Five Buccaneers have scored on plays of 97 or more yards in franchise history, with a linebacker and a running back tying for the longest Buccaneers touchdown ever

Scott Smith

The 2025 season will be the 50th campaign for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the league's 27th franchise that began play in 1976. We're marking the occasion with a deep dive into that rich half-century of history, celebrating some of the greatest individual performances ever in a Buccaneer uniform. This allows us to remember some of the franchise's greatest moments but also set the bar for players who will chase history over the next 50 years.

Today, we look at the five longest touchdowns in Buccaneers history, which works out well because the franchise so far has exactly five scores that covered 97 or more yards. Interestingly, only one of the five is an offensive play, while two are on defense and two on special teams. There have been three other touchdowns in Bucs history of 90 yards or longer: Jacquez Green's 95-yard punt return at Green Bay on Sept. 13, 1998; Devin White's 91-yard fumble return against Atlanta on Dec. 29, 2019; and Micheal Spurlock's 90-yard kickoff return versus the Falcons on Dec. 16, 2007.

What about passing touchdowns? The Bucs have yet to record one of 90 or more yards. The two longest passing TDs in team history came from the same duo of players in a two-year span. Quarterback Vinny Testaverde hit wide receiver Willie Drewrey on an 89-yard score against Atlanta on Dec. 2, 1990, then found Drewrey again for an 87-yarder at Green Bay on Sept. 15, 1991.

The Five Longest Touchdowns in Buccaneers History

1t. Ronald Jones, 98-yard run, at Carolina, Nov. 15, 2020

In the midst of an offensive onslaught in which the Buccaneers scored on a team-record nine straight possessions, third-year running back Ronald Jones provided the biggest play with a 10.5-second scamper from one end zone to the other at Carolina's Bank of America Stadium. The Bucs were clinging to a three-point lead and had been backed up by a downed punt at their own two-yard line, but Jones broke it wide open by taking a handoff a yard deep in the end zone, darting through a seam on the left side and breaking into the clear. One Panthers defender gave chase but never caught Jones as he completed the longest touchdown in Bucs history, propelling the Bucs to a 46-23 blowout.

Jones joined a very small fraternity with that play, as he became just the fourth player in NFL history to record a rushing touchdown of 98 or more yards. The Cowboys' Tony Dorsett did it first with a 99-yarder against Minnesota in 1983, Green Bay's Ahman Green followed with his 98-yard scamper against Denver in 2003 and Tennessee's Derrick Henry joined the club with a 99-yard run against Jacksonville in 2018. Jones is the only player in Buccaneers history to record a run of 85 or more yards.

1t. Shelton Quarles, 98-yard interception return, vs. Green Bay, Oct. 7, 2001

Shelton Quarles, who would switch to middle linebacker in 2002 and make the Pro Bowl, started this game against archrival Green Bay at strongside 'backer, and on a goal-line play to start the second quarter was tasked with covering prolific Packers tight end Bubba Franks. Franks lined up in a three-point stance at the right edge of the line with Quarles right across from him. Franks releases and gives Quarles a quick check but the Bucs linebacker stays on his hip on a crossing route and at the last second undercuts him to snag Brett Favre's pass at the Bucs' two-yard line. After shaking off Franks with a stiff-arm, Quarles sprinted down the right sideline with Rond Barber as an escort. No other Packer touched him, but Quarles did have to dive over the goal line after stumbling inside the Green Bay five-yard line.

The pick-six proved to be a huge play for the Buccaneers in a 2001 season that ended in a Wild Card berth. The Buccaneers and Packers were locked in a scoreless tie after one quarter, and the Packers would knot it up again on a long touchdown pass before halftime. The Bucs ended up with the hard-fought 14-10 victory and Quarles had his lasting spot in the franchise record books with the longest defensive score ever for Tampa Bay.

3t. Derrick Brooks, 97-yard interception return, at Baltimore, Sept. 15, 2002

A year after Quarles' 98-yarder, future Pro Football Hall of Famer Derrick Brooks nearly matched his teammate with his own pick-six, in this case sealing a rare road shutout and beginning Brooks' march to NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors.

After a deflating overtime loss to the Saints in Head Coach Jon Gruden's Buccaneers regular-season debut in Week One, the Bucs began a five-game winning streak built on stifling defense and beginning with a 25-0 blanking of the Ravens in Baltimore. That marked just the second shutout victory on the road for the Tampa Bay franchise. Fill-in quarterback Chris Redman had little chance against what would prove to be one of the greatest single-season defenses in NFL history, completing just 16 passes for 141 yards.

However, Redman and the Ravens were threatening to spoil the visitors' shutout fun in the game's final two minutes when they advanced to Tampa Bay's four yard line. On third down, Redman tried to throw over the middle to tight end Todd Heap at the goal line, but Brooks darted in front to deflect the ball into the air, then hauled it in at the three-yard line. Redman was the only Raven with a shot at Brooks, diving at his feet and causing a momentary stumble at the 17, but Brooks righted himself and sprinted away from the rest of the crowd for the 97-yard score. That was the first of five defensive touchdowns Brooks record that season, with the Super Bowl included.

3t. Sammie Stroughter, 97-yard kickoff return, vs. Carolina, Oct. 18, 2009

The Buccaneers were relatively new to kickoff return touchdowns, having gotten their first one ever just two years earlier when Spurlock broke a three-decade drought with his aforementioned 90-yarder against Atlanta. Sammie Stroughter's 97-yard score against the Panthers remains one of just four kickoff return touchdowns in franchise history, so far. In addition to the three listed in this article, Spurlock also had an 89-yard touchdown on a kickoff return at Atlanta on 2010, which is the most recent score for the team in this category.

Stroughter's score is also the only one on this top-five list that did not occur in a Buccaneers victory, though not for a lack of effort on his part. In addition to pulling the Bucs to within seven points in the third quarter with his long score, he also led the team with 65 receiving yards on three catches. On the play, catches the kick at the three-yard line close to the left numbers, then cuts diagonally to the middle of the field and finds a gap while trailing lead blocker Maurice Stovall. Stroughter then cut inside a key block from Stroughter and turned on the jets to blow past cornerback Richard Marshall. Kickoff specialist Rhys Lloyd and tight end Dante Rosario had the last two shots at him and both made brief contact but Stroughter got away from them to finish his sprint to the end zone.

Stroughter might be the most unlikely figure on this list, as he scored a total of two touchdowns of any kind in his four-year career with the team after being drafted in the seventh round in 2009.

3t. Clifton Smith, 97-yard kickoff return, at Kansas City, Nov. 2, 2008

Clifton Smith had a brief but fascinating playing career with the Buccaneers. The undersized running back out of Fresno State signed with the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent in 2008, the same year the team used a second-round pick on Appalachian State wide receiver Dexter Jackson (not that one) and installed him as their kickoff returner. Jackson flamed out spectacularly in that role so the Buccaneers called up Smith to take over for the final nine games. That was enough time for Smith to produce such impressive numbers that he ended up in the Pro Bowl.

Smith's biggest play of the season was just the second kickoff return for a touchdown in franchise history, coming one year after Spurlock had the first. And in this case, it was a huge play in a very memorable game, as the Buccaneers launched what remains the biggest comeback in a victory in franchise history.

The 6-3 Buccaneers fell behind the 1-6 Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium in Week Nine by three touchdowns before halftime. After future Buccaneer Connor Barth hit a field goal to make it 24-10 near the two-minute warning, he then kicked off to Smith, who returned it 97 yards to the opposite end zone. That sparked a 24-3 run for the visitors that left the game tied at the end of regulation, and Matt Bryant won it for Tampa Bay with a field goal in overtime.

On the return, Smith didn't make a lot of moves, taking the ball directly up the right sideline and running past most of the Chiefs' defenders without being touched. Safety Jon McGraw had the best shot at him, diving at his legs from behind on the Kansas City 30-yard line, but Smith slid through the attempted tackle and finished his jaunt to the house. Injuries would limit Smith to just one more season in Tampa and four games split between Miami and Cleveland in 2010, but he burned bright in that rookie campaign.