Tampa Bay Buccaneers Blown out One Last Time and Change Is Coming

The year was 1976 and I was witness to many Sunday afternoons of futility, watching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from the press box at the old Tampa Stadium.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers of 1976, the very first Buccaneer team ever, went 0-14. They were really, really bad but never as bad as what transpired for the first 30 minutes on Sunday, New Year's Day 2012 in the Georgia Dome.

The fact that the Bucs would lose their 10th straight game to end this miserable 2011 season was a foregone conclusion, but no one saw that this team would save its disastrous worst for the last.

These horrible, horrendous, despicable Bucs went out and gave up 41 first-half points to the Atlanta Falcons, who would coast to a 45-24 victory, and the fifth seed in the NFC side of the playoffs.

It was never, ever that bad in 1976.

This Buccaneers' defense, commanded by head coach for now, Raheem Morris, became the worst defense in Buccaneers' history. And there have been some woeful teams in the 35-year history of this franchise.

Never, ever in the history of this football team, has a running back gone for 172 yards in a half the way Michael Turner did in the first 30 minutes Sunday. Eighty-one of those were on a gem of a touchdown run that pretty much summed up the futility of Morris' defenders.

You have to wonder what was going through Ronde Barber's mind as the proud remnant of the Super Bowl team struggled to try and hold things together in a secondary that came apart early and often. By halftime, Barber was in the locker room with a broken hand and arm.

It was 41-7 at the half, and this game was over. Matt Ryan put on the sideline baseball cap and just enjoyed the last 30 minutes from the safety of the Falcons bench.

The Falcons running game gashed the Bucs defense for 251 yards. Thank goodness that Turner joined Ryan on the bench for the final 30, agonizing minutes.

When it was done, there was no doubt as to which is the worst team in the NFL.

It is these Buccaneers, who managed to stumble their way to 10-straight losses after starting the season 4-2.

The ownership family of this football team now has the ball in their court.

It is up to the Glazers to make the next move.

Change is coming, big changes should be coming.

That's the only move that makes any sense after a Sunday afternoon in Atlanta that was simply unwatchable.

Embarrassment left the building in the first quarter.

After that, well, this sets new records for ineptness. And this franchise has seen more than its share of ineptness.

Now, what we all need to see, is a lot of change.