“It Wasn’t The Real Tom Brady Out There”
February 23rd, 2023
Bruce Arians opens up.
The firing of former offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich remains an aggravating subject for Bucco Bruce Arians.
He addressed it again yesterday on The Rich Eisen Show. (Joe listens on the SiriusXM app. The show also is televised on Roku.)
Arians understands why it happened but he still believes Leftwich is a rising coaching star. Ironically, per Arians, the clashing approaches of his handpicked coaches sparked the end of Leftwich’s three-year run as playcaller.
“It was hard. It was very hard for me,” Arians said of the Leftwich firing. “But it’s Todd’s football team. I handed it to Todd for a reason. He’s got to build it in his image. There’s no hard feelings between the two guys; the philosophies just didn’t match. So looking forward to meeting the new [coaches] and getting back down there in the spring a little bit and working with them. But I got all the trust in the world in Todd Bowles, but I feel terrible for Bryon. I think Byron will still be a head coach soon and he should be.”
Arians said he’s in touch with Leftwich regularly and they talk about Leftwich’s next coaching moves.
Asked to say what went wrong last season, Arians pointed to injuries to key Bucs leaders like Ryan Jensen and Shaq Barrett. He also implied that Tom Brady wasn’t leading — or playing — in his usual way.
“Tom wasn’t himself, you know, with all the things that were going on,” Arians said. “And I got to give him all the credit in the world for battling through what he went through last year for his teammates. I think the world of him but it wasn’t the real Tom Brady out there.”
The gray area is where the most intrigue lies. Was Brady more in favor of the Leftwich philosophy of offense, or did he lean more toward Bowles’? And how much, if at all, did either coach cater to Brady while subsequently straying from his philosophy?
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:14 pm
It’s been widely reported that even before Arians quit, that they wanted to be more effective running the ball and doing it more frequently. Maybe Bowles’ ascension to HC brought more emphasis to that. I think it’s safe to say that Brady didn’t want to lead the league in pass attempts and would have welcomed an effective running game.
The conflict apparently came from Bowles actually wanting more creativity and fresh approaches to running the ball, and Leftwich was not capable of doing that, or simply refused. All he knew was BA’s offense.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:22 pm
Could BA sound more self important? No sir, it was your antiquated and easy to figure out offense that sunk the team. It’s easy to put up 30+ a game when you have superior talent across the board. You handed off the team? This makes me wanna puke. Go play golf and drink blended whiskey. About all he’s good for these days. Make no mistake, BA knew exactly what he was doing and how it looked.
.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:26 pm
BL be an idiot….
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:26 pm
Brady wasn’t himself because of the Bowles effect. This effect will eventually cause no motivation to win at all. Its a shame there is no vaccine for it.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:27 pm
The same offense where the Bucs won 29 games in two years, including a Super Bowl and maybe a second Super Bowl if the defense wouldn’t have collapsed in the final minute?
The same offense that was no less than fourth in the league in points-per-game every season Arians coached here?
Antiquated???
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:28 pm
Sasquatch … Was thinking precisely the same thing. BA’s statement that ‘I think the world of him (Brady) but it wasn’t the real Tom Brady out there’ kinda says it all. No doubt in my mind that TB12 would’ve loved to have a real running game to take some of the pressure off. BL just wasn’t capable of delivering that with the OLine that we were able to put together.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:32 pm
Joe … To be fair, you should’ve included Redeemer’s NEXT sentence in that quote … ‘It’s easy to put up 30+ a game when you have superior talent across the board’.
It’s the SUPERIOR TALENT that made all the difference. The 2022 OLine wasn’t anywhere close to what we fielded in 2020 or 2021. The TE group wasn’t anywhere close to what we fielded in 2020 or 2021. And as BA just admitted ‘it wasn’t the real Tom Brady out there’.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:34 pm
wish lefty being the scapegoat was the issue. it’s incompetence above him that is still here that will smell for years.
hey toilet bowl and glazers…MIAMI thanks you.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:35 pm
Maybe the new OC will actually construct blocking schemes and a run game that can generate more than 3 ypc. But it won’t matter, The Bucs ran the ball well in 2015 right? They won 6 games.
This head coich will be fortunate to log 6 wins, because his defense is exposed as a mirage. Losing players due to salary cap makes it worse. Get ready for the Bucs to give up 27+ points per game in 2023.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:37 pm
Caption
Tom what does this sat
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:44 pm
Allbuccedup … NFL football players are businessmen, and their business is ENTERTAINMENT. Even the worst of them who never see the field make close to $1 mil per year for being ENTERTAINERS, and some make 20 to 30 times that. If they’re lousy at their job, they’re no longer ENTERTAINING … and they get replaced. Yes it is as simple as that.
If the quality of their performance is based on how well their head coach MOTIVATES them, they’re in the wrong BUSINESS. What should motivate them is being VERY good at their profession. At not letting their teammates down with sloppy play. At putting on a good SHOW for those who paid to watch the NFL ENTERTAIN them. Yes they’ve all worked hard to make it to that level, but it’s a PRIVILEGE to be allowed to perform on that stage. A privilege that very few ever get.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:48 pm
Is Bowles Fired yet ?
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:48 pm
Joe, stop it. You know better. The offense they ran was entirely based on winning individual matchups. It’s easy to do with the goat and a pile of talented pass catchers. When that talent goes away and guys can’t get off the line, it’s pretty easy to figure out. Nobody threw into 7+ defenders more than Brady this season. They couldn’t run the ball. Do you really think it would’ve looked like this with a real offense? If Peyton or McDaniels is the OC, this would’ve been an 11 win team, all day.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:51 pm
Joe Says:
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:27 pm
Arians offense did kind of depend on having superior talent at every position in order to be successful, at least the way Lefty ran it… So yeah, it’s old school.
If Arians was calling the plays, he’d make it work because he’s not a dolt like Captain FlatBrim.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:53 pm
BA is getting up there in years it appears.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:54 pm
Really, the whole team played uninspired and flat. The defense was good sometimes and bad sometimes. Sometimes during a single game. The offence was flat almost all the time except for the forth quarter…sometimes.
February 23rd, 2023 at 2:56 pm
Losing so many 2021 starters didn’t exactly help either, but those guys were replaced with old slow vets or ineffective young draft picks.
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:01 pm
wasted season
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:11 pm
To me, “philosophies didn’t mesh” means the problem with the offense was Bowles, not Leftwich. How else do you explain the precipitous drop in production and Brady being out of sync with his receivers, after a solid season and a a half of being on the same page?
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:13 pm
DING. DING. DING.
I said this All. Season. Long.
The scheme looked great when you had 8-9 HOF / Pro Bowl / All Pros running it (Brady, Gronk, AB, Evans, Godwin, D Smith, T. Wirfs, R Jensen). But once that number went down to only 4 or 5 of those type of caliber players (Brady, Evans, Godwin- who wasn’t even healthy til end of season, and Wirfs), it was exposed for what it always was. Basic and predictable.
It was built on lining up, telegraphing what you’re going to do, and then simply out playing your competition. It worked with 8 HOF / All Pro / Pro Bowlers out there. It did not work with only 4.
It was always predictable and uncreative.
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:14 pm
Arians didn’t imply- he flat out stated in so many words that Brady’s execution and decision making was not up to Brady standards.
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:17 pm
When you have:
– Gronk
– AB
– Evans
– Godwin
– Founette at his prime
– Tom Brady
That level of talent will help hide a mediocre offensive game plan and scheme…
Not to mention we still had Marpet, Jenson and Cappa playing at O-line.
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:18 pm
Brady may not have been himself last year, but Leftwich sure was. Predictable as a summer shower in Florida every evening. I believe the Glazers gave Todd an ultimatum, someone has to go. It was either him or BL. Now we see if Todd can prove he is a HC. I have my doubts, but he also doesn’t have the cast around him (yet) to get a fair hearing. It is Jason Licht’s time to shine now. This ship can go in a lot of different directions depending on the next moves. Lets go Bucs!
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:27 pm
To be fair, the BL/BA offense was ranked 3rd in 2019- without Wirfs, Gronk, TB, AB, Lenny, and missing ME/CG for most of December.
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:29 pm
I like how ya’ll are talking as if 2019 didn’t happen or how this was a top-10 offense with a guy that turned the ball over 35 times and didn’t have the “superior” talent that some of you *think* needed for this offense to thrive. It’s more of the same from the part time cultist, and I do agree outside of the off the field crap Brady was going through plain an simple he looked like a 45 year old man playing a young mans’ game. Again, 3 of the last 4 years in BAs system we obliterated franchise offensive records, won the division twice, and got our 2nd Lombardi trophy but here ya’ll are tallking about a man who’s coached this game of football longer than the majority of us have been alive like he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. Even though none of ya’ll have worn a whistle, built a playbook, or been employed by the NFL or even Pop Warner for that matter. LOL hyper offended because BA critiqued Brady, he critiqued Winston too and was dead on correct after spending less than full calendar year with him
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:30 pm
unbelievable and DR. thank you. Is this the Joe that said this could be the best wide receiver group in NFL history? Blahhah, blahhahhhahh, blahhahhhahh. Please.
February 23rd, 2023 at 3:53 pm
Under Blowes, everything is laughable but you have to have a macabre sense of humor.
Name one head coach in the NFL right now who has recorded losing seasons in each of their last four years in the job?
Suckage, unloveable losers thanks to Toad.
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:04 pm
3rd in yards.
Who cares? What were they ranked in points? What was their turnover differential?
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:06 pm
The problem is that they picked Bowles because he pitched a mentally tough, ball control team with an opportunistic defense, and the team is not built that way. What is really damning for him is the fact that the team regressed from that style of play from game one, which is a poor reflection of his ability to interact with his staff and team, you know the thing he was paid to do. Good DC, but not a leader of professionals.
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:10 pm
JerseyBuc … ‘It is Jason Licht’s time to shine now. This ship can go in a lot of different directions depending on the next moves.’
I’ll gladly second that. What we do as a team in ‘restocking the cupboard’ could very well determine not just 2023’s outcome, but also for several years after that. Somehow we’ve got to keep the ‘core players’ who we can build on for the future. Trading them at a fire sale or flat out releasing members of that ‘core’ prematurely will deny us the leadership & experience great teams use for TEAM BUILDING.
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:14 pm
Dooley … Don’t you think that gaining Brady, Gronk, Wirfs, Winfield, Brown in 2020 kinda made a difference in the quality of the talent that BA had available to run his offense? That’s at least 3 and maybe more HOFers right there.
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:22 pm
I think most of us knew Todd Bowles was the main reason this offense went from no risk it no biscuit 30ppg to a lousy, boring 18ppg. His philosophy is outdated.
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:26 pm
Good luck the fans and Joe won’t have Brady to trash anymore !!
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:26 pm
With any luck Bowles will be out as well sooner then later!
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:32 pm
you can’t have the real To Brady –if u don’t have a real O-Line .. I fault Licht for that .. Cappa went to Bengals & Marpet retired .. Licht replaced one with a proven player & the other with a rookie..
Then when Jensen was lost in late July – Licht didn’t replace him with proven playrer but went with rookie . the season was still 7 wks away -he had plenty of time.
Licht went on to replace Gronk with Kyle Rudolf !!
BA can’t fault Licht –because Licht is his meal ticket
so , now we’re stuck with Licht & bowles for probably 2 more lost yrs …..
February 23rd, 2023 at 4:57 pm
The Bucs will be forced to ax some vets from the payroll. The business of the game which we all understand.
Good.
February 23rd, 2023 at 5:04 pm
He’s covering up for his befuddled protege AND throwing the GOAT under the bus at the same time, disgusting
February 23rd, 2023 at 5:11 pm
Toad Blowes.
4 in a row, about to make it 5 in a row.
Consecutive losing seasons that is.
Find me a head coach in the NFL with a matching record of futility.
Can’t be done, our Toadster is unique in his suckage. Lucky Bucs fans!
February 23rd, 2023 at 5:14 pm
brady absolutely sucked this past season. He caused Leftwich his job. Game tied 5-6 and he throws that endzone interception against Dallas. Game turned forever right there. I’m glad he is retired. He gave us 2 very good years. Throw Trask to the wolves. Into the Fray!
February 23rd, 2023 at 5:17 pm
Can’t believe nobody said,
“Will the real Tom Brady please stand up?”
BWAHAHAHAHA
February 23rd, 2023 at 5:24 pm
No, but it was the real Todd Bowles out there. Nuff said.
February 23rd, 2023 at 5:32 pm
C’mon Godwin out 2021, Gronk out 5 games the receiving core was a mess and the D had far more injuries than this season. JPP shouldn’t have even played. Some wrote it above, this team was built by BA around a specific offense scheme that did NOT mesh with Bowles philosophy. I do believe BL couldn’t adapt. Yes Brady had issues he dealt with but still finished 3rd in the league in passing yards and less than 2% to the leader Geno Smith in completion %. Bowles tried to turn a fast aggressive offense in to a slower conservative one and it simply didn’t work. FYI Joe, the D did not let down in the last minute of the Rams game, Bowles blew the 2nd to LAST play in the game.
February 23rd, 2023 at 5:38 pm
@Unbelivable
2019 under BA, BL, & Winston that offense ranked 3rd in total points, 1st in pass attempts, 1st in passing yards and 3rd in passing TDs.
@DR
The point is to rebuke the narrative that this team didn’t do numbers until Brady arrived, when in reality this team did numbers in BA & BLs FIRST SEASON in Tampa and even Brady the Goat struggled fully grasping the offense in year 1. So sure, better talent should mean better team, but to call it archaic because Arians is saying your football Jesus wasn’t playing too well is ridiculous. Especially considering there are guys talking on BA that wouldn’t know a waggle from a bootleg, or the complexity it takes to run a duo run blocking scheme or the dogs you have to have on the OL to make said blocking scheme even run.
February 23rd, 2023 at 6:06 pm
Dooley is correct on both of his comments.
February 23rd, 2023 at 6:15 pm
Nothing makes me feel better about myself more than reading some of the dolts in the JBF comments section, especially the new, off-season names. Don’t get me wrong, I have some dumb, bombastic relatives in Florida. Not blood, of course. Our Bucs won another Superbowl. We made national sports headlines and reveled in the “renta-GOAT experience. I will gladly pay the price of a couple of down years for that. Quit yiur whining and complaining, and oh yeah, BL stunk. It was all obviously BA. Where’s the proof? It’s in the pudding.
February 23rd, 2023 at 6:17 pm
Not many expected the BUCS to be so bad last season. Nobody expected the Rams to suck either. I know each season has its own identity but it is feeling pretty difficult to have anything much to get excited about for 2023. I hope I am wrong of course.
February 23rd, 2023 at 6:18 pm
Canales said something very telling in his press conference that sums up the Arians offense to a T. “If you’re playing “mano e mano” offense, you’re not playing very smart offense.” Arians offense almost strictly required skill positions players to beat man to man coverage in the passing game in order to get the ball.
Arians has to look no further than the mirror in front of him for blame for Leftwich’s demise. Arians taught Leftwich an analog offense while the rest of the football world is already switched over to digital.
Leftwich will never be a head coach at the NFL level. I’ll be surprised if he ever gets a shot at being an OC again.
February 23rd, 2023 at 6:32 pm
Do you realize that the Bucs had the top offense, in terms of yards, in the NFL in the postseason? I had no idea. Leftwich should go around telling everyone how awesome he is based off that fun fact. It should help him land that job at Wendys.
February 23rd, 2023 at 6:46 pm
I don’t disagree. The goat just proved to be human. He could get past any obstacle on the field but divorce is hard for a solid year for every red blooded human.
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:11 pm
Rod Munch — I think Wendy’s is a bit high end for the Leftwurst.
Jack in the Box? Assistant Night Manager?
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:12 pm
gotbucs, well said. Except, it wasn’t BA’s defense. 30+ points to teams over 500 and 60 points in the last two playoff game screams lack of preparation. Bowles should not go without blame. If it’s broke FIX IT!!!
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:25 pm
As bad as Bowles seems, who here would have preferred to see Leftwich as our HC?
Definitely not me.
BA still singing BL’s praises really makes me doubt his sincerity.
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:28 pm
Joe still milking Tom Brady 😭
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:32 pm
Nothing does well in a toilet bowl
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:32 pm
gotbbucs Says:
February 23rd, 2023 at 6:18 pm
Arians offense almost strictly required skill positions players to beat man to man coverage in the passing game in order to get the ball. Arians has to look no further than the mirror in front of him for blame for Leftwich’s demise. Arians taught Leftwich an analog offense while the rest of the football world is already switched over to digital.
You mean the same Top 10 offense that Bruce Arians was able to run with the Colts, Cardinals, and Buccaneers? “No risk it no biscuit” best sums up Bruce Arians offense because his offenses take high risks and get high rewards. It’s not a balanced attack style or situational style offense–it’s just a Top 10 offense that wins Super Bowls
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:33 pm
Top 10 offense that wins Super Bowls by gambling on it’s best players***
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:41 pm
BA is loyal to a fault. Boron’s inability to figure out team strengths, opponent weaknesses, analytics, play sequencing, and in-game adjustments doomed him. His press conferences ranged from ignorance to complete idiocy. He is not head coaching material or offensive coordinating material. I would be shocked if he ever got an opportunity to be either of those ever again in the NFL, no matter how much Arians supports his guys.
February 23rd, 2023 at 8:09 pm
Todd obviously wants to run the football alot more often…
Based on the hire of our new OC I’m okay with rolling with Trask and bolstering our OL in this upcoming draft…
Hopefully Todd & Co. on the defensive side can hold up on their end…The positive is that the NFC South is basically still up for grabs…
February 23rd, 2023 at 8:22 pm
Jeebs the Honey Bear Says:
February 23rd, 2023 at 7:41 pm
BA is loyal to a fault. Boron’s inability to figure out team strengths, opponent weaknesses, analytics, play sequencing, and in-game adjustments doomed him.
———–
In fairness to Arians, I think his master plan was to take the dumbest player he had ever been around, and see if he couldn’t turn them into an NFL head coach. I really think this was a long-term scheme he created, maybe as part of a bet like in Trading Places, where $1 was at stake (oops, spoiler alert!).
Arians wanted to see, if by pure hype, he could sucker some team into hiring this moron – but the whole thing backfired because Leftwich was even dumber than Arians thought. According to everything I read the Jags were ready to hire Leftwich last offseason, and it was Byron who turned them down, demanding that the Jags fire their current GM and hire one that Leftwich would handpick. Arians couldn’t have seen that coming, that he’d build him up to that point, only to have the dummy pull out the rug from under himself.
That’s what I think happened, and we’ll see a movie about it like 30-years.
February 23rd, 2023 at 8:31 pm
Brady was fine. The problem is the offense was coached by a clueless never should have been an offensive coordinator. I love Bruce but he’s letting his loyalty blind reality. Brady is going to have bad games. Heck, look at Vasy right now. He looks drunk as goalie tonight. 4 goals on 12 shots to the lowly Sabres. It happens. Both are still the GOAT
February 23rd, 2023 at 8:47 pm
That’s a great theory Fancy Man and possibly true.
I only hope that the director casts the one and only man who was absolutely made to play the role of Byron gets the part………..
“In a world, where lack of language skills, self-control and an over abundance turnovers are what makes a man believe he’s truly great……introducing JayMiss Winsnone in his Hollywood debut as Byron “we do what we do” Leftwich.
Check your sheets, cause it be coming to a theater near you soon…….
February 23rd, 2023 at 9:03 pm
The Glazers should have hired Doug Pederson instead of the Wax Museum piece.
February 23rd, 2023 at 9:34 pm
Rod Munch —
“Simple Jack 2 — the Byroning”
February 24th, 2023 at 12:36 am
Taking your fingers to type that Tom didn’t have a down season is WILD. Tom himself would agree because he already said as much after quite a few games. Typical, blame everyone except Tom. GOAT or not, he wasn’t good last season. It wasn’t all his fault, but that was not the Tom of seasons prior, you’re lying to yourself if you think otherwise.
February 24th, 2023 at 12:57 am
BA is full of crap. He’s a big talker. Dont overstep your boundaries big guy. Very good coach but he has had his bad moments. Brady had a rough year so did 52 other players in that roster. The coaches are the common denominator. We played saints went thru 3 qbs, panthers went thru 3 qb, falcons 2 qbs, cards mcsorley..on and on. Our defense got blown out by all good teams. Coaches get an F grade..we were the best loser in the division. Team regressed from week 1 to week 18. Division winner meant absolutely nothing. This team at bare min should have won 10- 11 games..we played a lot of teams with worse injuries than we had.
February 24th, 2023 at 3:39 am
Two things: 1) Except for a great pass by Matthew Stafford in the NFL Conference game, TB12 would have taken the Bucs to 2 consecutive Super Bowls. 2) Arians has been ragging on Brady’s ass since he got pushed upstairs. He should be grateful to Brady for getting him that resume bullet point he never had, and never would have achieved otherwise, i.e. a Super Bowl victory. I’m sorry it didn’t work out this season, but of all the people that shouldn’t be hung with the blame for this season’s shortcomings, Brady absolutely shouldn’t. And if the team had achieved more, I think you’d have a shot at one more season with Brady next year. You guys had what we had here for 20 years (Massachusetts) and couldn’t hold onto it for 4 (yeah, I know it was the end, but I would’ve loved to see one more).
February 24th, 2023 at 9:22 am
With all these interview request that Leftwich is going through it makes Arians comments look like a genius…
Arians comments show how much of a clown he was gifting his former players and friends jobs and not hiring the best candidate for the job
February 24th, 2023 at 11:46 am
BL had the greatest of all time & every game we saw the same plays including throwing to Godwin in the flat several times every game. Never mind that the O line was so bad, every team is supposed to fix what ails them as the season progresses. His play calling was high school level at best, predictable and ineffective. As for Bowled, he failed spectacularly in NY. Know your role, stay in your lane. Not everyone is HC material, ask Matt Patricia! He also cost the BUCS their back to back after another Brady comeback vs. the Rams.
February 24th, 2023 at 11:52 am
Let’s not forget, BA was made by his QBs, not the other way around. He had a tier by the tail in Pittsburgh, Indy & Tampa. Not a ton of success in 20 until they let Brady do Brady.