With the arrival of true free agency in the NFL, the Buccaneers hit a home run in their first try by signing former Pittsburgh linebacker Hardy Nickerson. Nickerson set a still-standing team record with 214 tackles, instantly emerged as the team's emotional leader and won first-team Associated Press All-Pro honors, the first Buccaneer to do so since Lee Roy Selmon. On offense, the Bucs went with Steve DeBerg at quarterback in the season opener, then turned it over to second-year player Craig Erickson the rest of the way. However, the Buccaneers faced a tough schedule with 11 of 16 games against teams that would go on to make the playoffs, and the final record of 5-11 was the same as the year before. Another 1992 draft pick, Courtney Hawkins emerged as the team's leading receiver with 933 yards on 62 catches but the run game averaged just 3.2 yards per carry and 80.6 yards per game.
