It is Midweek again, and that means it is time for another series history post. This week, we look at Green Bay's history against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
With the teams being from Wisconsin and Florida, the difference in the climates shaped the series for many years. This is certainly evidenced by the fact that the Buccaneers have only defeated the Packers seven times in the state of Wisconsin. Overall, the Packers lead the regular season series 30-21-1, and the Packers also hold a 1-0 edge in the playoffs.
The Buccaneers entered the NFL in 1976, rotating through the AFC before playing every team in the NFC (as well as Seattle) in the following season. The Packers would win that first game against the Buccaneers in an otherwise forgettable 1977 season. In 1978, the Buccaneers joined the NFC Central but the Packers swept them that year.
In 1979, the Buccaneers won the NFC Central and made it to the NFC Championship Game, and they won five of six games against the Packers over the next few years. The one other game was the only tie in the series to date.
Starting in 1983, however, the Packers began a brief streak of dominance over the Buccaneers, winning seven of eight games from then until 1986. In the first 1983 game between the teams, the Packers led 49-0 at halftime, finally winning by the score of 55-14. This outcome prompted then-Buccaneers head coach John McKay to say to a reporter: "Get ... away from me or I'll punch you in the mouth."
Another memorable game in this stretch was the 1985 "Snow Bowl" game in Lambeau Field in 1985. A foot of snow fell before the game, and even more fell throughout the game. The announcers had trouble even seeing the action taking place on the field. Despite the snowy conditions, the Packers piled up a lot of yards but not many points. Thankfully, they wouldn't need many as they shut out the Buccaneers 21-0.
The 1987 player's strike wiped out the Packers-Buccaneers game in Tampa Bay that year. The Buccaneers would go on to win five of six against the Packers, leading into the first game between the teams in 1990. The Packers won the second game that year, 20-10, in Milwaukee, starting a long streak where sweeps of Tampa Bay became common.
In 1992, Brett Favre entered the game in Tampa, and his first NFL completion was to ... himself! The game, was otherwise not worth noting, as the Packers lost 31-3 in Tampa.
This was the first of only two games the Packers would lose in Tampa Bay with Favre on the team until 1998. In 1994, the Packers defeated the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay 34-19, but lost outstanding wide receiver Sterling Sharpe due to injury, and he would never play in the NFL again. The Packers continued sweeping the Buccaneers, winning three games in 1997, including the first and only playoff game between the teams.
In 1998, however, the Buccaneers moved into brand new Raymond James Stadium, which subsequently became a house of horrors for the Packers. The Buccaneers still did not defeat Favre at Lambeau, but they came dangerously close in 1999, 2000, and 2001. The Packers won those three games by a combined seven points, relying on late rallies in 1999 and 2001 and having to go to overtime in the season finale in 2000 after nearly losing in regulation, only making it to overtime due to a missed field goal.
The 2002 game was infamous to Packers fans due to Warren Sapp blindsiding Packers offensive lineman Chad Clifton on an interception return. Clifton's NFL career nearly ended on the play. The following year, the Packers went to Tampa Bay again, and registered their first (and, to date, only) win in Raymond James Stadium by the score of 20-13. This game was memorable as the Packers pulled their version of "The Drive", going 98 yards in 17 plays for the game-winning touchdown against the tough, stingy Tampa Bay defense.
The Buccaneers would finally defeat the Packers with Favre in Green Bay in 2005, largely due to a missed field goal and extra point by Ryan Longwell. The Buccaneers also won in Tampa Bay in 2008 and 2009, with the 2009 game being particularly gut-wrenching for Packers fans. Just a week after seeing former Packer great Brett Favre return to Lambeau Field and win, the Packers lost in Tampa to the previously winless Buccaneers.
In 2011, the Packers hosted the Buccaneers again in Lambeau Field. This was the second of three games for Green Bay in an 11-day stretch. With the third game being against the resurgent Lions on Thanksgiving in Detroit, the game against the Buccaneers had all the markings of a classic Trap Game. The Packers, with several defensive lapses, nearly fell into the trap before finally winning 35-26. They would go on to win the Thanksgiving game in Detroit as well.
What are your memories of the Packers playing the Buccaneers?
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