Tampa, Florida -- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have fired head coach Raheem Morris after a 10-game losing streak capped a disappointing 4-12 season.
"We want to thank Coach Morris for all his hard work and dedication as head coach of the Buccaneers," said Buccaneers Co-Chairman Joel Glazer in a press release.
Also in the press release Bucs GM Mark Dominik stated, "I have a lot of respect and appreciation for the passion Coach Morris gave to our football team, but this change is one we felt was necessary."
The Pewter Report's Facebook page reported the following statement by Morris:
"I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Glazer family for the opportunity they gave me to be the Head Coach of the Buccaneers. I was honored and blessed to have spent the majority of my coaching career with the same (class) organization. I grew up with the Bucs and I was fortunate enough to be part of a Super Bowl victory there. I wish the Glazers, the management, players, staff and most importantly, the fans nothing but the greatest success in the future."
Morris was considered one of the NFL's up-and-coming head coaching stars just last year, after leading a young Buccaneers team to a 10-6 record. The club was off to a 4-2 start this season after an October 16 victory over New Orleans, but didn't win another game.
Tampa Bay gave up the most points in the league this season with 494 -- 45 more than the next closest team, Minnesota. The Bucs surrendered more than 30 points in each of their last five games and were outscored 203-88 in that span.
Morris had been the team's defensive backs coach for two years and was named the defensive coordinator to replace the outgoing Monte Kiffin in December 2008 before being given the head coaching position in January 2009.
The Bucs were 3-13 in Morris' first season, then nearly made the playoffs in 2010 with the seven-game turnaround. He finished his brief tenure with a mark of 17-31.
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Contributing: The Sports Network