“We’re Picking The Right Guys”
March 4th, 2025
Offensive chatter.
Few head coaches have had two first-time NFL playcallers get plucked back-to-back like what happened with the Bucs the past two offseasons.
After Dave Canales led Baker Mayfield to a career year in 2023, he was hired to run the Stinking Panthers. Last season, Mayfield again had a career year, this time with Liam Coen. Then days later Coen was off to Jacksonville.
Bowles was asked at the combine in downtown Indianapolis last week for his comment on going on his fourth offensive coordinator in as many seasons.
“No. 1, it taught me I don’t get a vacation,” Bowles said. “But the biggest thing is that at least we know we’re picking the right guys.”
But as Bowles pointed out, Josh Grizzard, his fourth offensive coordinator in as many seasons, shouldn’t be a jolt to the offense.
While Canales and Coen came from the outside, and in Canales’ case his offense was a radical departure from ill-suited Byron Leftwich’s, going from Coen to Grizzard won’t be a radical departure. Grizzard was Coen’s right-hand man.
“Obviously, there will be some different things, but you try to pick the right guys,” Bowles explained. “It’s not the right guys depending on how smart or good they are, it’s about the right guy [for] how your team is built and how you think your guys can get the most out of what they’re coaching.
“We try to do a good job picking that and making sure we’ve got the right guy that way. We think ‘Grizz’ is that guy.”
It will be interesting to see how much Grizzard deviates from Coen, if at all. When he was introduced, Grizzard said he wants to throw downfield more than Coen.
No, Coen didn’t go deep much and when Joe would point that out, it seemed to irk Coen. Joe wasn’t trying to get under his skin, it was just an observation. Hell, the Bucs offense was humming without the long ball. Why fix something that wasn’t broken?
Now, can Grizzard keep the Bucs offense in the top-three like it finished last season? It may not be fair to hang that expectation on him or any first-year coordinator.
March 4th, 2025 at 7:13 am
Clueless Todd! Drops his pass rushers into coverage. You can’t make this stuff up.
March 4th, 2025 at 7:18 am
Jeff, they’re outside LINEBACKERS. They’re gonna be in coverage sometimes. Deal with it. If they just do the same thing every play, offenses will take advantage of the predictability. It’s not a 4-3 where your defensive end rushes and sometimes covers the flat.
March 4th, 2025 at 7:21 am
even Leftwich got offered a head coaching job….
March 4th, 2025 at 7:30 am
Bucs’ offense isn’t the problem. We averaged almost 30 PPG last season. We’ve got a solid QB in Baker Mayfield, a strong OLine, several quality WRs & RBs … what’s not to like? No reason this offense won’t end up again this season in the Top-10, and very possibly in the Top-5.
Bucs’ defense is a problem, but one that solvable. We know where the holes are, and we can fix that in a combination of free agency and the draft. We’ve got an excellent core of defensive players in Vea, Kancey, LVD (hopefully), Winfield, McCollum, Tykee Smith and several others but we do need seveal upgrades in other positions. No reason this defense won’t return to the Top-10 like were in during 2023. We’ve got the wherewithal to fix this thing; JL & TB just need to git er done.
March 4th, 2025 at 7:31 am
Dropping the edges (mebbe not as much as WE do, which is 20%) takes away that quick out pattern, which forces QB to look for #2 or #3. Well, in theory anyhow
March 4th, 2025 at 8:01 am
Deep-Ball Joe has to fix an offense that ain’t broke. He wants Bake to throw deep with a tiny completion rate instead of 15 yards with a 61% completion rate. I’m not complaining about Bake, I like him, but he’s not a great long ball thrower. Also, ME13 isn’t getting any faster so his separation isn’t great. Our speed guy, Palmer, gets off the LOS the fastest in the NFL, but his hands work better on a defender’s jersey than the ball.
March 4th, 2025 at 8:21 am
If the team could find at least an ‘average’ D/C.
‘
March 4th, 2025 at 9:23 am
Maybe a vacation is exactly what he needs is a vacation and he’s burnt out. Take a long vacation stop installing new wrinkles it all looks the same after 4-5 games anyway. No more communication issues with a veteran defense full of guys who’ve been here for years
March 4th, 2025 at 9:41 am
It has been written many times on these pages including in this article that 2023 and 2024 were “career years” for Baker as a result of Canales and then Coen. Mayfield in 2020 led the hapless Browns to an 11-5 regular season record, a playoff win over the Steelers, and a near second playoff win over Chiefs. Baker’s line that year was 26TD’s,8 INTS, 63% comp and around 3500 yards. Moreover, he did all that with about 100 fewer passing attempts than in 2023 and 2024. My point in pointing this out is how colossally stupid the Browns were to get rid of Baker and to further point out it wasn’t Canales or Coen that “turned Baker around.” Mayfield is an elite QB who had the misfortune to begin his career with the dumbest NFL management group. Through it all, Baker has persevered. Very confident he will get yet another OC promoted to HC. Baker will thrive and lead Bucs to the SB a couple of times in the next 5 years. When that happens, he will be named NFL MVP. Not bad considering a couple of years ago many on these pages were wondering why the Bucs were wasting time with Baker.
March 4th, 2025 at 10:09 am
Gipper – you forgot that not only was he drafted by the dumbest NFL Management Group, he then got traded to the only contender for that title – the Panthers.
So, yeah, you are 100% right.
March 4th, 2025 at 10:48 am
@jeff
Bowles drops different players to disguise his blitzes.
That why “clueless” Todd Bowles and his defense finished #7 in the NFL in sacks.
His exotic blitzes are known as some of the best in the league.
Every defense Todd Bowles has coached in Tampa has finished top 10 in sacks.
Can you all stop hating on our pass rush?
It’s not THAT bad.
We were spoiled by JPP, Suh, Vea and Barrett on the same line.
We will never see a 4 man rush like that again.
So lower your expectations.
Logan Hall and JTS are backups. But great athletes.
I think we will go DE/DT in the first to replace Logan Hall.
Our defense is predicated on stopping the run
We should draft a lineman to go with Kancey and Vea.
And sign Gholston for 1 more year to mentor him.
Logan Hall is not bad. I’m also open to resigning him on a cheap deal
March 4th, 2025 at 10:48 am
Good to see you up bright and early and being useless as usual grandson now go mow the grass
March 4th, 2025 at 10:50 am
JTS is also only worth a minimum deal. He’s a backup. And he should get some training at ILB.
He isn’t strong enough to play OLB but he is athletic enough to play MLB.
March 4th, 2025 at 12:03 pm
Gipper must have gotten a Christmas Card from Baker this year. If not, you should probably expect one next Christmas after that writeup.
March 4th, 2025 at 12:19 pm
JackBurtonMercer,
Just correcting the lazy narrative that is out there among sports writers and so called “analysts.” By repeating the same old slogans somehow they become fact. Baker since he arrived in Tampa has been proving my point. Guys who actually played the game know the truth about Mayfield. Baker has a real following among active and retired players. The only naysayer that I know of was overrated OBj. How has he been doing lately? Sometimes it takes awhile for the truth to emerge. Glad I have consistently been on the Baker bandwagon. Will repeat, Mayfield is an “elite” QB.
March 4th, 2025 at 1:00 pm
As others have said, more deep shots will loosen the front 7/8 up and open up the now-lethal run game. Maybe Palmer can be resurrected and coached up. Or else he is the reincarnation of Darden.
March 4th, 2025 at 1:31 pm
Gipper I’m right with you! Really ticks Rod Munch off when we highlight Baker. If our Bucs should win the Super Bowl a couple of times in the next 5 or 6 years and be perennial contenders in the league those years Baker will be referred to as future Hall of Famer Baker Mayfield. And he may just be the best QB in the league right now! Okay, I just had to slap Rod one more time. He’s not the best QB in the league. Yet.
March 4th, 2025 at 2:22 pm
Anyone saying the Bucs pass rush isn’t that bad needs to step back and look at the pass defense as a whole. Horrid. So whatever metrics someone uses to decide the Bucs pass rush isn’t bad must enjoy consecutive years of the 4th worst pass defense in the league.
March 4th, 2025 at 6:41 pm
I have kinda noticed that a few of us have suggested JTS at ILB. If anything he’s a tad too big.
March 4th, 2025 at 6:45 pm
We are bound to be a little better in pass defense just by the logic that it would be kinda hard to do worse.
March 4th, 2025 at 8:12 pm
Fred McNeil. That would be funnier if it wasn’t likely true.