Buccaneers vs. Houston Oilers 
LOSS - Tampa Bay Buccaneers 14 Houston Oilers 20
Lee Roy Selmon was held ineffective by Oilers tackle Leon Gray. Behind the blocking of Gray and tight end Dave Casper, Earl Campbell rushed for 203 yards
Coach McKay singled out rookie linebacker Scot Brantley for praise, but for the most part the Buccaneers' play was marked by missed tackles and mental errors. The receiving corps was especially prone to errors, with receivers frequently running wrong routes or being penalized for illegal formation or pass interference.
The poor play of the receivers contributed to the coaching staff's decision to sign a receiver. Their first choice was Gerald Carter, who had been one of the last training camp cuts, but Carter had to clear recall waivers and was claimed by the New York Jets. San Francisco 49ers and ex-FSU receiver Mike Shumann was signed instead.[88] The Buccaneers had to play many inexperienced players, with rookie Andy Hawkins taking Dave Lewis' place, all of the regular interior offensive linemen injured, and guard Ray Snell too ill to start. Two starters on the line, center Jim Leonard and left guard George Yarno, had a combined 1 year of NFL experience between them. Right guard Greg Roberts' place was taken by former Jets starter Darrell Austin, who had caused Roberts' knee injury by falling on him. Austin had no starting experience with the Buccaneers.
GAMEDAY BRIEF
OFFICALS
- REFEREE: Jim Tunney
- UMPIRE: Pat Harder
- LINE JUDGE: Dick McKenzie
- LINESMAN: Burl Toler
- BACK JUDGE: Pat Knight
- FIELD JUDGE: Don Hakee
- SIDE JUDGE: Gil Lace
SCORING
- OILERS: 02:22-1Q Fritsch FG21
- OILERS: 08:14-2Q Fritsch FG33
- OILERS: 04:27-2Q Barber 17 pass from Stabler (Fritsch kick)
- BUCCANEERS: 01:25-2Q Jones 17 pass from Williams (Yepremian kick)
- OILERS: 03:34-3Q Carpenter 10 run (Fritsch kick)
- BUCCANEERS: 03:37-4Q Brown 80 fumble return (Yepremian kick)
STARTERS OFFENSE
- TE: #89 J. McKay
- LT: #75 D. Reavis
- LG: #72 H. Fest
- C: #73 J. Ward
- RG: #77 E. Little
- RT: #74 M. Current
- TE: #86 B. Moore
- WR: #83 L. McGriff
- QB: #11 S. Spurrler
- RB: #35 J. DuBose
- RB: #32 L. Carter
STARTERS DEFENSE
- LE: #78 C. Rudolph
- NG: #76 D. Pear
- RE: #63 L. Selmon
- LOLB: #66 P. Toomay
- SILB: #58 C. Peterson
- RILB: #52 S. Reese
- ROLB: #30 J. Gunn
- LCB: #40 M. Washington
- RCB: #21 J. Bjakak
- SS: #33 M. Cotney
- FS: #28 K. Stone
SUBSTITUTIONS
- 1 Yepremian, 16 Blanchard, 20 Colzie, 27 T Davis, 28 G Davis, 36 Berns, 41 Thomas, 43 Eckwood, 46 Reece, 50 Wilson, 52 Brantley, 55 Brown, 59 Hawkins, 65 Stalls, 72 Snell, 78 Radford, 79 Lewis, 84 Jones, 86 Obradovich, 87 Mucker
DID NOT PLAY
- 14 Fusina, 61 Roberts, 89 House
INACTIVE
- none.
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING
- BUCCANEERS: J.Davis 6-23, Eckwood 6-21, Bell 6-14, Williams 2-13, Hagins 1-(-4).
- OILERS: Campbell 33-203, Carpenter 7-32, Wilson 4-11, Barber 1-1, Stabler 1-(-2).
PASSING
- BUCCANEERS: Williams 28-16-142-2-1.
- OILERS: Stabler 26-19-242-1-1.
RECIEVING
- BUCCANEERS: Jones 4-58, Eckwood 4-39, Bell 4-14, Giles 3-19, Hagins 1-12.
- OILERS: Wilson 4-28, Renfro 3-75, Barber 3-26, Carpenter 3-20, Johnson 2-32, Caster 1-25, Coleman 1-14, Casper 1-14, Campbell 1-8.
INTERCEPTIONS
- BUCCANEERS: Brown 1-0.
- OILERS: Perry 1-7, Hartwig 1-0.
KICK RETURNS
- BUCCANEERS: G.Davis 4-60, T.Davis 1-16.
- OILERS: Roaches 3-55.
PUNT RETURNS
- BUCCANEERS: Reece 1-(-1).
- OILERS: Roaches 3-8.
SACKS
- BUCCANEERS: Kollar 1-13, L.Selmon 1-7.
- OILERS: CDorris 1-16.
