The Buccaneers began their Super Bowl title defense believing they had an even stronger team in 2003, and that seemed evident after a 17-0 Monday night shutout win in Philadelphia in Week One in the regular season debut of Lincoln Financial Field. However, a string of injuries and bizarre finishes to games kept the defending champs from getting on a roll, and after a 4-3 start the team slumped to a 7-9 finish and missed the playoffs. In Week Two, a blocked extra point at the end of regulation kept the Bucs from staging a comeback win over Carolina and led to a loss in overtime. Two games later in front of a Monday Night Football audience, the Buccaneers had a 21-point lead over Tony Dungy's Indianapolis Colts with five minutes left in regulation after a Rondé Barber pick-six, only to see Peyton Manning and the Colts engineer one of the most stunning comebacks in NFL history in an eventual 38-35 overtime win. Among the regular contributors to end up on injured reserve were Mike Alstott, Joe Jurevicius, Brian Kelly, Greg Spires, Kenyatta Walker and Ellis Wyms. Tension off the field led to the deactivation of wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson for the final six games and the departure of General Manager Rich McKay in December.
