Mark Duffner Doomed?
February 18th, 2019
Guilt by association?
A sign of just how incredibly rotten the Bucs defense was the past two years may be found in who isn’t working.
So far a couple of ex-Bucs coaches have found work. Defensive line coach Brentson Buckner is employed by Chucky in San Francisco Oakland and will soon relocate to Las Vegas. Pretty sweet new gig for Buckner.
And secondary coach Jon Hoke apparently knows the right people in college. He found a life raft as the defensive coordinator at Maryland. Insert your own punchline there.
And we all know no one with common sense would have given the man responsible for one of the most atrocious defenses in league history, Mike Smith, a defensive job of any sort. So Joe chuckles when remembering how Smith, now a book salesman and color analyst for NFL Network broadcasts of the AAF, went on SiriusXM NFL Radio right before Super Bowl Week to announce his retirement.
It was very likely an involuntary retirement.
But linebackers coach and interim defensive coordinator Mark Duffner? Best Joe can tell, despite players raving about his personal touch and his football acumen, can’t find work.
Duffner, 65, and a Woody Hayes disciple, isn’t getting a sniff about any NFL job that is known publicly. That saddens Joe because Duffner is one of the truly great guys in the coaching profession. Joe brings this up because the Bengals, a week before the combine, have yet to hire a defensive coordinator.
New Bengals coach and former Bucs backup quarterback Zac Taylor is getting blocked from hiring all sorts of guys (think of how former Bucs commander Greg Schiano was jammed by NFL teams from hiring coaches and had to settle on Giants castoff Bill Sheridan.)
Yet, Duffner from what Joe can tell, is still sitting at his Tampa residence waiting for the phone to ring and hoping it’s not another telemarketer trying to sell him aluminum siding.
So a team is desperate for a defensive coordinator and one is sitting out there unemployed, a guy players rave about. And Duffner can’t get a sniff of a job?
That should tell Bucs fans all they need to know how rotten the defense was, unless Duffner has retired. Except for a young, fiery defensive line coach, no one in the NFL wants to touch anyone who had any sort of responsibility for the Bucs defense the past couple of years.
It seems anyone tied to the Bucs defense the past two years is all but blacklisted in the NFL.
February 18th, 2019 at 10:08 am
so, lovie got hired as a college HC & got an extension, smitty is selling books and needed help getting the AAF gig from his brother in law and sadly,duff cant find work….lol….
remind me again who “inept”….lol….
smitty’s defense is the gift that keeps on giving….lol…
#REALISTKNOWSNOTHING!!!!…GO BUCS!!!!
February 18th, 2019 at 10:09 am
It’s not surprising
February 18th, 2019 at 10:33 am
I thought results not players are what stands out about coaches. If anyone cares they would know he didn’t completely change the scheme from mike smith but tweaked it instead. Florida is the retirement home of the nfl also I guess. The league is trending towards young coaches and he’s probably not getting a sniff because of age or he’s happy to retire
February 18th, 2019 at 10:33 am
koetter, smith, dufner so much hatred spewed at them and a few more that have one thing in common
February 18th, 2019 at 11:21 am
Coaching hires are almost made entirely by relationships. Hence why Arians would rather have his guy than Skyler Fulton, who coached the Bucs receivers to a phenomenal seasons. It’s dumb. Duffner is a solid coach and deserves a job
February 18th, 2019 at 11:25 am
Maybe it’s duffner and not the teams????
February 18th, 2019 at 12:29 pm
western the bucs recievers had great seasons because they were always playing to counter the leagues worst defense constantky throwing the ball. Not exactly an outstanding achievement
February 18th, 2019 at 12:47 pm
Amazing how we thought just a few months ago how much the defense improved under Duffner.
February 18th, 2019 at 1:13 pm
Duffner has a resume beyond his last years with us. He didn’t really change the scheme just tweaked it a bit but the difference was obvious to anyone paying attention. Duff is a good enough coach, but a guy like Zac Taylor is probably looking to attract a staff that he can count on for years to come. There aren’t too many Dick LeBeau’s out there who can keep up the grind into their 70s with success. I hope he gets a gig if he wants one.
February 18th, 2019 at 1:21 pm
They should all be blacklisted with the exceptions of Buckner and Duffner. You have to respect the way Duffner was able to turn it around after taking over. Nobody was confusing that unit with the 2002 unit but at least they looked capable at times under Duffner.
February 18th, 2019 at 1:23 pm
He’ll get a job eventually.
We had nobody in the secondary, Kwon and Kendall (Kardashian) hurt. I can’t imagine anyone doing much with that team in the middle of a season when you started with someone else’s scheme and personnel.
They couldn’t even make a half-time adjustment, how you gonna figure a mid-season adjustment?
February 18th, 2019 at 3:24 pm
Duffner should go see Lovie’s agent. Where else can you get an extension after going 9-27 and losing two games by 63 points. Ask about that special buyout clause ,that would cost Illinois 12 million to fire Lovie.
February 18th, 2019 at 6:37 pm
Great stuff Joe !!! Keep it coming # GO BUCS
February 18th, 2019 at 8:00 pm
guilty by association