Tony Dungy Reflects On Past Bucs-Lions Battles

With the Bucs breaking out their throwback creamsicle uniforms and Bucco Bruce helmets on Sunday afternoon against the Lions, this Week 6 matchup has a different feel to it. In some ways, it will be a rebirth of an old NFC Central rivalry – even if it’s just for a day. Pro Football Hall of Fame head coach and Bucs Ring of Honor member Tony Dungy is no stranger to Bucs-Lions matchups, and he said this week that this is an appropriate game for Tampa Bay to throw it back to the past.

“It couldn’t be more fitting than to do it this week for the Bucs against the Lions,” Dungy said on Thursday’s Pewter Report Podcast. “All the battles we had with them back in the day. I see that orange and white and it brings back memories of preparing for Barry Sanders, so it couldn’t be more fitting.”

The Lions lead the all-time series between the two teams – 31-28 – though the Bucs won the lone playoff meeting and are 3-2 in the last five meetings. This matchup is the first between Tampa Bay and Detroit since 2020, and it’s a big one as the hosts come in leading the NFC South at 3-1 while the visitors are 4-1 and sitting pretty atop the NFC North.

With as big as this game is, it’s sure to bring back memories for longtime Buccaneer fans who watched these two teams go head-to-head two times every year. Of course, from 1996-2001, Tony Dungy was at the center of those games, which he reflected on in a conversation with Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds and Matt Matera this week.

Tony Dungy Looks Back On Bucs-Lions Rivalry Of Late 1990s-Early 2000s

Before the formation of the NFC South in 2002, the Bucs shared the NFC Central with the Lions, Bears, Packers and Vikings – the current-day NFC North – from 1977-2001. Tony Dungy arrived in Tampa in 1996 and coached the team through 2001, which meant he was a key figure in this old division rivalry for several years.

Dungy’s defenses became the story of the late 1990s and early 2000s for the Bucs, but there were certainly some struggles with the Lions and their legendary running back, Barry Sanders.

“Tough time early on, and Barry was tremendous,” Dungy said Thursday. “I had coached against him in Minnesota and so you think you’re ready and we had a fast defense, but he was something. You could do everything right, and he still found a way to make you miss and make plays. He was a nightmare, he was a headache.”

The Lions beat the Bucs 21-6 and 27-0 in the first year of the Tony Dungy era, but then things got really interesting in 1997. Tampa Bay got the better of Sanders and the Detroit offense in two of the three meetings that year, with the final one coming in the NFC Wild Card Round.

“But then ’97, that year that we got into the playoffs, we played them early in the season, we held him to 10 yards I think, or something just ridiculous,” Dungy said. “Then he came back and got us for a world record in the second game. Then the rubber match was the playoff game and Derrick Brooks told me on Monday, he said ‘Don’t worry, Coach. We got this.’

Bucs Hall of Fame CB Ronde Barber and Hall of Famers Warren Sapp, Tony Dungy, Derrick Brooks and John Lynch – Photo by: USA Today

“And they were ready to go. We played an outstanding game, held him under 70 yards again, won our first playoff game in a long while – the last game in the old stadium. I remember the fireworks going off and our fans just staying there celebrating, one of the best moments of my career, really, one of the most fun moments.”

Sanders’ impact in the first 1997 matchup was limited on the ground, as he posted 20 yards on 10 carries. He did, however, catch eight passes for 102 yards and a touchdown. In the Lions’ win in the return game, Sanders ran for 215 yards and two touchdowns. But as Dungy said, his legendary defense was ready when it came time for the playoffs, as the Bucs held Sanders to 65 yards on the ground in a 20-10 win.

Overall, Dungy’s Bucs were 6-7 against the Lions. So, while the former Bucs and Colts head coach works on NBC broadcasts and calls things down the line, he admitted at the end of his appearance on Thursday’s Pewter Report Podcast that he does have a rooting interest on Sunday afternoon.

“I always try to be impartial, but I do, I love Todd [Bowles], I love the way they’re approaching these things,” Dungy said. “Baker Mayfield is my younger son’s favorite player, so I have a lot of Buccaneer interest. And I always have that painful memories of Detroit getting the best of us early on [in my career], so I’m definitely hoping that the Bucs can pull this one out.”

Watch Tony Dungy On The Pewter Report Podcast

If you missed Thursday’s Pewter Report Podcast featuring the legendary Tony Dungy, you can watch it here: