On the Bucs' status: "I don't think you can look at a team that won seven games as a rebuilding team. We felt we were a legitimate Super Bowl contender [in Minnesota] and we won one more game than the Bucs. We think we're going to be as strong as anyone."
On getting the Bucs' job: "It's something I've looked forward to for a long time. I think we're going to have a very, very fine ballclub in the near future."
On hiring a staff: "I have some people in mind. We're going to get a staff together pretty quick. It's going to be a staff of teachers...I will definitely have a defensive coordinator. Being a head coach is a full-time job."
On Trent Dilfer: "He has a strong arm and a great ability to move away from the rush. The things he needs to work on are being careful with the ball and decision-making, but that will come in time."
On the team's uncertain future in Tampa Bay: "We all hope the team plays in Tampa. I'm a traditionalist. I would prefer everything stays as it is. But that's not really my concern as a head coach. My concern is to get the ball team ready to play the best football it can play."
On whether he planned to buy a home in Tampa Bay: "I don't know what the cost of living is here, but I think I'll be able to afford it."
On the team's potential for success: "I feel they're close. I said last year that the team to look out for was Tampa Bay."
On the team's talent level: "I think we have some great, young players. There are some real building blocks and guys who are going to be able to do the things that I want to do and the things I feel are necessary to build a winning team. And I think you're going to see that in the very near future."
On his search for a head coaching job: "I had been close on a couple of other jobs, jobs that I thought I might have a chance for. But in the final analysis, looking back now, I know why things took place the way they did. I don't believe in accidents. There was very much a purpose for things turning out the way they did."
On his coaching influences: I've had some tremendous people in my football background who have helped me along the way. I feel everything that has happened to me, and has happened to me today, is just a tribute to the people I've been around and learned from."
On hiring a coaching staff: "I have some people in mind. We're going to get a staff together pretty quick. It's going to be a staff of teachers."
On hiring a defensive coordinator: "I will definitely have a defensive coordinator. Being a head coach is a full-time job."