Chiseling the Mt. Rushmore of Tampa Bay Buccaneers greats

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber lines up for play against the New Orleans Saints January 1, 2006 in Tampa. The Bucs defeated the Saints 27 – 13 to win the NFL South Championship and a playoff spot. (Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images) /

CB Ronde Barber

This last spot was a hotly contested one, but ultimately Ronde Barber won out over Simeon Rice and John Lynch as the fourth and final face on the Buccaneers’ Mt. Rushmore. For a while there, it felt like Barber might play forever as he played 16 years in the league, finally retiring in 2012.

The former third round pick of the Buccaneers back in 1997, Barber also proved to be one of the biggest draft steals in franchise history. Throughout his career, Barber was named an ALl-Pro three times and made five Pro Bowls. His career numbers are completely unbecoming of a cornerback, as he stuffed the stat sheet during his time in the pewter and red where he played his entire career.

Not only did Barber pick off a total of 47 passes in his career (including 10 in 2001), but he also tallied 28 sacks over the course of 16 years; an incredible number from a cornerback to have accumulated. There was also a stretch of three years between 2004-06 where Barber recorded over 80 solo tackles for the Bucs as well. He recorded 88 tackles for loss from out wide as well; this too is an extraordinary number from a defensive back.

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Barber will one day join these other three players with a bust in Canton, Ohio as he is a sure-fire Hall of Famer. Barber rounds out the last of the names, giving the Buccaneers a Mt. Rushmore of Barber, Brooks, Sapp, and Selmon; as they say, defense wins championships.

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