It’s Alive!
December 3rd, 2023
Playoff hopes not dead yet.
Todd Bowles may save his job after all.
When Carolina took a lead in tonight’s 21-18 win with five minutes left in the third quarter, Joe Twittered that Bowles, the embattled Bucs coach, had some 20 minutes to save his career.
If the Bucs, now 5-7, lost to the toothless Stinking Panthers, Joe honestly didn’t know how Bowles and his staff wouldn’t be renting U-Hauls in six weeks.
“Win and we’re in,” Bucs safety Antoine Winfield said of the motto of the day in the locker room. Win and the Bucs were still in the playoff hunt.
The Bucs are now tied with the slimy Saints a game out of first place in the horrid NFC South. And looky there, the Bucs travel to Atlanta next Sunday to play the Dixie Chicks with first place and a possible home playoff game potentially hanging in the balance.
As Joe wrote earlier, the Bucs would own the tiebreaker over Atlanta if Tampa Bay wins next Sunday.
This team ain’t dead yet and this coaching staff isn’t yet gone.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:07 pm
They barely beat a 1-10 football team. Outside of Mike Evans it was a pathetic display.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:08 pm
Bottom line is that Bowles has to prove he can win in December and avoid a December back slide like last year.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:09 pm
We almost lost to the panthers. Bowles is gone regardless of what happens
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:10 pm
If he retains his job, that is frankly the worst possible outcome for the season.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:10 pm
They were one play away from the game going the other way to the worst team in the league. Who here was thinking they were about to lose this game going into the 1/2?
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:12 pm
Bowles career is over.
This team has zero excitement. None.
Baker is terrible.
Start over.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:12 pm
The curse of TB will ruin the Bucs chances somehow!…
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:13 pm
I’m seriously tired of some of these cry-baby bucs fans. Fortunately for the Bucs unlike FSU – all that matters is whether we win or not. There’s no eye test here morons. I’d like to remind you all that between our superbowl winning coaches (Gruden and Arians/Brady), we had Raheem Morris, Greg Schiano, Lovie Smith, and Dirk Koetter. Bowles puts us in a better position to win than any of those guys ever did. You guys deserve someone back from that list.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:13 pm
I think the Falcons are going to tear apart the Bucs defense next week unless Ridder creates multiple turnovers again.
People forget that game was basically a blowout if their QB hadn’t been turning it over at the goal line multiple times. Arthur Smith was cutting through Bowles defense like a hot knife through butter.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:13 pm
Yeah but they are on life support with a very weak pulse and a long road to recover.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:13 pm
ROFL we WON!!! we beat The Panters Huzzah! Huzzah!
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:14 pm
Nice and soaked in stands. It got to point I want even paying attention to that horrible game. Baker drives me nuts.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:14 pm
Come on Joe!!
Bowls is in the hot seat like it or not, I get that a win is a win, but I bet you that there is not even one optimistic fan around.
He needs to Change the ofensive game plan and take more risks, if not he is in dead man walking, and he knows it. It’s not rocket science.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:15 pm
Huzzah! Bowles The Great rules once again!
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:16 pm
That pic is so funny and perfect after this glorious victory.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:16 pm
NO ……………………………! What a frightening statement.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:16 pm
Don’t care what happens. He needs to go. Unless we win a chip.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:25 pm
An ugly win is a win. Did any TE make a catch today? I know Baker played poorly, but how many 3rd an eterniies is he supposed to save? I remember how many first downs Mcvay had him throwing in LA. It would put him in a rhythm early. Granted, todays weather dictated much of the play calling, but we only seem to dial up our most explosive plays when its gut-check time. I expect a much cleaner game from Baker indoors next week.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:27 pm
Agree 100% with other comments. The Bucs barely beat the worst team in the NFL. By worst I mean, your record says what you are. The Panthers are 1-11 now. They’re horrible and the Bucs aren’t where we want them to be. I love The Bucs, life long fan. Just being realistic. This team is mediocre on its best day this season. So sorry, Im not excited after this team barely won. The Bucs should have won with little to no penalties and little to no mistakes and blown the Panthers away. Mike Evans has definitely lost a step too. Did you see him on the go route catch and run to the touchdown. He lost his go, still a very effective receiver in this league. But unless Evans is playing a horrible football team. Evans isn’t going to carry you to victory against the best like he use to be able to going further. Hope he takes a reasonable resigning contract this offseason. Need to blow this thing up on our roster. By the way, Baker is not going to make it to the end of this season on that bad ankle. The ankle looked like it was bothering him most of the game today and last week. He will succumb to that injury at some point before week 17 unfortunately. I believe Trask will get his shot before the emd of this season due to a Baker injury. Either way, Go Bucs!!
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:30 pm
I think Joe said this was a trap game earlier in the week. And that’s true, no matter what happened the Bucs would have been on the wrong side of opinion. If they blew out Carolina it would be so what. Close game, they suck. Mayfield didn’t look great but he’s got Evans a 1000-yard season pretty quick. And Goodwin, everyone says to use him more, and while he’s a quality player he has missed a few that were right in his hands, all season. But one thing happened today, Mayfield cemented his job going forward. No coach, especially Bowles, is going to make a QB switch to an unknown like Trask as long as he has a chance to make the playoffs. So Baker, see you next week and the week after and the week after…
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:30 pm
YAY! We barely beat the worst team in the league!
Superbowl!
#TEAMPOSITIVE
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:32 pm
Love the Pic Joe that was one of the best comedy movies ever made right up there with Dirty Rotten Scoundrels!
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:32 pm
Keeping him for another year would be insane. There is no part of this team that is coached well.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:34 pm
If this game was played In Carolina the Bucs would have lost today. Bowles has to go, and Mayfield too, or the Bucs will be playing to an empty stadium next fall. This team can’t compete with good teams with this coaching staff. There has to be an overhaul to keep people interested.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:38 pm
They barely beat the worst team in the league with a undeveloped, crappy rookie QB lol
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:41 pm
Bowles has about a 2% chance of being retained. No way Jose.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:45 pm
If today’s serving of garbage was enough to save Bowles’ job, the Glazers aren’t serious about winning.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:45 pm
A win is a win, Bucs stay in playoff hunt for one more week but I do not see how the Bucs win in the ATL unless they get about 5 turnovers, we know that 3 or 4 are not enough as the Bucs lost with a 3 or 4 turnover advantage last time the Bucs played the ATL.
December 3rd, 2023 at 8:59 pm
If Baker had any job security, he might not have even played this game. I’d like to see us bench him for a week or two and let him heal up. If Trask doesn’t stink it up and we’re winning, sorry Baker. Thank you for your $10 million dollar services this season. I don’t see what the coaches see at practice, so I want to see something out of Trask rather than just taking the 2nd round pick as a hit. Imagine spending a 2nd round pick on a 2nd or 3rd string QB who goes on to throw less than 10 career passes for your team.
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:01 pm
The ONLY and I mean ONLY thing that I care about coming out of this season is bowles & his staff getting shown the door. Especially now that ME13 has his 1K. Whatever makes that more likely (I seriously can’t believe there’s even a debate), that’s what I’m rooting for. If some people are jonesin’ for us to sneak into the playoffs by winning this crappy division, that’s on them. It was one thing when we had Brady and anything can happen in the playoffs. I have NO desire for us to back into the playoffs, give up the WHOLE booty to the Cowboys on the national stage (again), lower our draft pick, and let bowles to get his stink of failure permeating around a rookie QB. That will literally set the team back a decade. Fire this clown and be done with it. We have no future with this staff. We’re not gonna turn a corner, we’re not one player away, we suck, and as long as he’s here we’ll continue to suck (embarrassingly so).
#FIREbowlesNOW #NOconfidence
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:03 pm
Was it Rick Stroud, who as a bucs long time beat writer say, he has heard from the inside Bowles has to not only win the division, but improve on it and win the playoff game? That to me is the only way as well I see him being retained
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:04 pm
No…..period
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:08 pm
Atlanta has a superior running game, hope we get some of our dudes back next week. Starting a safety and a practice squad tackling dummy at ILB wont work
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:17 pm
It feels like Bowles is holding us hostage. I really hope the Glazers use the eyeball test. This team is poorly coached.
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:21 pm
I wonder how many of you “fans” would contemplate suicide if the Bucs continue winning? I pray that none of you do. Let the season play out and stop your b*tching already because you’re making fools of yourselves.
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:35 pm
I don’t see him saving his job unless they win out. Winning the division with a losing record shouldn’t save his job either IMO. The team isn’t moving in a direction. Too many missing pieces at too many levels. They have a LB problem; a weak secondary. They can’t run the ball. They don’t have a QB that’s going to dominate. They need a productive TE and a 3rd receiver. Lots of issues. Like Bowles the man but he’s not a modern day NFL HC.
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:36 pm
No way Jose
Todd is toast
We barely, barely eeked out a win vs the 1-10 Kittens
It was painful to watch and only because they have a high school kid playing QB and no coaches we barely win
What a joke
December 3rd, 2023 at 9:48 pm
The NFC South is like NFLs version of the special olympics right now. Sure, go win the division, but be prepared to get curb stomped by a team that is actually good. Does anyone remember what the Cowboys did to this team and coaching staff last year?
December 3rd, 2023 at 10:04 pm
Todd Bowles may save his job after all.
Bowles saved his job by beating a one win team by 3 points? How quickly the standards have fallen in Tampa. Head coach for two years he’s been here for four and knows this team and players. He should not be 5-7
December 3rd, 2023 at 10:15 pm
@ WyomingJoe
I don’t need to see the rest of the season play out. I’ve seen enough, as MANY if not most Bucs fans have. Believe it or not, most other owners have the stones to fire terrible coaches mid season. They don’t wait to throw the festering carcus of a loser coach overboard, and we shouldn’t either. I think the foolish thing is expecting a coach who’s well on his way to being 5 for 5 losing seasons to suddenly turn it around.
December 3rd, 2023 at 11:01 pm
This coaching staff is a joke. Would like to see Tampa get Harbough from Michigan
December 3rd, 2023 at 11:16 pm
If it wasn’t for Evans amazing catch and run and Superman dive for a touchdown this would be an entirely different discussion. That play swung Mo big time and powered the Bucs to a win. The entire team needs to play better if we want to beat the Falcons next week.
December 3rd, 2023 at 11:29 pm
Dead as a doornail.
December 3rd, 2023 at 11:34 pm
It really shows how bad the team has wasted Mike Evans. He was open on so many of the replays they showed and Mayfield’s passes were like balloons.
December 3rd, 2023 at 11:40 pm
Mike Evans saved Bowles his job for a week is what the headline of this article should be. The offense sucks and the defense is not much better except for a few guys named Winfield and David. Bowles needs to go and he will be lucky if he even wins another game.
December 4th, 2023 at 2:36 am
Trolls can’t resist trolling lol
December 4th, 2023 at 2:39 am
They struggled to beat one of the worst teams in the NFL with a bad rookie QB, and frankly could have lost easily in the last 2 minutes, if the Panthers had a few pieces of talent.
This game doesn’t change anything. If anything, it proves that they are as mediocre as their record says they are, and Bowles needs to go.
December 4th, 2023 at 2:49 am
Baker deserves the benefit of the doubt. “In a world…”
December 4th, 2023 at 6:38 am
We beat a 1-9 team at home by 3 points. I’m not impressed. My no-confidence vote will not change this week.
December 4th, 2023 at 9:48 am
Everyone seems to forget that Cody Mauch helped negate the Panthers only defensive weapon, which was a major reason for our win. The rookie made a power move when the ball wasn’t even in play! Thanks for taking one for the team.!
December 4th, 2023 at 12:43 pm
WyomingJoe, your Mayfield homer position is laughable. I’m not criticizing Baker. I’m criticizing you for pretending to be a Buc fan and trying to scold longtime fans who know garbage when they see it. As paying fans, we have a right to criticize the product we’re being sold. If Baker isn’t re-signed, you will disappear to follow him and you know it.
December 4th, 2023 at 1:26 pm
I am so tired of seeing everyone try to lay blame to one aspect or person responsible for this horrible season. Yes we need a better QB, but we also need a better HC,OC,half the defense, half the offense. To try to lay blame on one person is a discredit to all of the true fans. We know what’s the issue and until it is acknowledged fully we will continue to have a mediocre team pointing fingers. Time to clean house and rebuild with our youth, resign or extend our core so cap won’t be a issue .