# 1990 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season

The 1990 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 15th season in the National Football League.
Head coach Ray Perkins and Bucs players were getting criticized by fans with his 3-a-day training camp practices. Leaving many players complaining of fatigue late in the year, and with injuries that never really healed themselves throughout the end of the season.
Still, after starting 4–2 via four wins against divisional opponents, the Buccaneers dropped two out of three games to a weak Dallas Cowboys team. Later in the year, quarterback Vinny Testaverde and receiver Willie Drewrey combined on an 89-yard touchdown pass in week 13 for the longest play in franchise history. Coach Perkins was fired after that game and the team fell short of a possible break even season with two losses to end the season, although the 6–10 record was Tampa Bay's best since 1984, John McKay's last season as coach.
Offensive coordinator Richard Williamson was made head coach for the 1991 season based on a 1–2 record. Tax records showed the Buccaneers were one of the most profitable teams during this time, even though owner Hugh Culverhouse announced the Bucs were losing money and needed to play games in Orlando, Florida to gain income.
The Buccaneers officially finished second in the NFC Central thanks to their 5–3 divisional record. The other three teams in the division who went 6–10 — the Lions, Packers and Vikings — all went 3–5 in division games. The second-place finish was their highest since winning the division in 1981, and would be their highest until 1997.

## Offseason
### NFL draft

| Pick | Round | Player | Position | School |
| 4 | Round 1 | Keith McCants | Linebacker | Alabama |
| 30 | Round 2 | Reggie Cobb | Running Back | Tennessee |
| 87 | Round 4 | Jess Anderson | Tight End | Mississippi State |
| 108 | Round 4 | Tony Mayberry | Center | Wake Forest |
| 114 | Round 5 | Ian Beckles | Guard | Indiana |
| 141 | Round 6 | Derrick Douglas | Running Back | Louisiana Tech |
| 171 | Round 7 | Donnie Gardner | Defensive End | Kentucky |
| 224 | Round 9 | Terry Cook | Defensive End | Fresno State |
| 254 | Round 10 | Mike Busch | Tight End | Iowa State |
| 281 | Round 11 | Terry Anthony | Wide Receiver | Florida State |
| 307 | Round 12 | Todd Hammel | Quarterback | Stephen F. Austin |

## Regular season
### Schedule

Regular season :
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Game site | Record | Attendance |
| 1 | September 9 | at Detroit Lions | W 38–21 | Pontiac Silverdome | 1–0 | 56,692 |
| 2 | September 16 | Los Angeles Rams | L 35–14 | Tampa Stadium | 1–1 | 59,705 |
| 3 | September 23 | Detroit Lions | W 23–20 | Tampa Stadium | 2–1 | 55,075 |
| 4 | September 30 | at Minnesota Vikings | W 23–20$_{(OT)}$ | Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome | 3–1 | 54,462 |
| 5 | October 7 | at Dallas Cowboys | L 14–10 | Texas Stadium | 3–2 | 60,076 |
| 6 | October 14 | Green Bay Packers | W 26–14 | Tampa Stadium | 4–2 | 67,472 |
| 7 | October 21 | Dallas Cowboys | L 17–13 | Tampa Stadium | 4–3 | 68,315 |
| 8 | October 28 | at San Diego Chargers | L 41–10 | Jack Murphy Stadium | 4–4 | 40,653 |
| 9 | November 4 | Chicago Bears | L 26–6 | Tampa Stadium | 4–5 | 68,555 |
| 10 | November 11 | at New Orleans Saints | L 35–7 | Louisiana Superdome | 4–6 | 67,865 |
| 11 | November 18 | at San Francisco 49ers | L 31–7 | Candlestick Park | 4–7 | 62,221 |
| 12 | November 25 | at Green Bay Packers | L 20–10 | Milwaukee County Stadium | 4–8 | 53,677 |
| 13 | December 2 | Atlanta Falcons | W 23–17 | Tampa Stadium | 5–8 | 42,839 |
| 14 | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye | Bye |
| 15 | December 16 | Minnesota Vikings | W 26–13 | Tampa Stadium | 6–8 | 47,272 |
| 16 | December 23 | at Chicago Bears | L 27–14 | Soldier Field | 6–9 | 46,456 |
| 17 | December 30 | New York Jets | L 16–14 | Tampa Stadium | 6–10 | 46,543 |
| Notes: Division opponents in bold text |||||||

### Standings

NFC Central :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| $^{(3)}$ Chicago Bears | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 6–2 | 9–3 | 348 | 280 | L1 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 5–3 | 6–8 | 264 | 367 | L2 |
| Detroit Lions | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 3–5 | 5–7 | 373 | 413 | L1 |
| Green Bay Packers | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 3–5 | 5–7 | 271 | 347 | L5 |
| Minnesota Vikings | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 3–5 | 4–8 | 351 | 326 | L4 |