COMMENTS FROM TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY AND PLAYERS ON FORMER BUCS QB TRENT DILFER RETURNING TO TAMPA TO PLAY IN SUPER BOWL XXXV AS QB OF THE AFC CHAMPION BALTIMORE RAVENS
SS John Lynch:
"I gave him a call to congratulate him while the Ravens were on the bus. He said to me, ‘I wish I could share this with you." It was a nice moment and I could tell that he was extremely happy. By him saying that to me speaks to the class he has. We played together six years, and when you play together that long, you develop a closeness, you become family. Trent went through a lot of adversity while he was the quarterback for the Buccaneers, so to see him having this kind of success, you can’t help but be happy for the guy."
OT Jerry Wunsch:
"First of all, I was so happy for Trent considering all of the negative stuff he went through when he was here. It was a hard road for him. We all lived through all of the negative fan and media criticism that he endured. So from a personal standpoint, I’m thrilled that he’s coming back to Tampa Bay and is 60 minutes away from being a Super Bowl championship quarterback."
Wunsch on the type of teammate Dilfer was:
"The guy was always and will always be a fighter. He will do anything to win a football game. My wife (Melissa) said that besides me, there is no one else she would rather see playing in the Super Bowl than Trent Dilfer."
"He’s a first-class guy. Everyone who knows him knows that about him. Despite all of the negative comments and stories, he’s not angry, he’s not bitter, and that in itself is amazing. I like his chances on Super Bowl Sunday. As well as their defense is playing, if he plays well, they’ve got a shot."
TE Dave Moore:
"I was happy for him. I remember when he got hurt in Seattle, and we replaced him with Shaun King and Shaun got hot and won four of the final five games of the season. It seemed like the fans and the media couldn’t run him out of town fast enough. I told him on the sidelines during one of our final games that year that I hoped he would catch on somewhere and be successful. Obviously, that has happened. I am in full support of Trent helping his team win the game. I think if he continues to take care of the football, as well as their defense is playing, they’ve got a great chance to win the whole thing.
LB Derrick Brooks:
"Good things happen to good people, so it (making the Super Bowl) could not have happened to a better person."
Bucs Head Coach Tony Dungy:
"I’m happy for Trent, and I’m excited for him. I’m also happy for a lot of guys on that team. Guys like Qadry Ismail, Rod Woodson, Jack Del Rio, and Brian Billick. It’s going to be an exciting week for those guys. But most of all, I’m happy for Trent. I always said that he was good enough to take a team to the Super Bowl, I just wish it would have been us. I always thought he (Dilfer) was good enough to get to the Super Bowl, and I’m glad that he is proving me right.
He’s doing all the things you need to do to win. They are playing great defense, he’s taking care of the football and he has come in and given them a spark in that they have won 10 straight games."
RB Mike Alstott:
"I’m thrilled for him. It’s been a rough road for him – especially his time in Tampa. For him to go to another team and to do what he’s done is amazing. He’s a great competitor and he really deserves to be where he is. I’ll be rooting for him."