When did Bucs home games stop feeling like home games?

Raymond James Stadium has developed a reputation for being one of the easier NFL stadiums for opposing fan bases to invade. Eagles fans have done it, Saints fans have done it, and Packers fans regularly travel well to Tampa. Other major fan bases have turned sections of the stadium into what looks and sometimes sounds like a neutral site. The Eagles takeover in 2023 was one of the more obvious examples. Philadelphia fans packed Raymond James Stadium so tightly that the crowd noise was noticeable whenever the Eagles made a big play.

This problem goes back much further than the current roster or coaching staff. In 2019, Sports Business Journal noted that visiting fans regularly filled Raymond James Stadium and connected some of Tampa Bay's attendance problems to more than a decade of struggles on the field. One longtime season ticket holder summed it up by saying Raymond James once provided a legitimate home-field advantage but had increasingly started to feel like home for visiting fans. Florida itself plays a role, as Tampa Bay is filled with transplants from other parts of the country, many of whom moved to Florida without giving up the teams they grew up supporting. Todd Bowles has even acknowledged that reality, pointing out that Florida teams deal with large numbers of fans who originally came from other areas. Tampa is an easy trip to circle, with 2-arm weather, beaches, and an NFL game, making it an attractive football vacation, especially for fans coming from colder cities.