Josh Freeman was the start of the Home Grown movement in Tampa Bay.Right now the Tampa Bay Buccaneers starting lineup contains 19 players that began their playing careers with the team. That is to say, of the 22 players listed as first string on the Buccaneers depth chart, only three players debuted in a regular-season game with a different team (C Jeff Faine, TE Kellen Winslow, S Sean Jones). In fact, of those 19 players to first appear with the Buccaneers in a regular-season game, 15 were originally drafted or signed by Tampa Bay and have appeared exclusively on the Buccaneers roster during their careers. In all, the Buccaneers have 47 players on the current 80-man roster that were either drafted or originally signed by Tampa Bay and have only appeared on Tampa Bay’s roster.
Though free agency grabs the headlines, a few organizations have proven that drafting and developing talent, followed by re-signing that talent, is the best way to have sustained success.
As a prime example, in 2010, three of the traditionally most successful teams in the league – including the season’s Super Bowl XLV Champion Green Bay Packers – featured 18 or more usual starters who had spent their entire career with the team. Those three teams are responsible for four of the last six Super Bowl titles, as well as two runner-up spots in that same span.
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