Telling Bruce Arians Comment On Byron Leftwich
December 22nd, 2022
Good luck explaining this one.
Bucco Bruce Arians chatted with TampaBay.com for a Wednesday story and strongly implied that offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich has been strong-armed by someone in the Buccaneers’ organization.
Is that Tom Brady, as Rich Eisen seems to believe, or is that Todd Bowles wielding his influence? Or is Arians just blowing a bunch of cigar smoke to help cover for his failing former sidekick?
“Tom has played great. He played really good the first half [against the Bengals],” Arians told TampaBay.com. “We got our shots downfield. We looked like us. The first half was the first time I’ve seen this year when Byron said, ‘Screw it, I’m going back to being me.’ This was a game Mike [Evans] should’ve had 200 [yards].”
Arians’ comment on Leftwich saying, ‘Screw it. I’m going back to being me,’ conjures several thoughts at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters.
First, if Leftwich had the freedom to say, ‘Screw it,’ then what took so long?
What force was so powerful to drive Leftwich to change his approach to an offense that had great success?
And why didn’t Bowles come to Leftwich weeks ago and demand he return the offense to what was working in 2019, 2020 and 2021? Unless, of course, Bowles is the guy who was overriding Leftwich to begin with.
Lastly, if Arians is in constant contact with Leftwich, as he told JoeBucsFan.com columnist Ira Kaufman, then surely Arians was advising Leftwich to get back to being himself (aka running Arians’ offense). So who was a stronger voice in Leftwich’s ear?
Joe has no answers. But what Joe can’t believe is that Tom Brady is a quiet, yes-sir figure when it comes what’s changed in the offense, and Joe doesn’t give career football man and highly intelligent head coach Bowles a pass because he ultimately presides over the offense.
If Arians isn’t blowing a bunch of BS for Leftwich with that comment, then there’s real hope of the Bucs offense exploding in the final weeks of the season, assuming Brady doesn’t give the ball away like he’s Jameis Winston and Leftwich retains his nerve.
Todd Bowles Confidence Poll (Week 16)
Flash poll posted at 4:50 a.m. Poll closed at 10:23 a.m. Last week’s results linked here.
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:25 am
Screw Tod No Balls
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:30 am
Bowles is not a HC. Throw him to the curb.
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:32 am
I pray the owners don’t try and sell Todd “BOWELS” to us loyal fans next year! I can assure you we aren’t buying it. He’s a good D coordinator but a bad head coach! Some people just aren’t meant to be and Todd has proven that time after time. We went from superbowl favorites to a playoff hopeful which NO team seems to fear and for good reason! IRA where ya at bossman lol continue to speak truth about this team and head coach! WE JUST ARENT GOOD THIS YEAR in no shape or form
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:50 am
Out, get him out!
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:56 am
Ship is sinking and BA is the guy coming out to point fingers. Where you been all season Bruce. And if you want to start this come right out with it. So Bowles is the guy that doesn’t want to score points and win games. Likes all these three and outs. And Leftwhich has no power to run the offense. And Brady just does what he’s told and has no problem losing games. And Jason Licht goes along and says sure, we’ve had one of the most high powered offenses in the NFL, Tom Brady, a RB and WR’s I just signed to high priced long term contracts, but it’s ok to lock them all down. All BS. Bruce covering for BL so he gets HC interviews next month.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:07 am
I’m guessing it’s Bowles. From what Joe has said, he doesn’t want to do no risk it no biscuit, defensive minded coach that’s adverse to turnovers/mistakes. I remember BA saying he didn’t want to step on any toes, and this may be why he’s taken so long to speak up… Something stinks tho, it’s either Bowles, BA, Lefty or Brady. I can’t imagine Brady wanting to change what worked so well for him the past two years. Could be wrong. Lefty should be able to do something better than what we have to fit what could possibly be Bowles wishes so he doesn’t get a pass either. Ultimately this falls on the HC. Either way, this is not good. Change must happen.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:09 am
Time to clean house. This is a dysfunctional coaching staff from top to bottom.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:10 am
And yeah can Bruce too.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:10 am
Didn’t Bowles tell us at the beginning of the year that this was his team and not Bruce’s anymore? Now that the ship is circling the drain there’s a mad dash to sling blame. Leftwich is Bruce’s guy and the offense stinks this year. Leftwich is probably on his way out and Bruce is gonna sling the blame to Bowles or Brady…….probably both of them. The run game is NFL historically awful …..whose fault is that?
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:19 am
The Buccaneers need to put Tod Bowles in the he ship, sail to the open waters and make him walk the plank.
P.S.
Make sure is in shark infested waters. We don’t want him to survive, and swing back to shore and be here for the trip to Arizona.
🤪
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:21 am
I remember a couple years ago reading how utterly ineffective Brady is in the shotgun vs play-action, and how we rarely DID play action
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:24 am
Gi get Ken Dorsey to be head coach and have him bring Joe Brady with him as OC.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:27 am
It is what it is at the point. I’ve been adamant that I think it’s Bowles that demanded the Prevent Offense but I’m done with the finger pointing blame game. It’s what losers do. The one thing I hated about BA as a coach was his finger pointing press conferences. BA has said little to nothing all year . Now he wants to create doubt to try to prop up his guy. Just STFU man.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:30 am
Since we don’t know who’s to blame and most likely never will, it’s best to just rid ourselves of the whole lot of them. No coaching staff in our history has managed to underachieve as badly as the group that we have now. Sad and pitiful would be a compliment for these dudes.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:34 am
But…. Isn’t Bowles the handpicked successor of BA?!?!
Either is not Bowles he is referring to OR this is very very strange…
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:39 am
It might be a little out of the box, but maybe Licht has something to do with it.
Except for the first half week last’ this offense resembles the short passing game that
Brady has run in the past with the predictable run calls from Leftwich. Its possible it could have been a concession Licht made to resign Brady.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:42 am
BA is full of it. The “it” being himself. No fix it, no listen… so please go deep… a lil more… keep going… don’t stop until we can’t see or hear you anymore.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:50 am
Sorry, not buying it…
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:51 am
So maybe this whole time we been blaming leftwich and really hes just doing what he can in bowles super conservative offense. Im sure if we were still doing no risk it than leftwich would look like the next head coach of a failing nfl team. Does anyone think maybe if leftwich became head coach, we might be better because tom and byron are close and i dont see byron changing up the offensive schemes from 19-21 im any way
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:54 am
But let’s play conspiracy theory 1 more time. In this week’s episode BA make a vague comment about Lefty being himself and be unshaved by some unknown insider. Bowles AND Byron are BA guys, Tommy has been linked to BA stepping down, and your final clue is the Bengals game where the Adderall wore off by halftime and Tommy looked like crap in the 2nd half.
Now, let’s assemble the pieces. BA talks about this mystery person after a game in which it appears as though Byron opened up the playbook and Tommy’s body failed to hold up to the rigors of a deeper game.
Hmmm, I wonder who BA is trying to throw under the bus to protect his hand picked legacy coaches?
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:08 am
Today the Bucs staff is in place, the QB is T Brady and the Head Coach is Todd B. until that changes I will root them both on …GO BUCS and win the Divisional Title!!
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:12 am
It’s too late ladies and gents. Todd no cereal left bowles has ruined our beloved Buccaneers.
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:14 am
There’s real hope? Yeah sure.
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:15 am
None of this adds up, especially Arians’ comment about BL saying ‘Screw it, I’m going back to being me’ IMPLYING that he’s been hog-tied all this season.
Bucs only threw deep THREE times in that 1st half of the Bengals’ game, and only completed ONE. They had 19 first down plays … ran on 10 of them (gaining 44 yards) & passed on 9 of them (gaining 112 yards). They had 42 plays all-together in that 1st half; 17 rushes for 67 yards, 23 passes (17 complete … 74% … for 194 yards), and 2 were FG attempts (1 successful).
So who’s the REAL Byron Leftwich? The one who ran the ball on 42.5% of the plays in that 1st half? (As opposed to the one who ran it only 1/3rd of the time in 2019-2021?).
Or is the REAL BL the one who ran the ball on over 50% of the 1st downs? (As opposed to the one who’s been running it on barely 20% of the 1st downs this year?).
Or is it the one who threw DEEP only 3 times in that 1st half … barely 7% of the plays in that 1st half, and only saw ONE completed? (As opposed to the OC who threw deep far more often than that in 2019-2021?).
Personally I think our success in that 1st half was much more due to PLAYER EXECUTION than on anything that BL did. I think our success that 1st half can be explained by 5 things:
1 – Bucs had ZERO turnovers (IOW, we didn’t shoot ourselves in the foot).
2 – Bucs’ OLine blocked reasonably well & allowed ZERO sacks (giving Brady time to complete almost 3/4th of his passes). Most importantly, he hit several INTERMEDIATE passes that turned into explosive plays.
3 – Bucs had only ONE False Start penalty (which we recovered from) and ONE other penalty which occurred AFTER the pass was completed (so it had minimal impact).
4 – Bucs kept the Bengals’ defense off-balance with a good mixture of runs & passes. The rushes weren’t overly effective (only 4 YPC average on our 17 runs) but they kept their defense guessing it appears.
5 – Bucs’ defense set the tone early by intercepting Burrows on that 1st drive. After that 1st drive, they stopped the Bengals on the next 3 drives with THREE 3-and-outs before allowing the Bengals a FG on that last drive in the 1st half. IOW Bucs played some excellent COMPLEMENTARY FOOTBALL in that 1st half.
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:44 am
Defense rules, no way the Bucs ran it on only 20% of their first downs prior to the Bengals game. No effing way
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:45 am
BTW, the 3rd & 4th down play-calls were critical to the outcome of that half. There were 7 first down opportunities & 2 fourth down opportunities … Bucs converted on BOTH of the 4th down chances (both on the 2nd drive that led to a TD) and on 3 of the 7 third down chances.
The only run on 3rd down was Brady up the middle on 3rd-and-3 on the 1st drive (he got only 1 yard then we kicked the FG).
IOW, the ball was in Brady’s hands on ALL of the 3rd & 4th down opportunities. He ran on 1 and passed on 8 (completed 5 for his standard 62.5%). Going for it TWICE on 4th-and-1 on that 2nd drive … and making it … turned out to critical to our success in that 1st half.
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:52 am
Cluster f#ck.
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:53 am
Heeeeey Joe where you going with that gun in your hand? WOOPS, that’s Jimi Hendrix. Heeey Joe, talking about patronizing!!!!!!!!!!!! “intelligent Bowles????????????????????????????????” I keep saying as a fan since the AFL-NFL era and a career Brady fan since Tom moved his foot locker to Mi. I’ll give Joe crediit, he said something I said about the Bengals game. Tom looked like TOM BRADY the first half. Then it seems Todd and/or Lefty said “enough of this crap, I want to do the Sinatra trick and do it my way because I’M THE HEAD COACH. A good analogy would be the movie “my cousin Vinny” when vinny was questioning the man about what he really saw with all those leaves, dirty screen and dirty window in the way. Kinda like Biden getting 80 million votes
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:56 am
BA failed to mention, Leftnut said this DURING HALF TIME. No way BA would have known this prior to the game.
DUH
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:02 am
Only reason he has something to say now is cause his guys are failing and he is day drinking everyday. Him and Licht have been nowhere to be found or showed any ownership in this mess
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:05 am
Any Longtime Bucs fan who’s been watching this team can immediately tell in the first half that the very first 15 play design came from a different offense and not the one we’ve been seeing all season long. It’s a fact that the first half went so well due to these plays were the only plays the team could practice in one week versus having a whole training camp and then doing it all season long. Someone obviously came into the coaches meeting Monday morning and put the KABOSCH on the old conservative offense and told them to back to the old offense the last three years. INFACT……this Sunday will be the first all fans will see a full a game of an old Bruce Arians offense…….I GARANTEE!!!!!!!
THE ONLY QUESTIONthat comes ro my mind is……who was the person that made the call?????????
Was it the owners, the GM, or did Brady give the organization an ultimatum that if the offense didn’t change then he would be Definitely walking outta that door once the season ended??????
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:08 am
Back to BA. I’ve never been a Bucs fan because I live in Northern Virginia. When Tom went to Tampa I became a Bucs fan. I was done with BA in about the first few games when he threw Tom under the bus IN A PRESS CONFERENCE!!. Now why do i feel that’s so offensive? OK, let’s look at Tom’s report card. 10 SB winning 7. more than any TEAM. I’m not going to list the records he holds. I don’t have time and neither do you. So Bruce just keep sitting on that great wall but don’t have a great fall. we might need you when they lift the woke curtain. As a Country boy, i like things simple. OK Todd was 29-45 as a head coach in NY so let’s make him head coach. Now we are 7-9 so let’s make him owner. So my friends if Todd and Lefty stay there, the Bucs will be in the same catagory as the Lions, Houston Oilers, the Browns, blah blah blah
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:11 am
LIES!!! Loved that BA was captain of the ship that brought us a Super Bowl but now he’s just turned into a liar. Since he is not coaching he shouldn’t be here and if byron leftwich did everything like BA said then he shouldn’t need him at all.
Lying saying he said screw and got back to bring him well why the hell did he only do it in the first half. If Bowles shut the offense down then his seat is hotter than we realize and Bowles is taking the bulk of the blame in the organization not Leftwich
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:13 am
the Buc anthem. My friend you nailed it but i will say that if Todd is still there, Tom will empty his locker and go to Houston where he has a better chance of winning, (joke) maybe
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:15 am
The Bucs offensive style looks just like the offensive style the Jets used when Bowles was their head coach. That is what the offense looks like. It looks nothing at all like any offense Brady ever ran, or Arians ever, ran or Leftwich ever ran.
It does look like the offense philosophy the Jets were using. Run up the middle on first down, grind out games, try to win 17-14. It’s the same thing the Jets were doing all those years.
And yet, we still have tons of people claiming that it’s Brady’s offense…
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:18 am
Brady has always been non-confrontational his entire career. If it’s true, it has Bowles written all over it! He is the one that was upset at how his prescious defense was tired last year.
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:20 am
Bob in valrico Says:
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:39 am
It might be a little out of the box, but maybe Licht has something to do with it.
Except for the first half week last’ this offense resembles the short passing game that
Brady has run in the past with the predictable run calls from Leftwich. Its possible it could have been a concession Licht made to resign Brady.
————————————————————————-
Brady has never been in any offense like this at any time in his career. The Patriots offense was 100 times more complex and varied. It’s not remotely similar at all.
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:21 am
More spin. Very disappointing that we have all these grown ass men that are supposed to be leaders and teachers, and not one of them are brave enough to tell the truth. Next year when all of these characters are working somewhere else, you know they will let the spin go, but currently are not brave or honest enough to address needs that can definitely help this team be successful this year. An offensive coordinator who is not able to call the plays that he wants to? Sounds like a bunch of bull jive to me. BA had a hand and say in how this team was assembled, and I would have more respect for his opinion if he just said what he thought instead of beating around the bush, which is a bit atypical of him.
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:24 am
Actually, on this subject, I disagree with Duane. Ariens has always been the one to shoot straight.
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:26 am
Who else can it be but Bowles ?
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:33 am
Uncovered the reason Brady is fond of BL over Bowles. I think BA is seeing he created a monster. Bowles made the call not to use the TO’s in Cleveland, kick the 55 & 50 yd FG. On the other hand who is calling a double reverse with back ups killing the drive against GB & the Lenny cross field int to Brady? Now the Pittsburgh game plan makes sense if Bowles was dictating it.
So out of the wood work BA strolls cause yet more dissention and distractions. I am convinced he doesn’t want the Bucs to win because he’s pissed at Bowles for not taking his input. Last time he stuck his head out he trashed Brady. Flush this guy, he killed the Bucs. His motive is clear to get his bud a HC job. Wishful thinking for Bucs fans but good luck with that.
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:37 am
He’s talking about Brady not Bowles
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:45 am
JD- I love the straight shooting as well. Gotta have a target to shoot straight, and BA went out of his way to not name him. Likely Bowles, but I would be fine if he slammed Brady just so I can watch NEfan blow his lid )
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:53 am
Hard to shoot straight when your leaning.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:07 am
Well if B.A. is telling the truth it’s not Brady because does anyone think for a second Brady wouldn’t want to have another year of 5,000 yards passing and 30 touchdowns? He definitely doesn’t want his career to end like this. The only answer is Bowles. He said when he started as head coach if he learned anything with the Jets was he has to coach his way. Well his way is run the ball, don’t turn it over and play great defense. That worked in the 1960’s and 70’s but not in todays game.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:15 am
Duane, I take nothing BA says as truthful. He lied about the AB debacle, he lied about rhe vax card incident, he lied about how much he wanted to come back and coach this season, only to QUIT on the team, at least he kept his shirt on. He waited to QUIT, denying the Bucs from bring in coaches like Dabahl, Peterson, Flores etc so he could plant is own seedlings at One Buc Place and securing his legacy of being a innovative coach who believes in diversity. Yet he used this forum to enhance his own legacy not considering how this choice would effect the team. Like a skunk he sticks his head out when he is not a target and proceeds to spray his stink across this organization, ultimately causing chaos and distractions. This man was honored?? You kidding me? It’s no wonder the Bucs are portrayed as losers.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:17 am
This team is leaderless obviously
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:18 am
If the Bucs run the table this will be a 30:30 for ESPN as the worst champion ever.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:23 am
Bowles was on record during the summer saying he wanted to run the ball more this season, so I think he may be the one handcuffing the offense. It doesn’t make sense that it’s Brady, because Tom’s running the 2 minute drill well.
I’m hoping BA’s comments may get Bowles to allow Lefty and Brady to run the offense we ran last year. We have the talent, and just need to gain some momentum. This week’s game is the perfect place to get that started.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:34 am
Well that’s what being ” progressive ” gets ya rather than being wise.
I bet Tom would stay in Tampa next year if you bring in Sean Payton. If not, I hope he comes back to New England. At least there he’ll have NWFL ( national WOKE football league ) caliber coaching. This year is a waste. Even if they luck out and make the playoffs, they’ll be one and done.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:40 am
“He’s talking about Brady not Bowles”
He has shown no restrain saying Brady’s name before, it’s Bowles ,he won’t mention names because it’s his two boys
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:47 am
Can’t be talking about Brady. This type of O hinders him. For 22 yrs he’s never played in a O like this, make ZERO sense. This is either a BS seed BA is dropping for his boyfriend BL or a shot a Bowles. Think before you HATE non-fans.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:57 am
It’s todo Bowles! No way it’s Brady. I mean give me a break.
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:00 am
Bowles is a horrible hire. Idk how anyone wasn’t cautious when Bowles was hiredas hc. The guy has a terrible track record.
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:04 am
I know what’s happening! Todd Bowles is as bad of a head coach as his terrible and lengthy record suggests he is.
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:18 am
My biggest fear is that we win the division, make the playoffs and the Glazers use that as an excuse to keep these imbeciles for another year!
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:21 am
BFFL Says:
December 22nd, 2022 at 8:37 am
He’s talking about Brady not Bowles
——————————————————————-
It’s absolutely beyond obvious that he’s talking about Bowles.
This Bucs team is playing like those Bowles’ Jets teams did. The Bowles’ Jets played in defensive grind it out battles, where they tried to win the games by scores of 14-10, or 17-14, with a field goal at the end. It’s how the Jets played for years. Yet, there are all these imaginary conspiracy theories floating around in the media and among some Bucs “fans”, that the new offensive style is due to “Brady changing the game plans”.
That’s what Bowles has done – he’s turned the Bucs into the 2015-2018 New York Jets. The Bucs have the same offensive philosophy and the same win / loss results as those highly vaunted Jets juggernauts.
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:22 am
Throwing his life-long friend under the bus???
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:30 am
Is it really that hard to see Bowles has his fingerprints all over this impotent offense?
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:31 am
2016 New York Jets
Head Coach: Todd Bowles
Points Scored Per Game: 17.2
2017 New York Jets
Head Coach: Todd Bowles
Points Scored Per Game: 18.6
2022 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Head Coach: Todd Bowles
Points Scored Per Game: 17.6
It’s amazing that there are still so many claims in the media and among so-called Bucs “fans” that the drop in points scored was caused by Brady, Evans, etc.
It is very clear what the common denominator between the those Jets teams and this current Bucs team is.
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:35 am
Arians didnt mention him by name so it’s not really throwing anyone under the bus. But even if he did, so what? Bowles has no problems throwing his own players under the bus. You reap what you sow.
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:38 am
Thank you Boat!
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:41 am
BA knows both bowles and lefto are gone after the season…he knows…
and that spells the end for bowels…
so he is trying to save lefto, who still has a shot at another coordinator spots and HC opportunities…
he can not save them both – and he knows that…
bowls sunk himself, so BA is trying to throw out a life raft for lefto
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:51 am
D … ‘no way the Bucs ran it on only 20% of their first downs prior to the Bengals game. No effing way’.
Yes way. The percentage of times we’ve run on 1st down has now increased to 22.22% for this year. BTW we’re in #32 place in that stat in the NFL (ie, no team runs LESS on 1st down than we do). It was 26.62% last year under BA. JBF doesn’t allow links so you’ll have to verify that one yourself. Google can help.
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:55 am
bowles is gone after one year in this case because:
“oh how the mighty have fallen in one year, under his watch”
it’s not like we went from a 8-9 or 9-8 contender to a pretender…then you get that second year…
we went from being the best team in football, with like the most explosive offense, to a big time nothing in the league…the dude brought us to rock bottom under his watch, with tommy b in the fold too boot…it’s insane!…he bottomed out a franchise that was on top of the league basically overnight…it’s just wild…
in fact it’s almost impossible to go from from “the new america’s team” to the “detroit lions of the past few years” over night…
that’s a task all in itself…
the dude specializes in losing and making losing decisions on the sidelines when playing “coaches chess”…
said dude does not no how to go tit for tat with opposing coaches when it’s time to get creative and coach…
he has to refer to how it’s done by the book, or check the film the next day…
how can you not be able to coach on the fly – it what a coach is there for…
so he’s gone…gonzo…sayonara…peace cacease
December 22nd, 2022 at 10:56 am
Boat awesome stats. Not sure why DR didn’t come up with these. Yes I do he’s a Bowels groupie.
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:00 am
my bad…so many typos
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:02 am
RumDude … ‘Bowles was on record during the summer saying he wanted to run the ball more this season, so I think he may be the one handcuffing the offense.’
And yet … Bucs are running it LESS each game this year (22.21 runs/game average) than we did in 2021 (22.65 runs/game average), or in 2020 (23.06 runs/game average), or even in 2019 (25.56 runs/game average). Gotta hand it to BL, he sure is consistent when it comes to rushing the ball. As in we consistently rank right down near the bottom.
Guess my feeling on it is that it doesn’t matter what the coaches scheme because if the OLine can’t block that wagon’s never coming out of the barn. You’ve gotta have the horses.
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:02 am
Joe
This is what I have been telling you all along.
Bowles’ conservative defensive careful offensive philosophy has totally handcuffed Leftwich and Brady.
Glad to see you are finally catching on
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:06 am
TERD Bowles , must be flushed!!
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:14 am
if bowles has the so called ability to unleash that offense of the first half of the bengals game…
well, then the time is now
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:15 am
attention: we have a fairly horrid running attack
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:18 am
NEfan … You get pettier by the day. Sure is a good thing you’re so open-minded.
BOAT … Why didn’t you tell a fuller story about the Jets, and especially about who Bowles’ QBs were?
2015 – Ryan Fitzpatrick (10-6 … 59.6% completions)
2016 – Ryan Fitzpatrick ( 3-8 … 56.6%); Bryce Petty (1-3 … 56.4%); Geno Smith (1-0 … 57.1%)
2017 – Josh McCown (5-8 … 67.3%); Bryce Petty (0-3 … 49.1%)
2018 – Sam Darnold (4-9 … 57.7%); Josh McCown (0-3 … 54.5%)
Fitzpatrick, Petty, Smith, McCown, Darnold. Given the sorry state of Jets offensive talent in those days AND those 5 as starting QBs, it’s a wonder they even made it to 17 PPG or thereabouts. We’re barely doing that with The GOAT.
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:18 am
Joe:
Please take a look at how many TD’s the Bucs have when they run no huddle in relation to drives and what they have in TD’s in relation to drives where the Bucs huddle.
Here is a spoiler….it is shocking the difference in success rate between the two.
BTW…the Bucs need to fire Bowles and Leftwich and not allow Arians any say in the coaching search.
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:24 am
Who cares run both coaches off neither one is worth a hoot
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:30 am
Brady stunk up the west coast in the second half. Be glad he’ll be gone after this year. Good riddance!
December 22nd, 2022 at 11:33 am
DR, you know damn right why the Bucs are 32nd in rushing attempts on first down. It’s because they’re always playing from behind. The same reason Brady throws more. You would have to be blind to see Bucs don’t run on 1st down. 2nd half Sunday first 3 series were runs on 1st down. Very open minded, YOU???
December 22nd, 2022 at 12:21 pm
NEfan … ‘you know damn right why the Bucs are 32nd in rushing attempts on first down. It’s because they’re always playing from behind.’
Horsepuckey. Bengals game we were AHEAD all of the 1st half, and we ran on 10 of the 19 first down situations (52.5%). WHY did we do it? Because it works … sometimes. It (like all play-calling) is situational & it takes a good play-caller to figure out what to use when. If your OLine isn’t run-blocking well, not a good idea to be running & running & running on 1st down (or probably any down).
In a hurry-up offense, running can actually take less time than passing. But the optimum is still to mix it up so that you keep the defense off-balance (and gassed).
And BTW, the Bucs have been ahead or tied at halftime in half of our games, and only been 2 scores or more behind in 2 of our games. So blanket statements like ‘We’re ALWAYS playing from behind aren’t really true, are they’. Unfortunately too many Bucs fans just take statements like that as fact (as opposed to as OPINION), and don’t bother checking them for themselves. And in the process it’s really easy to become nothing more than a parrot.
December 22nd, 2022 at 1:11 pm
DR, you answered your own question. The FIRST half of Cincy game. I never said a balanced O isn’t optimal. It’s the predictable play calls, ie run on 1st down. The Ravens told the story, what other evidence do you need. You are right, I used the wrong choice of words playing from behind, how about on 2nd down & long playing from behind. Bucs O, run, pass, pass, punt, rinse repeat. Catch up games, GB, Carolina, Cleveland, Rams, Saints, Pittsburgh, SF, Cincy. In all these games at the end or sooner they went to one dimentional mode.
December 22nd, 2022 at 1:12 pm
Oh forgot Baltimore.
December 22nd, 2022 at 2:31 pm
Defense Rules… “And yet … Bucs are running it LESS each game this year (22.21 runs/game average) than we did in 2021 (22.65 runs/game average)”
I think one thing to consider is the Bucs are often playing from behind this year and have to abandon the run game as the game goes on, rather than running the ball to run the clock out after scoring 30 like they did last year.
Tom is still running the 2 minute offense well, so I don’t believe he’s the one mucking up the offensive plans (if there’s any truth to BS’s comments), and if it isn’t Leftwich, there’s only one other coach with the power to do it. I just think Bowles in over his head as HC and should stick to coaching defense.
December 22nd, 2022 at 3:03 pm
Todd bowles did the same thing to the jets that’s he’s doing to the bucs making them look like a bunch of losers get rid of that guy a.s.a.p cause my guy Tom Brady ain’t no loser
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:08 pm
Spirited debate, lads. Good stuff. Since none of us have any actual details about what’s gone on, there is one universal truth to lean on: This team is dysfunctional, and since I served in the Army, believe in the chain-of-command and respecting your leaders, most of the blame goes on Bowles. He’s RESPONSIBLE for this whole team. And that’s my opinion.
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:23 pm
See this is the kind of thing that irritates my Irritable Bowles Syndrome
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:24 pm
LOL spell checker wants me to change Bowles into Bowels. How ironic.
December 22nd, 2022 at 5:29 pm
D-rok, thank you for your service.
Is every team in the NFL as drama filled as the Bucs.
December 22nd, 2022 at 6:24 pm
You really don’t think it’s Brady trying to call the shots on Offense? That’s why BA made those comments, because he’s pissed that Brady got him kicked out as HC so BA is saying someone is in Leftwich’s ear (Tom Brady) trying to tell him the offense. But it’s clearly not working because Giselle isn’t putting her spells on Brady anymore.
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:02 pm
Just watched today’s episode of NFL Live on ESPN. Dan Orlovsky pointed out how frustrating it is to see the Bucs succeed when using play-action (Brady is #3 QBR in the league in play-action) like the 1st half against Cincy then revert back to run, run, run in the 2nd half and stink up the joint.
He asked why do they keep doing that? Why? Marcus Spears chimed in “Because they’re as dumb as a buffalo.”
Yup. Pretty concise analysis. My money is on Bowles throttling down the offense. I can’t see Brady or even Leftwich wanting to change what was working. This smells of Bowles’ old-school “We have the lead. Burn the clock and let the defense hold them.” Unfortunately for Mr. Bowles, other teams have coaches that can make halftime adjustments to his defense. Compound that with turnovers and 3 and outs and…well we saw what happened.
Maybe Lefty has been taking flak all year because of Bowles holding him back? I haven’t seen Brady hugging Todd after a game.
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:03 pm
How many first downs were wasted? So it was like CFL except no long balls so no first downs
December 22nd, 2022 at 7:48 pm
This is still one of the 7-8 most talented teams in the NFL. It has no business having this bad a record except for coaching, some bad games by Brady notwithstanding.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:15 pm
Ttsucs, that’s it Brady’s goal is to NOT throw for 5000 yds and 40 tds three seasons in a row. Instead he is instructing Leftnut to run on 1st down for a loss and let the D tee off on him so all can doubt him and ruin his legacy. Dude, you’re out of your mind, this has 3 time loser Toilet Bowels written all over it.
December 22nd, 2022 at 9:38 pm
It’s sad that everyone is spin doctoring and pointing fingers instead of solving the problems. The sign of a failing organization. BA now adding to the politics. The BA coaching tree itself is rotting very quickly, from poison.
December 23rd, 2022 at 10:19 am
Mark my words, you heard it here. SEAN PAYTON WILL COACH THE BUCS NEXT YEAR WITH BRADY COMING BACK
December 23rd, 2022 at 11:24 am
Some of yall will defend Brady to the end Brady was the one who threw 2 picks and had 2 fumbles that’s not on coaching. I remember when Jamies was the quarterback I brought up the running game and most of yall on here said I was making excuses for Jamies. Now yall want to bring up the running game because of Brady wich they need to run the ball better. But to all you who said they call it like they see it was lieing at the time. Brady time has came and gone and it’s amazing to me y’all just can’t except it . Let it go he’s done he can’t throw it down field that much anymore and coaches knows it. So what they do is cut off those crossing routes and short passes. Brady lead the NFL in passes attempts and he’s last in yards per throw.
December 23rd, 2022 at 12:56 pm
NEW Head Coach:
SEAN PAYTON‼️
😎👌
December 23rd, 2022 at 2:20 pm
It’s obvious he is talking about Brady.
Not only is Bowles ‘his’ guy too – it’s his hand picked successor. No way he is going to insinuate that his hand picked guy is the problem.
Look at it this way, out of all the potential culprits Bowles, BL, Licht, and Brady – which one isn’t a BA guy??? Bingo
I don’t think Brady is necessarily saying ‘I don’t want to run the offense that has been successful the last 2 years’ – but I could easily see him saying ‘we need to get the ball out quick…we can’t abandon the run game…I don’t have confidence in the guys up front…’ and you end up with an offense that is biased in the ways we’ve seen all year.
I think the only remaining questions are :
1) is Brady willing to suck it up and be exposed to the hits that may be part of the deal to run the offense differently?
2) is Brady playing hurt, limiting his ability to throw successfully downfield and making it very high risk to expose him to the hits?
December 24th, 2022 at 3:12 am
This statement confirms what I said last week and in my previous comments. I think this mismanaged circus has to be cleared out though. It’s too late to apologize and be transparent. This should’ve started happening weeks ago in order to aim us at the Super Bowl.Arians can go to: a “consultant” that’s not really consulting properly on behalf of his organization is merely a parasite at this point.
December 24th, 2022 at 12:48 pm
Is AB a hater??? Yes