I have become convinced that there is something out there that wants to cause as much pain to the Buccaneers faithful as possible. I can't say it's a curse, rather, unexplainable bad luck. Thus,
I've coined the term "Buc Luck," because it seems that the Bucs always have a run in with this "Buc Luck," but it always seems to be on the bad side of things. Things have only taken a turn for the worse this season, where the "Buc Luck" is overwhelming, making it seem as if the Bucs had no bad luck, they would have no luck at all.
It all started before the season ever started, when it was announced that Mike Alstott, Buc extraordinaire, team leader, etc., would miss the entire season due to a neck injury. To make matters worse, he might not ever play in the NFL again.
Things didn't get much better for the Bucs, following the news that their leading rusher, Carnell "Cadillac" Williams would miss the rest of the season with a knee injury, coming off the heels of a Week 4 victory against Carolina. His injury is so severe, there is speculation that he may never walk again. He wasn't the only injury of the game. Luke Petitgout, the New York Giants import, also suffered a season ending knee injury.
The very next week, with the running game already hurting, the Bucs lost backup running back Michael Pittman for six long weeks, because of torn ligaments in his ankle. He is expected to return this season, but nothing is concrete.
As if things couldn't get worse, in Week 7 the Bucs lost Mark Jones, their very productive kick returner, for the season with a knee injury. Going into Week 7, Jones was ranked 5th in the NFL in punt return average (11.9 yards per return), and 7th in the NFL in kickoff return average(30.3). He was the only player in the NFL through the first six weeks to rank in the top 10 in both categories. He is the man I was sure would score the first ever touchdown on a kickoff return in Bucs history.
In Week 7, 7 players were inactive for the Bucs, and now troubling is how Michael Clayton's MRI will turn out. In Week 7, he went down awkwardly, having to leave the game in the first quarter. Getting out of this season, let's focus on some other examples of "Buc Luck."
It all started with the Bucs inaugural season in 1976. That year, the Bucs were perfect. A perfect 0-14 that is. Ultimately the laughing stock of the league, the Buccaneers were basically invisible at the beginning of the season. When they arrived at the Astrodome for the opening game against the Houston Oilers, they were refused entry by the security services. "The Buccaneers?" the guard asked. "Are they a college team or something?" They weren't invisible by the end of the season, ending with a big goose-egg in the win column. It's not as if they were horrible. Three times they came within a touchdown of winning. That's just the "Buc Luck" for you. This team's place in history is complete. They are the last team to go winless for an entire season. Despite their success in SuperBowl XXXVII, the losing team will probably always be more famous, as the Bucs are looked at as a failing team.
In 1983, the Bucs dark years began. It was the first of 14 straight losing seasons, 13 in which they would lose 10 games or more. The Bucs of course were the laughing stock in the league, as every team that faced them knew that victory was eventual.
The SuperBowl curse came around in 2003, as we all saw the defending Super Bowl champs fall to a 7-9 record. 2004 didn't provide much healing, as the Bucs went even deeper into the cellar, falling to 5-11. A brief glimpse of hope came through in 2005, before the Bucs stumbled to a 4-12 record in 2006.
Among the miscues of the 2006 season, things became really hard following Week 3. In a game against Carolin
a, quarterback Chris Simms took a brutal shot from a Carolina defender, rupturing his spleen. He played the rest of the game, but following the game was immediately rushed to the emergency room where his spleen was removed. The poor guy lost his season, and possibly his job as QB for the Bucs. Because of losing Simms, the Bucs were stuck with 3rd String quarterback, rookie Bruce Gradkowski. In short, he sucked.
My only hope is that this tainted "Buc Luck" will disappear, or at least deliver us some good luck. This season was going well, but the injuries are piling up. I can only hope for the best, staying away from a losing season, and avoiding losing coach Jon Gruden. I can only leave you with this, a sign of the good "Buc Luck" that has embraced the Buccaneers over the years. Hopefully we'll get some this year too.
