The 1980 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season began with great optimism in the wake of their surprise NFC championship appearance of the previous season. After scoring a playoff win in only their fourth year, the Buccaneers were considered such a model franchise that the NBA expansion Dallas Mavericks adopted their building plan. A 3-1 preseason and victories in their first two regular-season games, including an NFC championship rematch against the Los Angeles Rams in the Buccaneers' Monday Night Football debut, gave an early impression of the team as a force that had arrived. However, the optimism dissipated as the offense underachieved, while opponents seemed to have solved the Buccaneers' 3-4 defense. A rash of defensive injuries, beginning with the Rams game, required playing many inexperienced