Todd Bowles Talks Team Mentality
January 8th, 2025
Throughout the Todd Bowles regime, the Bucs routinely have been groin-stomped and punched in the face — sometimes it’s their fault, sometimes it’s not — and then bounce back like nothing happened.
Joe will start with Tom Brady bailing on 2022 training camp for 10 or 11 days.
A few days after Brady left, an assistant coach told Joe. “I’m not sure Todd [Bowles] really knows exactly what’s going on with Brady.” Man, talk about a distraction!
Throw in major injuries, hurricanes and losing streaks, and it hasn’t been a smooth ride through Bowles’ tenure. Joe still cringes thinking about Ryan Jensen blowing his knee out a couple of weeks before Brady bailed on training camp. Crushing!
Regardless, the Bucs are sitting as NFC South champs again, as they’ve been in every Bowles season as head coach.
“We’ve developed this mentality of no matter what happens, we’ll keep moving forward,” Bowles told the Buccaneers Radio Network yesterday.
That really does seem like the Buccaneers’ collective way: driven and resilient. That doesn’t make a team “good,” but those are certainly traits of every good team, and qualities the imploding Falcons and many others wish they had.
January 8th, 2025 at 10:32 am
Fingers crossed Winfield & Dean able to practice today!
January 8th, 2025 at 10:34 am
I love Bowles’ demeanor. He is solid and unflappable. Not mercurial. Probably not going to cry in front of the team or go off unhinged.
I think that style works well. Think Tom Landry.
The players love this guy.
January 8th, 2025 at 10:40 am
No culture issues with this team
January 8th, 2025 at 10:49 am
If culture makes the defense play better than Im all for it.
It helps with FAs wanting to play here.
Paying ME13 $3 million on a pass when a kneel down was in order helps with FAs even more.
I have nothing against Todd Bowles.
January 8th, 2025 at 10:51 am
Given how many HC openings there are, and the dearth of proven winners on the interview lists, I guess I’ll stick with the devil I know.
January 8th, 2025 at 10:54 am
FYI If the Bucs hypothetically wanted to replace Bowles with Liam Ceon (like many fans want)….the players would absolutely hate it and watch the culture take a hit.
Obviously the Bucs aren’t stupid enough to do that but many fans ive seen talk about that are.
January 8th, 2025 at 11:01 am
The Falcons imploding this season was almost as good as when they blew that 30 point lead in the Super Bowl. The season after they kept doing the same thing and since then they have carved themselves a special place in American Sports lore by continuing the tradition.
January 8th, 2025 at 11:09 am
I’ll take Liam’s innovative elite offense over Bowles pathetic pass defense. Great that the players like him but the soft a$$ pass defense with be the end of us in the playoffs and his eventual demise.
January 8th, 2025 at 11:10 am
I’m no fan of Bowles’ on field coaching…but I have to admit the team responds well to him…..we have a very solid mix of talented vets & younger players…
January 8th, 2025 at 11:21 am
Brady didn’t bail.
His wife left him for her ju-jitsu teacher and flew to Costa Rica.
He discovered that his wife had been cheating on him. And decided to destroy his life and take his kids away from him because she was mad he wanted to keep playing at 45.
Bear in mind, most men must work into their 60’s and 70’s before they can retire.
Brady didn’t bail.
His wife broke his heart and spirit.
Only fathers who have lost their families because of a selfish woman can understand how much pain Brady was in during his last season.
January 8th, 2025 at 11:25 am
Excellent points JJoe!!
In a slightly related manner as I’ll show in a second, a tragedy is unfolding this morning in Southern California!!! 80,000 people have been forced to evacuate the Los Angeles area from places like Santa Monica, Malibu and other places that we think of as “urban”. IE these are not wildfires burning down some national forest they are driven by 100MPH winds and DRY conditions!
I hope those who pray, meditate, whatever join me. Perhaps it’s because it’s so close to our own Cat5 Hurricane struggles, but I really feel empathy for these people.
BACK ON TOPIC – Football…The Rams are scheduled to host Minny this week at SoFi. This may complicate the playoffs if SOFI is unusable by game time.
And of course it’s not just fire it’s the smoke and air quality. People are leaving so they can get out of the toxic smoke, how will the NFL deal with all of this?
January 8th, 2025 at 11:40 am
There are two sides to every story, and that includes divorce. Brady also was reported to have told Gisele he would retire after the Bucs won that SB. He didn’t. He stunk, too. The Bucs were SB ready and they would have won with a Brad Johnson. stpete, those LA wildfires are affecting the Pacific Palisades area which is one of the richest in the nation. “Santa Ana winds” of 100mph not helping. I’ll take a hurricane over a wildfire in a nanosecond! Anywho, it’s just bad and sad. But, GOOOOOOO BUCS!!
January 8th, 2025 at 11:43 am
It’s 90% mental, right?
January 8th, 2025 at 11:45 am
ModHairKen Says:
I love Bowles’ demeanor. He is solid and unflappable. Not mercurial. Probably not going to cry in front of the team or go off unhinged.
I think that style works well. Think Tom Landry.
The players love this guy.
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Bowles demeanor drives some fans crazy but some of the greatest coaches had that type of demeanor such as the one you mentioned (Tom Landry). Same for Tony Dungy. While I find coaches like Bruce Arian’s more entertaining, I judge coaches on their results, not their personality.
I’m undecided on Bowles at this point. Watching some of the soft zone defense can be maddening, but almost any coach would have difficulty winning with the injuries the Bucs have had in the secondary. The lack of depth can’t be blamed on Bowles. The front office has been digging itself out of salary cap hell the whole time Bowles has been HC, forcing them to go shopping at the Dollar Store for players. If we were healthier on defense we’d be a legitimate Super Bowl contender, but with most of our starters in the secondary unable to play we may need divine intervention to advance to the NFC Championship game.
Bowles needs to figure out how to get pressure on Jayden Daniels on Sunday or he’s just going to shred our defense.
January 8th, 2025 at 11:59 am
orlbucfan
Agree completely! Hurricanes suck and I do not wish to diminish anybody’s suffering because they’re high and dry but they are forecast days in advance, and steps to at least mitigate are taken.
I don’t see how people endure SoCal. The dry conditions gave some warning but not for 100 mph winds and fire.
And an Earthquake. Gotta be the most terrifying experience ever!!!!
No warning, the ground beneath you starts shaking and what can you do?
January 8th, 2025 at 12:06 pm
This is Coach’s strength. The family thing. The life coach thing. The having the players’ backs thing. Approving Mike Evans last play for the record. Awesome stuff.
Winning, managing end of game situations, teaching players not to repeatedly blow their assignments, not so much. At least Coach can make guys like Gardner Minshew and Cooper Rush look like Dan Marino. He’s got that going for him.
In summary, Jason and the Glazers need to simply insist that it’s time to hire a full time defensive coordinator and let Todd focus on the head coach stuff.
Like this article points out.
January 8th, 2025 at 12:18 pm
Get real. The Bucs have won IN SPITE of Bowles. The offense has bailed out the team in all the wins. When was the last time the defense set the tone and ran away with a victory? He does not have the ability to ‘fire up’ the players. Once they get behind, the players wake up and start playing. If he stays, MAKE him hire a full time D/C. He is a great father figure but not a motivator. Detroit has been hit with many injuries and look how their backups have responded to their coach.
January 8th, 2025 at 12:28 pm
Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers punter Jake Camarda is getting a second shot in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills. Wonder what his mentality was/is
January 8th, 2025 at 12:47 pm
@Jethro
You’re coming around. Great. I hear all the comments about Todd can stay if he would just name a DC. I do get that sentiment.
It’s Dangerfield’s call but it seems he could find a win-win answer to this by naming “his” guy, just like BA did for him, and the next DC. It’s not like Todd wouldn’t be looking over their shoulder.
Better still he could be mentoring another guy in the system.
January 8th, 2025 at 1:10 pm
I’m not “coming around” to anything. I’ve always held this position.
January 8th, 2025 at 1:42 pm
That’s true – he’s been consistently a Todd hater even when he was using his other name (right Dave-lol?).
January 8th, 2025 at 1:56 pm
Bucfan you sure you are not Dave Pear?
January 8th, 2025 at 2:03 pm
Bucfan Says:
Get real. The Bucs have won IN SPITE of Bowles. The offense has bailed out the team in all the wins. When was the last time the defense set the tone and ran away with a victory?
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While the defense has been a disappointment this season and wildly inconsistent, they did hold the Lions, Eagles, and Chargers to 17 or less points. And since the bye they’ve given up 17 points on the average, good enough to win 6 out of 7 games.
The defense has looked ugly at times but they’re missing most of their starters on defense, a situation that would adversely affect most teams.
I’ll assign some blame to Bowles. Ultimately he is the head coach and runs the defense so must be responsible. But the lack of quality depth, especially in the secondary, is also a big factor. The team has been digging out of salary cap hell and so kicked its best CB (Davis) to the curb. But Licht will focus on strengthening the defense in the off season via the draft and free agency.
January 8th, 2025 at 3:05 pm
Stop with all the bouquets of flowers being dumped on Bowles. Heists strong coach. Next season we need someone who can contribute more than an average defense and a deadpan look on the sidelines.
January 8th, 2025 at 3:41 pm
GoneGator has a future as spokesperson for a new line of feminine hygiene products. And also a new line of thin skinned peaches in the fruit department . And deserves a trophy for most exaggerated use of the word “hater.” I don’t know who Dave is, but if I remind GoneGator of him I guess that’s a compliment.
Begone, Gator.
January 8th, 2025 at 6:20 pm
Jethro
No that comparison is not a compliment.
So Jethro perhaps you’d be better suited to stick with that flute and singing Aqualung.
BTW Why that name. Ian Anderson and the guys were not all that good. The one hit Bungle in the Jungle was not exactly great music although it was catchy. And Ian Anderson can certainly play the flute.
January 8th, 2025 at 6:31 pm
@stpetebucsfan
Jethro Tull pretty much sucked. Aqualung was over rated but decent.
Locomotive Breath was the only song I felt the desire to add to my collection.
Listened to most all of their music back in the day but I like them like Jethro likes Todd – they’re all probably nice people but they suck at their jobs and no amount of info to the contrary will ever convince me – lol.
January 8th, 2025 at 7:49 pm
GG
We have similar musical tastes as well. But you must be an old dude like me if you started collecting Tull music!