Buccaneers make Ring of Honor announcement
By James Yarcho
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have announced the 2017 inductees for the Ring of Honor – Malcom Glazer and Jon Gruden.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made their annual Ring of Honor announcement today, and they have yet again decided to go with two inductees. This year, we will see the names Malcom Glazer and Jon Gruden – two vital pieces in the Bucs’ lone championship – forever enshrined inside of Raymond James Stadium.
Our own Bailey Adams wrote this morning which five candidates were likely to be enshrined, and although he had Gruden on his list he – like many other people – never thought twice about Glazer being inducted.
Glazer, of course, is credited with saving football in the city of Tampa, orchestrating the team that would eventually go on and win Super Bowl XXXVII. His son, Ed, had this to say about the decision;
"“As we approach the 15th anniversary of our Super Bowl victory, it seemed a fitting time to acknowledge our father and Jon Gruden for the immense impact they had on our fans and the entire Tampa Bay community. Our father was passionate about transforming the Buccaneers into a model NFL franchise. His deep commitment to the Tampa Bay area is at the core of our organizational identity to this day.”"
Gruden, while he did not have great overall success as the Bucs’ head coach, was the man who put them over the top in that epic championship run. He challenged the defense to do things even they hadn’t done because he knew it would get them where they wanted to go.
Gruden has found great success as the voice of Monday Night Football and although many miss seeing him on the sidelines – whether that’s with Tampa or not – his passion for the game and fun loving approach to broadcasting makes him one of the most entertaining in the industry.
Gruden will be inducted during halftime of the Buccaneers’ Monday Night game against the Atlanta Falcons on December 18 while Glazer will be inducted during the Bucs’ other prime time game, a Thursday Night match-up with the New England Patriots on October 5.
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The official press conference will be held August 2 at 1:00 p.m. at One Buccaneer Place according to the team website.