Buccaneers: Five best wide receivers in team history
By Bailey Adams
No. 2: Kevin House
At No. 2, we turn back the clock a long way to find Kevin House, who played for Tampa Bay from 1980 to 1986. Now, I won’t pass it off as if I saw House play. In fact, I wasn’t even born until 12 years after his run with the team ended. But what he was for the Bucs was a bright spot in a time when they didn’t have very many. In his six seasons as a Buccaneer, the team won 31 games, lost 74 and tied once. Despite that horrendous record, Tampa Bay made the playoffs twice in his tenure. He was a major part of the 1981 playoff run, finishing with 56 receptions for 1,176 yards and nine touchdowns.
The Bucs made the playoffs again the next year with a 5-4 record (due to the players’ strike that cut the season short). In that season, he caught 28 passes for 438 yards and two scores. He didn’t see a whole lot of winning, but House can see his name near the top of the Bucs’ records in every receiving category. Over his seven-year Tampa Bay career, he had 286 catches (sixth), 4,928 yards (second), 31 touchdowns (second) and 17.2 yards per catch (first). He put up two 1,000-yard seasons as a Buc.
House doesn’t get talked about much when it comes to all-time greats in Tampa Bay, but his time with the Bucs warrants it. Longtime Bucs fans don’t like to talk about the franchise’s early days. Truthfully, no type of Bucs fan really does, which is why House doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. Should he be in the Ring of Honor at Raymond James Stadium? Maybe so. Does he deserve a spot on the list of best Bucs receivers ever? Definitely.