| 2021 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | The Glazer family |
| General manager | Jason Licht |
| Head coach | Bruce Arians |
| Home field | Raymond James Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 13–4 |
| Division place | 1st NFC South |
| Playoff finish | Won Wild Card Playoffs (vs. Eagles) 31–15 Lost Divisional Playoffs (vs. Rams) 27–30 |
| Pro Bowlers | 9 |
| AP All-Pros | 2
|
| Uniform | |
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The 2021 season was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 46th season in the National Football League (NFL) and their third and final season under head coach Bruce Arians. They entered the season as defending Super Bowl champions and were attempting to become the first club to win consecutive Super Bowls since the team's quarterback Tom Brady did so with New England in XXXVIII and XXXIX along with being the first NFC club to do so since the Dallas Cowboys did in 1992 and 1993. They entered the season riding a franchise record eight consecutive wins (including regular season and playoffs), which they extended to ten wins until they lost against the Rams. After their Week 16 win over Carolina, the Buccaneers clinched the NFC South division for the first time since 2007.[1] Tampa Bay won a franchise record 13 games in the regular season. In Week 18, they secured the #2 seed in the NFC playoffs, then defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 31–15 in the Wild Card Round, notching postseason wins in consecutive seasons for the first time. However, their title defense came to an end with a 30–27 last-second loss to the eventual Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams in the Divisional Round.
The Buccaneers became the first team in the NFL's salary cap era to have all 22 starters from their Super Bowl championship team re-signed or under contract for the upcoming season.[2] During the regular season, quarterback Tom Brady in addition to extending several ongoing records, set new individual NFL records for most career starts, most career passing yards, most career pass completions, and became the first player to achieve 600 career touchdown passes.[3] A rash of injuries, however, put several starters on injured reserve, including Chris Godwin and Richard Sherman. In addition, key weapons Rob Gronkowski, Ronald Jones, Leonard Fournette, Lavonte David, and Tristan Wirfs and others, all missed playing time dealing with various injuries. Then in Week 17, Antonio Brown abruptly quit the team mid-game in a high-publicized incident.
Following the season on February 1, 2022, quarterback Tom Brady announced his retirement from the league.[4][5] Brady had one season remaining on his contract with the Buccaneers. However, on March 13, he retracted his retirement plans, and announced he would return in 2022.[6] Head coach Bruce Arians also announced his retirement following the season and shifted to a Senior Football Consultant.[7] It was also the 2nd with Rob Gronkowski on the roster as well as his 11th and final season of his NFL career, as he announced his retirement for a second time on June 21, 2022, via an Instagram post.
- ^ "Buccaneers clinch first NFC South title since 2007 with win over Panthers". NFL.com. Retrieved December 26, 2021.
- ^ Vitali, Carmen (April 5, 2021). "The Buccaneers Will Return All 22 Super Bowl Starters in 2021". Buccaneers.com. Retrieved April 7, 2021.
- ^ "NFL Passing Touchdowns Career Leaders". Retrieved January 26, 2022.
- ^ "Buccaneers' Brady officially announces retirement". ESPN.com. February 1, 2022. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
- ^ Brady, Tom (February 1, 2022). "❤️". Instagram.
- ^ "Tom Brady says he's returning as Tampa Bay Buccaneers QB next season". ESPN.com. March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
- ^ "Bruce Arians Steps Into New Role, Todd Bowles Taking Over as Bucs' Head Coach". www.buccaneers.com. Retrieved March 31, 2022.