Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers star defensive end Simeon Rice became the franchise’s latest member of the ring of honor on Monday, and he ranked his 2002 team’s defense in the process.
“I answer number two, I think all time,” Rice told reporters on Monday. “Respectfully it’s number two all time. That’s what I think is right behind ’85 Bears. I think it’s the ’85 Bears and then us.”
The 1985 Chicago Bears are widely considered the most dominant defense of all-time as the team went 15-1 and throttled the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl. Rice, who is a Chicago native, believes his team’s defense in 2002 did similar things amid just 12.3 points allowed per game and demolition of the then-Oakland Raiders in the Super Bowl.
“It’s like a bunch of piranhas,” Rice explained regarding the defensive front.
Rice led the way with 15.5 sacks, and defensive tackle Warren Sapp wasn’t far behind at 7.5 sacks. Overall, the Buccaneers had 43 sacks that season.
Rice played for the Buccaneers between 2001 and 2006, and he had 69.5 sacks in that span. The former Illinois star first played for the Arizona Cardinals as the No. 3 pick in 1996 before he joined the Buccaneers as a free agent.
After Tampa, Rice finished his career with the Denver Broncos and Indianapolis Colts in 2007 where he played just eight games between the two. Rice finished his career with 122 sacks, 28 forced fumbles, and 483 tackles.
Buccaneers Defense Came Together in 2002
GettySimeon Rice was a dominant force for the Buccaneers.
Rice was just part of a Buccaneers defense that had it all in 2002. That until ranked first in total yards allowed, passing touchdowns allowed, interceptions, and first downs allowed.
“We were all aligned together to crystallize our career and be the best versions of ourselves,” Rice said about the defense. “And we were young. We were inspiring. We were dangerous. It was unstoppable, all of our mindsets. And we all needed each other.”
“We all needed each other, all of us, to do the special things that we were able to do and be capable of. And the game of football allowed me, especially playing in Tampa Bay, to do that,” Rice added.
Tampa Bay had three Hall of Famers on defense in Sapp, linebacker Derrick Brooks, and defensive backs John Lynch and Ronde Barber. None of them were over 31 at the time.
Simeon Rice: ‘Nobody Could Block Us’
Opponents had a terrible time with the Buccaneers defensive front in 2002. Quarterbacks from other teams only mustered 2,490 yards passing for 10 touchdowns.
“So I knew, from a personal standpoint, our front four, nobody could block us,” Rice said. “Once they can’t block your front four, everything else, it becomes a feeding frenzy.”
“So now we’re all making plays. Now we’re all playing at the highest level, and even on the backside that we would we, regardless of what we did, they stood tall no matter what. So from a collective, as a collective, we just played at the highest level,” he added.
If quarterbacks got the ball out against the defense, what would happen wasn’t sure-fire. The Buccaneers secondary had 31 interceptions that season, which was aided by that pass rush.
Buccaneers Legend Calls Super Bowl Defense ‘Piranhas’