Chapter 3, The 1987 draft
-Excerpt from A Swashbuckling History of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, By Selena Roberts
Chapter 8, Steve Young
The Bo Jackson debacle would turn out to be a sign of things to come for the Buccaneers in 1986. The team started off the season with a pounding from the 49ers, 31-7, and a sloppy 23-10 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. Steve DeBerg, who beat out second year QB Steve Young for the starting job, was benched following 9 interceptions in the two games. Young propelled them to a 24-20 victory over the Lions. However, this would turn to be the one of the lone bright spots for the Buccaneers the rest of the season. A crippling injury to Pro Bowl tackle Marvin Powell doomed the running game, and by week 10 had lost both starting running backs Jerry Bell and Nathan Wonsley. The Buccaneers headed into freefall, letting go of ends Jimmie Giles and Kevin House, both of whom at the time were the all-time leading Buccaneers receivers. The Bucs dropped 10 of their last eleven, including their last 7. Upper Management was in turmoil, and head coach Leeman Bennett was fired at the end of the year.
The only bright spot was the play of the aforementioned Steve Young. While his 8-13 touchdown to interception ratio wasn’t exactly blowing the stadium roof off, his display of athleticism impressed team scouts from across the nation. As the Bucs put Young on the trading block, A fierce bidding war erupted between several teams to harness the raw talent of Young. Having the first overall draft pick, the University of Miami phenom Vinny Testaverde fell right into their lap, causing this trade. DeBerg, the veteran, was seen as a tutor to the would be Buccaneers QB Testaverde, and left Young to be dispensable.
The first team to approach the young Young was the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cardinals, eventually decided that a more sufficient talent could be picked up in the draft, and fled the talks. The Packers, especially head coach Forrest Gregg, held major interest, but decided that the cost of a second and a fourth was too much for the raw Young, and He too fled. The bidding war was down to two players, who coincidentally happened to be the 2 most successful NFC teams last year, the Bears and the 49ers ...
-Interview by Bill Walsh, 6/23/07
Steve Young might have been just the most raw talent I had ever seen. He had the arm, the legs, the intellect, the total package. The only flaw is that he played on a goddamn awful team. I doubt Joe in his prime could throw more than 20 touchdowns in a season with that line and those backs and those receivers. When I saw Young going up on the trading block, I wasn’t surprised. The Bucs were looking to dump a QB because we all knew Vinny was going to Tampa. But I knew I had to have him. When the Bucs said a second and a fourth I knew that was a steal. I mean, the guy could be the cornerstone of our team for a decade and a half.
-Excerpt from an interview by Steve Young, 2/12/08
I remember the trade like it was almost yesterday. I knew from the reports that I was going to be traded, and it was only a matter of time I heard the news. April 24th, I believe it was. I was actually on the toilet when I got the phone call, and I had to hurry and pull up my pants to get the phone. Hugh Culverhouse, the Tampa owner, personally called me up and told me I got traded. I wasn’t surprised, I knew it was going to happen eventually, but it was still kind of a shock. Now it’s kind of a joke in the family. The first thing I did after the trade was called up my parents and said “I just got traded to the Bears for a 1st and 3rd round draft pick and all I had to do was to go to the bathroom!”
1987 NFL DRAFT
San Francisco 49ers
1st round, 28 overall: Gregg Rakoczy, C, Miami
2nd round, 56 overall: Bruce Wilkerson, G, Tennessee
3rd round, 65 overall (via Eagles): Jerry Ball, DT, SMU
4th round: Traded to Seattleh
5th round: Traded to Eagles
6th round, 143 overall (via Chagers): Greg Lloyd, LB, Fort Valley St.
7th round, 184 overall (via Seahawks by way of Vikings): Harry Swayne, T, Rutgers
7th round, 185 overall (via Seahawks): Gene Atkins, DB, Florida A&M
8th round, 224 overall: Rod Jones, TE, Washington
9th round, 251 overall: Bruce Plummer, C, Mississippi St
10th round, 279 overall: Chuck Paye, QB, Stanford
11th round, 292 overall (via Falcons), Elbert Shelley, DB, Arkansas St.
12th round: Traded to Falcons
Chicago Bears
1st round: Traded to Buccaneers
2nd round, 54 overall: Ron Morris, WR, SMU
3rd round, 71 overall (via Raiders by way of Packers): Frankie Neal, WR, Fort Hays St.
4th round, 110 overall: Leon Seals, DE, Jackson St.
5th round, 138 overall: Will Johnson, DE, Northeast Louisiana
6th round, 166 overall: Bo Jackson, RB, Auburn
7th round: Traded to Packers
8th round, 221 overall: Paul Migliazzio, LB, Oklahoma
9th round, 249 overall: Lakei Heimuli, RB, BYU
10th round, 277 overall: Dick Chapura, DT, Missouri
11th round, 305 overall: Tim Jessie, RB, Auburn
12th round, 334 overall: Tyrone Braxston, DB, North Dakota St.
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