Michael Irvin Interview with Raheem Morris

Morris is currently in his second stint with Tampa Bay, having first joined the team’s defensive coaching staff in 2002. He served on staff from 2002-05, then spent the 2006 season as Kansas State’s defensive coordinator before returning to the Buccaneers to serve as the defensive backs coach from 2007-08. Morris has quickly risen through the coaching ranks during his time with Tampa Bay, serving as defensive quality control coach in 2002, defensive assistant in 2003 and assistant defensive backs coach from 2004-2005 before taking over as defensive backs coach in 2007. During his first stretch with the club, he worked closely with former Buccaneers defensive backs coach and current Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin in the development of one of the NFL’s top secondaries.

Morris, the youngest head coach in the league in 2010, also directed the season’s youngest team, with Tampa Bay’s final 53-man roster featuring 29 players in their rookie, first or second years in the NFL. In fact, the Morris-led “Young Bucs” became the first team since the merger in 1970 to start 10+ rookies and finish the season with a winning record, as the team turned in an exciting 10-6 performance, narrowly missing a playoff berth. The seven-game swing from a 3-13 season in 2009 marked the best single-season turnaround in team history and the best turnaround in the NFL for 2010. Six of the Buccaneers’ wins were on the road, including a 21-0 shutout at San Francisco in Week 11 and a 23-13 victory over NFC South rival New Orleans in Week 17 to close the season.