Gruden, who served as the team's head coach from 2002-08, guided the Buccaneers to a 12-4 record in his first season, including a first-place finish in the NFC South en route to delivering a Super Bowl victory.
After taking over the Buccaneers, Gruden turned over more than half the roster with new players. Twenty seven members of the Super Bowl XXXVII team, including five starters on offense, were not on the roster for the team's final game of the previous season. Tampa Bay's 12 regular season wins during that 2002 campaign stand as the most in a single season in franchise history. During his seven years in Tampa Bay, Gruden amassed 57 wins – the most in franchise history -- while his teams made it to the postseason three times (2002, 2005 and 2007). In 2007, he led the Buccaneers to their third NFC South title in six years, becoming the only coach in team history with three division titles.
At the time of his Super Bowl XXXVII victory over his former team, Gruden was the youngest head coach in NFL history to win a Super Bowl. He was also the first non-rookie head coach to lead his team to a Super Bowl win in his first season with that team.
Following Tampa Bay's Super Bowl victory in January, 2003, Gruden, along with quarterback Brad Johnson, was the first non-player ever invited by Disney to star in their popular post-Super Bowl "What's Next" commercial. His off-the-field popularity continued to grow, marked the success of his 2003 book "Do You Love Football?! Winning with Heart, Passion, and Not Much Sleep." Gruden was the recipient of the 2002 Coach of the Year honor at the ESPY awards and was recognized as Professional Coach of the Year at the 37th Victor Awards in 2003.
Prior to his arrival in Tampa, Gruden steered the Raiders to a 38-26 regular season mark in his four seasons (1998-2001) with the club, including postseason appearances in 2000 and 2001. He led Oakland to division titles in each of his final two seasons (2000-01). He also held various coaching and assistant positions with the Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers, University of Pittsburgh, San Francisco 49ers, University of Pacific, Southeast Missouri State and University of Tennessee after his 1985 graduation from the University of Dayton where he served as the quarterback of the football team and earned a degree in communications.
After his career with the Buccaneers, Gruden moved into the broadcast booth in 2009 as ESPN's game analyst on Monday Night Football where he has served for the past eight seasons. His father, Jim, served as a professional football regional scout, running backs coach and director of player personnel for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. His brother, Jay, is currently the head coach of the Washington Redskins. He and his wife, Cindy, continue living in Tampa and remain involved in a variety of Tampa-based charitable causes.