When the Buccaneers ditched the alarm clock era jerseys and unveiled their new uniforms prior to the 2020 season, the immediate standout was the all-pewter Color Rush.
By embracing pewter, a color unique to Tampa Bay, the uniform felt iconic and unmistakably “Buccaneers.”
But despite their popularity, the pewter jerseys seem to be getting slowly phased out of Tampa Bay’s yearly wardrobe. The team wore their alternates for the maximum three games during the 2020 season. But after a debut season where they were heavily featured, from 2021-2023 they became less prevalent, appearing in just one game per year. And in 2024, the Buccaneers didn’t wear the beloved pewter jerseys a single time.
The Buccaneers put out an official press release to announce the weekly themes for their 2025 home schedule, including an announcement of when they’ll be wearing their creamsicle throwback uniforms.
But the Color Rush uniforms are seemingly nowhere to be found in the announcement, and for the second straight season, it appears the Buccaneers won’t be breaking them out for a game at Raymond James Stadium.
When can Buccaneers fans expect to see the pewter uniforms again?
In a mailbag written by Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds, he offered an inside scoop that the uniforms could be relegated to a road alternate in the future.
And as perhaps the most credible insider in the world of Buccaneers coverage, when Scott Reynolds talks, we listen.
“As for the pewter jerseys, what I’ve been told is that the pewter jerseys will most likely be a road alternate moving forward,” wrote Reynolds. “Tampa Bay has worn its pewter jerseys on the road before at Denver, at the L.A. Rams and at Indianapolis.”
Even the Buccaneers’ classic red uniforms are worn quite rarely nowadays as the team opts to instead wear white at home for the first half of the season, forcing the opponent to wear dark colors, which is seen as a disadvantage due to the severe Tampa heat. With that philosophy in mind, it makes a lot of sense that the team is perhaps overly-cautious about wearing the darkest uniform in their wardrobe.
Still, the popularity of the look makes it disappointing that the team doesn’t want to break it out just once for the home crowd and make it an annual tradition.
Based on everyting we know, the current best bet for the pewter Color Rush uniforms seems to be Week 2 when they travel to face the Houston Texans on Monday Night Football.
The Houston Texans have already revealed they’ll be doing a whiteout theme for the nationally televised game, and with the Texans in their all-white uniforms, the Buccaneers can wear their Color Rush if they so choose.
Last year, the Bucs found themselves in a similar situation when they travelled to face the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football. The Cowboys opted to wear their white uniforms at home, but rather than the alternates, the Bucs decided to put their classic red uniforms on display in front of the national audience.
If not in Houston, another realistic possibility could come in Week 17 when Tampa Bay travels to face the in-state rival Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins, like the Bucs, are a team that often wears white uniforms at home. And even if the Dolphins decide to wear their classic aqua jerseys, their home uniforms are still light enough for the NFL to potentially approve a rare color-on-color matchup, similar to when the Bucs wore their Color Rush uniforms against Denver's orange jerseys in 2020.
It would be a major disappointment if the Buccaneers shelve the pewter uniforms for good, and it unfortunately is growing increasingly likely that what was once a unique and beloved alternate look might be headed for early retirement, at least at Raymond James Stadium. Still, there’s hope it could stick around as a rare road alternate in 2025 and beyond.
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