EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. - The scar high on the right side of his chest, and the bullet still nestled beneath the gnarled skin, would be enough to remind Broderick Thomas of his turbulent years with Tampa Bay.
But the last thing Thomas needs is a reminder of those five seasons.
"Just wasted time," he said Thursday.
From the Buccaneers perspective: Thomas is one of several wasted No. 1 draft choices that contributed to 12 consecutive losing seasons. Perceived as an uncontrollable player off the field, Thomas thought he was unfairly treated by the organization, especially after Coach Sam Wyche took over in 1992.
"I don't want to waste my time," he said when asked to discuss his relationship with Wyche.
From Thomas' perspective, his time in Tampa was the most miserable time of his life. He will make his second return trip this weekend When, the NFC Central-leading Buccaners play host to the Minnesota Vikings, Thomas' second team in two years.
"The things that I've been through in seven years - you can't find two guys in the National Football League that would still be playing." Thomas said. "They probably would lay it down."
Derrick Thomas - no relation - and Deion Sanders were the only defensive players off the board when Tampa Bay chose Thomas out of Nebraska with the sixth pick in 1989.
He started slowly, with 27 tackles and two sacks as a rookie, but he led the team in sacks the next two seasons and had 174 tackles, then a team record, along with his 11 sacks in 1991,
"That came after he was shot twice outside a Tampa nightclub in an altercation with an Air Force staff sergeant. Doctors removed only one bullet. Things began to change for Thomas on the field when Tampa Bay hired Wyche in 1992. The new defensive system asked Thomas to spend less time rushing the passer and more time in coverage, and he was unhappy in that role. He had five sacks in 1992 and only one in 1993, when he became a part-time starter.
Wyche had little to say about Thomas this week, calling him "a very good friend" despite their strained relationship.
"We'll be battling competitively Sunday, but there are just a lot of guys who got caught up in a coaching change more than anything else, Wyche said. "Nobody's right or wrong."
Thomas signed with Detroit last season as a free agent, and led the Lions with seven sacks. Detroit Coach Wayne Fontes called him a positive influence, but he was not in the Lions' long-term financial plans.
In March. Thomas signed a three-year, $5.8 million contract with the Vikings, switching from a 3-4 defensive alignment to a 4-3 system for the first time in his career.
He got off to a bad start when he was arrested with a handgun in his luggage at the Houston airport just before training camp. Thomas insists he mistakenly packed the gun.
When the season began, he still was trying to learn the new system, which places more responsibility on the strong-side linebacker than Thomas had been accustomed to.
"You just can't go flying around," he said. "It took me a while to learn to sit back and let things happen, let the defense unfold."
But he played his best game of the season against Houston last Sunday, getting his first sack and pressuring Chris Chandler into a terrible pass that was intercepted by defensive end Martin Harrison.
"On the field he's been fine," said defensive coordinator Tony Dungy. "He's doing everything we've asked."