Some NFL players never get to bask in the glory of a Super Bowl title. Others, like Cooper DeJean, get to step in the championship light less than a year after entering the league. Tampa Bay Buccaneers right tackle Tristan Wirfs is in that latter group.
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Wirfs, the thirteenth overall selection of the 2020 NFL Draft, joined the Bucs the same offseason as Tom Brady. He started all 20 games (including playoffs) at right tackle as a rookie. That final contest, Super Bowl LV, is where he finally earned his Super Bowl ring.
Wirfs spoke about his Super Bowl experience on the Green Light podcast. His rookie campaign came during the heart of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the NFL limited fan capacities at stadiums. As a result, he didn’t get to witness a full Super Bowl crowd. However, he initially believed the stands were full of spectators.
“I remember going out there, and they had the cardboard cutouts… I don’t have very good vision. So, at first, I went out there. I was like, ‘oh my God, it’s a packed stadium’… then they’re like, no… but even still, with it being half capacity… I thought it was still pretty loud and it was a good environment,” Tristan Wirfs said on the Green Light podcast.
The NFL sold 30,000 cardboard cutouts (at $100 apiece) for Super Bowl LV. This was done to make Raymond James Stadium “look full and keep fans socially distant.” The league’s efforts clearly worked, based on Wirfs’ first-hand account.
Wirfs’ Super Bowl contest was unique for multiple reasons. Yes, the cardboard cutouts were a first – and hopefully last – time thing. Beyond that, though, it was special because he played it on home turf. No Super Bowl host had ever reached the big game prior to Tampa Bay doing so in 2020.
This effectively turned what’s supposed to be a neutral-site championship event into one with home-field advantage. The Buccaneers obviously didn’t mind and took advantage, trouncing the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9. They carried a 21-6 lead into halftime courtesy of three touchdown passes from Tom Brady.
Wirfs, understandably, was stoked for the game. And when Tampa Bay took a two-possession lead into the locker room at halftime, he couldn’t contain his joy. He “hadn’t really talked all year,” but wasn’t able to stay quiet at that point.
“It was such a blur… it’s such a heightened environment and it’s so emotional… I was so excited. I was like, ‘we got to step on their throat!’… and my first thought, I said, ‘why would I say that? [Brady] probably heard me [and] thought I was an idiot.”‘
Even if Brady got a laugh out of Wirfs’ yelling, he didn’t consider his blocking a joke. Wirfs allowed him to be sacked just one time the entire season. That lone takedown came from Khalil Mack in Week 5. Without Wirfs’ strong play, Brady wouldn’t have earned the cherry on top of his GOAT resume. For that, he’ll be forever be thankful to the two-time first-team All-Pro tackle.
