The No.74 shirt The number of tackles. As in, if you are a Buccaneer tackle, then this was going to be your number. Even Gene Sanders who switched from defense early in his Tampa Bay career, spent most of his playing days on the edge of the interior line. Mike Current was one of the few players to start every game in the expansion season and was a long-time NFL veteran, as was Rockne Freitas who succeeded him in the 74 jersey at the end of a long and successful pro career and became a good friend to BUCPOWER.COM from his home in Hawaii. After Sanders, came Marvin Powell, a former Pro Bowler in New York but way past his best by the time he arrived to play for Leeman Bennett in 1986. He was quickly injured and quickly gone. Which left the jersey number open to be worn by the 4th overall pick of the 1988 NFL draft, Paul Gruber. 183 starts later and every longevity record in the book by the time he called it a day, Gruber was one of the best ever in a Tampa Bay uniform. Ali Marpet may well be left wishing he had worn another number when he joined the Buccaneers as he would have easily won some of the other numbers in the 70s but was one of the best guards in franchise history. BEST EVER TO WEAR No.74 FOR THE BUCCANEERS - PAUL GRUBER

Click on the player's name for their profile page, Buccaneer stats and picture galleries Years Player Pos 1976 Mike Current T 1978 Rockne Freitas T 1979-85 Gene Sanders DT/OL 1986-87 Marvin Powell T 1988-99 Paul Gruber T 2002-3, 06 Cornell Green T 2005 Scott Jackson C 2009-10 Shawn Murphy OL 2012 Cody Wallace C 2015-21 Ali Marpet G 2022 Fred Johnson OL