrible to the team, that it would "leave a scar."^[6]

One week later, Mike Glennon started at quarterback, and Buccaneers bounced back in a big way. Tampa Bay defeated Pittsburgh, their first win of the season, with a last-second go-ahead touchdown pass.

October

Tampa Bay went winless in October, with Mike Glennon at quarterback. Two overtime losses, and one blowout loss to Baltimore dropped the Buccaneers to 1–6.

November

Mike Glennon was benched after losing to Cleveland, and Josh McCown was back in at quarterback. Tampa Bay managed to win against the Redskins, with help from a breakout game from Mike Evans. Despite only two wins, the Buccaneers were still mathematically alive for the division title through the end of November due to the lackluster records of the NFC South teams.

December

Tampa Bay ended the season on a six-game losing streak, going winless in December, to finish the season 2–14. In the final game of the season against New Orleans, the Buccaneers blew a lead in the fourth quarter, sitting some of their starters in the second half. But by virtue of the loss, the Buccaneers mathematically clinched the first pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, beating out the Tennessee Titans (who also went 2–14).

Staff

2014 Tampa Bay Buccaneers staff

Front office Owner/president – Estate of Malcolm Glazer Co-chairman – Bryan Glazer Co-chairman – Edward Glazer Co-chairman – Joel Glazer General manager – Jason Licht Director of player personnel – Jon Robinson Director of football operations – Shelton Quarles Director of pro scouting – Scott Cohen Director of football administration – Mike Greenberg Head coaches Head coach – Lovie Smith Offensive coaches Offensive coordinator – Jeff Tedford Quarterbacks – Marcus Arroyo Running backs – Tim Spencer Wide receivers – Andrew Hayes-Stoker Tight ends – Jon Embree Offensive line – George Warhop Assistant offensive line – Matt Wiegand Offensive quality control – Ben Steele

Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator – Leslie Frazier Defensive line – Joe Cullen Assistant defensive line – Mike Phair Linebackers – Hardy Nickerson Cornerbacks – Gill Byrd Safeties – Mikal Smith Defensive quality control – Dave Borgonzi Senior defensive assistant – Larry Marmie Special teams coaches Special teams coordinator – Kevin O'Dea Assistant special teams – Carlos Polk Strength and conditioning Head strength and conditioning – Dave Kennedy

Final roster

2014 Tampa Bay Buccaneers final roster

	Quarterbacks  8 Mike Glennon 12 Josh McCown Running backs 25 Mike James 22 Doug Martin 43 Bobby Rainey 34 Charles Sims Wide receivers 13 Mike Evans 10 Robert Herron 83 Vincent Jackson 15 Tavarres King 11 Solomon Patton 89 Russell Shepard Tight ends 84 Cameron Brate 82 Brandon Myers 86 Evan Rodriguez 88 Luke Stocker		Offensive linemen 61 Josh Allen C 73 Anthony Collins T 75 Oniel Cousins G/T 62 Evan Dietrich-Smith C 69 Demar Dotson T 72 Garrett Gilkey C/G 70 Logan Mankins G 66 Patrick Omameh G 64 Kevin Pamphile T Defensive linemen 91 Da'Quan Bowers DE/DT 57 Larry English DE 96 T. J. Fatinikun DE 92 William Gholston DE 90 Michael Johnson DE 98 Clinton McDonald DT 77 Lawrence Sidbury DE 56 Jacquies Smith DE 97 Akeem Spence DT 58 George Uko DT		Linebackers 54 Lavonte David OLB 50 Dane Fletcher MLB 59 Mason Foster MLB 51 Danny Lansanah OLB/MLB 45 Orie Lemon OLB 52 Jason Williams OLB Defensive backs 27 Johnthan Banks CB 39 Brandon Dixon CB 32 Isaiah Frey CB 38 Dashon Goldson FS 29 Leonard Johnson CB 30 Bradley McDougald SS 37 Keith Tandy FS 21 Alterraun Verner CB 41 C. J. Wilson CB Special teams 48 Andrew DePaola LS  9 Michael Koenen P  7 Patrick Murray K		Reserve lists 94 Adrian Clayborn DE (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 71 Kadeem Edwards G (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 24 Mike Jenkins CB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 46 Jorvorskie Lane FB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 53 Brandon Magee OLB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 93 Gerald McCoy DT (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 18 Louis Murphy WR (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 87 Austin Seferian-Jenkins TE (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 31 Major Wright FS/SS (IRTooltip Injured reserve) Practice squad 44 Denicos Allen LB 36 Derrius Brooks CB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 35 Ka'Lial Glaud LB 49 Jeremy Grable LB (IRTooltip Injured reserve) 26 Shelton Johnson S 85 Chandler Jones WR  3 Mike Kafka QB 95 Matthew Masifilo DT 78 Matt Patchan T 23 Varmah Sonie CB 60 Jeremiah Warren C Rookies in italics 53 active, 11 inactive, 9 practice squad

Schedule

Preseason

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Recap
1	August 8	at Jacksonville Jaguars	L 10–16	0–1	EverBank Field	Recap
2	August 16	Miami Dolphins	L 14–20	0–2	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
3	August 23	at Buffalo Bills	W 27–14	1–2	Ralph Wilson Stadium	Recap
4	August 28	Washington Redskins	L 10–24	1–3	Raymond James Stadium	Recap

Regular season

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Recap
1	September 7	Carolina Panthers	L 14–20	0–1	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
2	September 14	St. Louis Rams	L 17–19	0–2	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
3	September 18	at Atlanta Falcons	L 14–56	0–3	Georgia Dome	Recap
4	September 28	at Pittsburgh Steelers	W 27–24	1–3	Heinz Field	Recap
5	October 5	at New Orleans Saints	L 31–37 (OT)	1–4	Mercedes-Benz Superdome	Recap
6	October 12	Baltimore Ravens	L 17–48	1–5	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
7	Bye
8	October 26	Minnesota Vikings	L 13–19 (OT)	1–6	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
9	November 2	at Cleveland Browns	L 17–22	1–7	FirstEnergy Stadium	Recap
10	November 9	Atlanta Falcons	L 17–27	1–8	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
11	November 16	at Washington Redskins	W 27–7	2–8	FedExField	Recap
12	November 23	at Chicago Bears	L 13–21	2–9	Soldier Field	Recap
13	November 30	Cincinnati Bengals	L 13–14	2–10	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
14	December 7	at Detroit Lions	L 17–34	2–11	Ford Field	Recap
15	December 14	at Carolina Panthers	L 17–19	2–12	Bank of America Stadium	Recap
16	December 21	Green Bay Packers	L 3–20	2–13	Raymond James Stadium	Recap
17	December 28	New Orleans Saints	L 20–23	2–14	Raymond James Stadium	Recap

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Carolina Panthers

The first game for new head coach Lovie Smith was against division rival Carolina. A lackluster first three quarters saw the Panthers run out to a 17–0 lead, with Derek Anderson making his first start since 2010 in place of an injured Cam Newton.^[7] In the fourth quarter, the Buccaneers rallied, scoring late two touchdowns, and trimming the lead to 17–14 with 2:06 remaining. The Bucs defense forced a 3 & Out, and Carolina punted, giving the ball back to the Bucs offense with just under two minutes to go. On the first play of the drive, however, Bobby Rainey's catch was fumbled away, and Carolina recovered.

Week 2: vs. St. Louis Rams

St. Louis kicker Greg Zuerlein kicked a 38-yard field goal with 42 seconds remaining to take a 19–17 lead. On the ensuing drive, Tampa Bay quarterback Josh McCown completed a 19-yard pass to Bobby Rainey, then spiked the ball to stop the clock with 20 second left in regulation. McCown completed a 29-yard pass to Mike Evans at the St. Louis 32 yard line. As the team scurried to line up and spike the ball, A hesitant Evans was injured on the play. With no timeouts left, Tampa Bay was forced to accept a ten-second runoff penalty, and time expired.

Week 3: at Atlanta Falcons

Atlanta throttled the Buccaneers by the score of 56–14, tied for the second-most lopsided defeat in franchise history. The Falcons jumped out to a 56–0 lead by the third quarter, including Devin Hester's NFL-record 19th return touchdown. In the first half alone, the Falcons forced three turnovers, and held Tampa Bay to 63 yards offense and only two first downs.

Week 4: at Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay won their first game of the season, as well as the first win for new head coach Lovie Smith. One week after a humiliating loss at Atlanta, the Buccaneers bounced back, and upset the Steelers, the first win in franchise history at Pittsburgh. Trailing 24–20 just inside the two-minute warning, Tampa Bay drove to the Pittsburgh 14 yard line. The Steelers forced a turnover on downs, and took over at their own 14. The Tampa Bay defense held the Steelers to a 3 and out, and forced a punt with 50 seconds left in regulation. Brad Wing's punt was high and short, and was downed inside Pittsburgh territory on the 46. Two plays later Mike Glennon, connected to Louis Murphy, who broke free for a 41-yard gain all the way to the 5 yard line. With 7 seconds left, Glennon completed the game-winning touchdown pass to Vincent Jackson in the left corner of the endzone.

Week 5: at New Orleans Saints

Mike Glennon passed for 249 yards and two touchdown passes, as the Buccaneers led the Saints 31–20 in the fourth quarter. New Orleans rallied to tie the game and force overtime. The Saints won the coin toss in overtime, and proceeded to score a touchdown on the first possession to win the game.

Week 6: vs. Baltimore Ravens

Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco threw five touchdown passes in the first 17 minutes of regulation (setting a new NFL record), as Baltimore jumped out to a 38–0 halftime lead (also an NFL record for a road team). The Ravens handed Tampa Bay their second dominating loss of the season.

Week 8: vs. Minnesota Vikings

Offensive futility plagued both teams in the first half, with Minnesota kicking a field goal as time expired in the second quarter to take a 3–0 lead into halftime. Trailing 10–6 in the fourth quarter, Mike Glennon threw a 7-yard touchdown pass to Austin Seferian-Jenkins with 2:02 remaining in regulation. The Buccaneers briefly took a 13–10 lead, but the Vikings were able to tie the game at 13–13 and force overtime.

In the overtime period, Tampa Bay won the coin toss and received. On the first play from scrimmage in overtime, Austin Seferian-Jenkins caught a 10-yard pass at the 27 yard line, but fumbled the ball as he was tackled. Anthony Barr scooped up the ball and returned it 27 yards for a touchdown, and Minnesota won 19–13.

Week 9: at Cleveland Browns

Mike Evans caught two touchdown passes from Mike Glennon, as Tampa Bay led 17–16 in the fourth quarter. Cleveland scored with 8:59 remaining in regulation, and won the game by the score of 22–17. In the final two minutes, Tampa Bay drove to the Cleveland 28 yard line, but an offensive pass interference penalty pushed them back to the 47. Facing 4th down & 11, Glennon's pass was incomplete, and the Browns defeated Tampa Bay for the first time since 1995.

Week 10: vs. Atlanta Falcons

Josh McCown returned as the starting quarterback for Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers led 17–16, but Atlanta scored a go-ahead touchdown early in the fourth quarter and held on for the win. In the final two minutes, Tampa Bay drove to the Atlanta 4 yard line, but McCown's pass to Vincent Jackson was tipped and intercepted in the endzone, sealing the game for Atlanta.

Week 11: at Washington Redskins

Mike Evans had a breakout game, catching 7 passes for 209 yards and two touchdowns (36 yards and 56 yards, respectively). Tampa Bay won their second game of the season.

Week 12: at Chicago Bears

The Buccaneers blew a 10–0 halftime lead with three turnovers in the third quarter. The Bears scored two touchdowns off of turnovers, and a total of 21 points in the third quarter to take the lead and the win. This was head coach Lovie Smith's first return to Chicago since the Bears fired him following the 2012 season.

Week 13: vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Trailing 14–13 in the closing seconds, Tampa Bay completed a 21-yard pass to the Bengals 20 yard line, but a replay showed they had 12 men on the field for the play. The penalty took the Buccaneers out of field goal range.

Week 14: at Detroit Lions

With the loss, the Buccaneers were officially eliminated from playoff contention.

Week 15: at Carolina Panthers

Like the meeting in week 1, Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was on the sidelines, this time due to injuries suffered in a car accident. Carolina swept the Buccaneers, using backup quarterbacks in both games.

Week 16: vs. Green Bay Packers

Green Bay won for the first time at Raymond James Stadium since 2003, and for only the second time ever.

Week 17: vs. New Orleans Saints

Tampa Bay took a 20–7 lead into halftime, but New Orleans rallied for the victory. Drew Brees threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Marques Colston with 1:57 remaining. On the ensuing drive, the Saints defense sacked Josh McCown for a safety, and secured a 23–20 victory. The Saints swept Tampa Bay for the third straight season, and won their seventh overall in the rivalry. The Buccaneers, finishing 2–14, clinched the first pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. The Bucs had also finished 0–8 at home. Finishing winless at home for the first time since 1976 and lost their 9th straight home game.

Standings

Division

NFC South
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
(4) Carolina Panthers	7	8	1	.469	4–2	6–6	339	374	W4
New Orleans Saints	7	9	0	.438	3–3	6–6	401	424	W1
Atlanta Falcons	6	10	0	.375	5–1	6–6	381	417	L1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	2	14	0	.125	0–6	1–11	277	410	L6

Conference

NFC[8] view talk edit
#	Team	Division	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	SOS	SOV	STK
Division leaders
1[a]	Seattle Seahawks	West	12	4	0	.750	5–1	10–2	.525	.513	W6
2[a]	Green Bay Packers	North	12	4	0	.750	5–1	9–3	.482	.440	W2
3[a]	Dallas Cowboys	East	12	4	0	.750	4–2	8–4	.445	.422	W4
4	Carolina Panthers	South	7	8	1	.469	4–2	6–6	.490	.357	W4
Wild Cards
5[b]	Arizona Cardinals	West	11	5	0	.688	3–3	8–4	.523	.477	L2
6[b]	Detroit Lions	North	11	5	0	.688	5–1	9–3	.471	.392	L1
Did not qualify for the postseason
7	Philadelphia Eagles	East	10	6	0	.625	4–2	6–6	.490	.416	W1
8	San Francisco 49ers	West	8	8	0	.500	2–4	7–5	.527	.508	W1
9[c]	New Orleans Saints	South	7	9	0	.438	3–3	6–6	.486	.415	W1
10[c]	Minnesota Vikings	North	7	9	0	.438	1–5	6–6	.475	.308	W1
11[d]	New York Giants	East	6	10	0	.375	2–4	4–8	.512	.323	L1
12[d]	Atlanta Falcons	South	6	10	0	.375	5–1	6–6	.482	.380	L1
13[d]	St. Louis Rams	West	6	10	0	.375	2–4	4–8	.531	.427	L3
14	Chicago Bears	North	5	11	0	.313	1–5	4–8	.529	.338	L5
15	Washington Redskins	East	4	12	0	.250	2–4	2–10	.496	.422	L1
16	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	South	2	14	0	.125	0–6	1–11	.486	.469	L6
Tiebreakers[e]
^ a b c Seattle, Green Bay and Dallas were ranked in seeds 1–3 based on conference record. ^ a b Arizona defeated Detroit head-to-head (Week 11, 14–6). ^ a b New Orleans defeated Minnesota head-to-head (Week 3, 20–9). ^ a b c The NY Giants defeated both Atlanta and St. Louis head-to-head (Atlanta: Week 5, 30–20; St. Louis: Week 16, 37–27), while Atlanta finished ahead of St. Louis based on conference record. ^ When breaking ties for three or more teams under the NFL's rules, they are first broken within divisions, then comparing only the highest-ranked remaining team from each division.

Notes

References

External links

• Official website