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Vipers Team Formation
The Central Florida corridor has been a popular location for alternative professional football since the 1960s. Two teams, in particular, had success in Tampa Bay: the Tampa Bay Storm was one of the Arena Football League’s most successful and longest-lived franchises, surviving in the city from 1991 until it suspended operations after the 2017 season. The Tampa Bay Bandits were ... -
XFL and Vipers Covid-19 Shutdown
The Vipers inaugural season was cut short due to the 2019 – 2020 coronavirus pandemic and the XFL officially suspended operations for the remainder of the season on March 20, 2020.
History of the Vipers
The Tampa Bay Vipers are a professional football team that plays in the XFL. The team was founded in 2020 and is based in Tampa, Florida. The Vipers play their home games at Raymond James Stadium, which has been the home of the NFL’s Buccaneers since 1998.
The Vipers were one of eight teams chosen to compete for the first season of XFL competition, with Marc Trestman as head coach and Aaron Murray as offensive coordinator. They finished their inaugural season with a 5-3 record before being eliminated from playoff contention due to tiebreakers among other teams with better records than them during regular-season play.
Despite not making it into the postseason competition, there were still plenty of highlights throughout their first year of existence; they managed to win four out of five road games while also having some exciting moments along the way, like when Quinton Flowers threw an incredible Hail Mary pass against Los Angeles Wildcats that was caught by Dan Williams for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter game between two teams on April 11th, 2020. With these kind memories behind them and another year added onto experience, the future looks bright for this young franchise despite coming up short this past season.
Vipers Products
Established
2020
City
Tampa Bay - Las Vegas
League History
2020 - Present / XFL
Team History
2023 - Present / Vegas Vipers
2020 - 2022 / Tampa Bay Vipers
Nickname
Vipers – As an XFL franchise, the Tampa Bay Vipers have quickly become one of the most talked-about teams in professional football. But what is it about their name that has everyone so intrigued? The answer lies in a combination of both history and culture.
The first thing to note is that ‘Viper’ was chosen as a nod to Florida’s rich military heritage. As home to many major U.S. Army bases, including MacDill Air Force Base and Eglin Air Force Base, Florida has long been associated with strength and courage – qualities embodied by vipers on land or sea. This connection also ties into Tampa Bay’s nickname ‘Lightning City USA' due to its frequent thunderstorms throughout summer; lightning is another symbol of power and mightiness, just like vipers themselves!
In addition to this historical reference point for their name choice, there are several cultural elements at play too: from an ecological perspective - snakes such as rattlesnakes or cottonmouths can often be found lurking around swamps near riverside areas - making them fitting symbols for life along waterways like those surrounding Tampa Bay; while culturally speaking 'vipers' have also featured prominently within popular media over recent years (think Marvel comics characters Viper & Venom).
Ultimately then, it appears clear why team owners chose 'Viper' when creating this new franchise: not only does it capture critical aspects of local history & culture, but more importantly still speaks volumes about what they want people to think when they hear mention made about the team itself... namely bravery & ferocity!
Championship
XFL Championships 0
Stadium
2023 - Present / Cashman Field
2020 - 2022 / Raymond James Stadium
Owner
2023 - Present / RedBird Capital Partners
2020 - 2022 / Alpha Entertainment, LLC
Coach
2023 - Present / Rod Woodson
2020 - 2022 / Marc Trestman
To qualify as the greatest player for this team, the player must have played one season for this team. If not, we will remove the player.
* verifies that player has played for this team as an added player by a fan.
Retired Number
*Blue is this team’s history
