1984 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season
The 1984 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 9th season in the National Football League the 9th playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the 9th and final season under head coach John McKay. They improved on their 2–14 season and finished 6-10, but missing the playoffs for the second straight season. The team attempted to address the problems faced in the disappointing 1983 season. For the first time, the team renegotiated the contracts of players in their option years, which kept discontent over salaries to a minimum. An assistant coach was added to perform the functions of an offensive coordinator. A strength coach was added, which improved the players' physical conditioning in hopes of avoiding the constant injuries that occurred in 1983. A healthy, stable offensive lineup developed the maturity to sustain long drives in pressure situations, and head coach John McKay began to move away from his long-criticized conservative play-calling and open up the offense. This was the first time that the team's offense finished the season ranked higher than their defense. Their offensive output is still the third-highest in team history (as of 2010), and was not matched by another Buccaneer team until 2003. James