Tampa Bay will go with a new but traditional uniform combination on Saturday with a look that dates back to when the Buccaneers and Detroit Lions were division rivals in the old NFC Central.
The Buccaneers will go white jerseys and pewter pants for the first time this season at Detroit on Saturday. Tampa often wore the combo in the 1990s through 2001 when the part of the NFC Central with the Lions. The Bucs official Twitter posted the news on Saturday morning.
Bucs players sported new uniforms this season that resembles the 1990s and early 2000s look when the franchise won the Super Bowl in 2003. Tampa hadn’t worn the combination of white jerseys and pewter pants yet this season.
The Bucs will look to end a 13-year playoff drought with a win a Detroit today. Only the Cleveland Browns have a longer playoff drought.
Tampa also wore the whiter jersey-pewter pants combo back in 2007 when it last made the playoffs. The Bucs official Twitter hyped up the opportunity for its team on Saturday morning.
Where Brady Began
Tom Brady returns to where he made his NFL debut two decades ago on a holiday weekend.
The Buccaneers quarterback entered a Thanksgiving Day game at Detroit in 2000 for the New England Patriots for his first NFL action. Brady, a sixth-round pick from Michigan, went 1-3 passing for six yards in the game.
Brady became the starter for the Patriots a year later and went on to win the first of six Super Bowls. He left New England for Tampa via free agency in March this year.
Game 300 for Brady
Brady’s NFL career mileage hits 300 regular season games in Detroit on Saturday. While he says he doesn’t get into stats, he likes this one per the Tampa Bay Times on Twitter.
While the 43-year-old signal-caller has outlasted many players, he still has a way to go for becoming the longest-tenured player in NFL history. That distinction belongs to kicker Morten Anderson, who played 382 games per NBC Sports’ Curtis Crabtree.
Brady on Arians
Rumors of tension between Brady and Bucs head coach Bruce Arians circulated throughout the season.
It picked up during a 1-3 stretch in November and Brady missing on deep throws. Arians eventually shifted his tune. Brady later said he and Arians have a good relationship and finally clarified publicly that he wants the criticism from a coach.
“There’s nothing about me or my game that’s infallible,” Brady told NFL Network’s Willie McGinest according to the Tampa Bay Times’ Rick Stroud. “I’m a player like everybody else, so I’m trying to be coached and I think the team has very high expectations for me. So when I don’t meet those, he should be (ticked) at me and rightfully so. I know I’m more (ticked) at myself, but when you hear it from your coach, too, you know, it does motivate you.”
Brady and Arians could silence the critics for another week as the Bucs seek their third three-game winning streak of the season on Saturday in Detroit.
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Buccaneers Reveal New Uniform Combo at Detroit