Former NFL head coach Bruce Arians became the oldest head coach to win a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2020. But the season wasn’t without its fair share of controversy. One of them involves the punter and kickoff specialist Pat McAfee, who missed his shot at a Super Bowl ring.

During The Athletic‘s Peak series covering the mental side of the sport, Arians revealed he called up McAfee in December 2020 before the Week 15 game against the Atlanta Falcons. They developed a bond in 2012 during their time together with the Indianapolis Colts. McAfee was also ready to come out of retirement after four years until the drug test discussion came up.

“He said, ‘I gotta pass a drug test?’ I said, ‘Yep.’ ‘Aw f—, I’m out,'” Bruce Arians revealed.

If we go back in time, the main issue holding Pat’s comeback was COVID-19. The former Bucs’ head coach put his entire special teams unit on the reserve/COVID-19 list. He also understood the travel restrictions could make things complicated for the retired punter. So, Bruce Arians told Pat McAfee that he could practice near his home, and they would fly him in for the games when needed.

It would have added a Super Bowl ring to his NFL career as the Bucs won Super Bowl LV, but that didn’t happen. McAfee also talked about this on his show back in 2021, clearing his side of the story.

Pat McAfee’s stance on Bruce Arians’ story

We know that McAfee is an outspoken person. After the Bucs won, he was also waiting to tell how things went. He claimed that he would have won a Super Bowl ring if he handled COVID-19 in a worse way.

“If I was worse with the way I handled COVID, I’d probably have a Super Bowl ring right now. If I had the antibodies, I potentially would’ve came back potentially for a team one week. But I got tested, did not have the antibodies, because I never had the COVID,” the punter said on the February 22 episode of The Pat McAfee Show in 2021.

McAfee would have bypassed the league protocols if he had the antibodies. However, Arians would have had to talk to then-Colts GM Chris Ballard, as they still held the rights to the punter. But none of it materialized.

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Also, Bradley Pinion and Ryan Succop cleared protocol for the Falcons game. So even if McAfee had returned as per Bruce Arians’ request, it’s doubtful whether McAfee would have played. But had he played, McAfee would have won a ring with none other than legendary Tom Brady.