A Good Sign
July 5th, 2017
Will history repeat?
Interesting piece of Bucs trivia.
Joe has to give credit to good guy Chase Stuart, who runs the interesting if not stat-heavy website FootballPerspective.com for this cool story.
The Bucs have only had three coordinators in team history who later became an NFL head coach. Sure, several former assistants have gone on to get head coaching jobs (Mike Tomlin, Herm Edwards, etc.) and the Bucs have had past head coaches serve as coordinators (Mike Smith and Leslie Frazier, for examples. Abe Gibron was another). But Stuart documents only three Bucs coordinators who became NFL head coaches.
The three? Current winning Bucs coach Dirk Koetter is one. Of course, he served one year as lazy Lovie Smith’s offensive coordinator before getting promoted. The second? Joe Gibbs. He was the offensive coordinator for one year under John McKay, the same year the Bucs drafted Doug Williams. The third? Wayne Fontes, a defensive coordinator under McKay who later took over the Lions.
The neat thing about this? Both Gibbs and Fontes had success.
Obviously, Gibbs is one of the greatest coaches in NFL history and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Under Fontes, the Lions had their only modicum of consistent success since Hall of Fame quarterback Bobby Layne was traded. That was when Dwight Eisenhower was president.
So if Bucs history means anything, Koetter should guide the Bucs to a playoff appearance before his tenure is through in Tampa.
July 5th, 2017 at 9:50 am
good company…Fontes got a raw deal from Culverhouse…should have been Bucs head coach before Lions gig
July 5th, 2017 at 9:51 am
Yes!
And Koetter like Gibbs will get to hold the Lombardi trophy in February’s Super Bowl!!!
I always liked Wayne Fontes.
Go Bucs!!!
July 5th, 2017 at 9:52 am
I would rather not rely on Bucs history for anything.
Especially with coordinators who won for other franchises as head coaches, because that history says that our head coach will leave.
No thanks, I’m hoping that the history Coach Koetter will create will outshine Coach Gruden, the only part of our history that has a Lombardi associated with it.
July 5th, 2017 at 9:55 am
Although this is a very small sample size…..and loaded with all sorts of variables….I’ll take it.
I choose to think that Koetter is a good coach with a good staff and a good GM with some good & great players…..it’s time!!!
July 5th, 2017 at 9:56 am
You forgot to mention “Lazy LOVIE” hired “THE BIG STICK SWINGER” err “WINNING HEAD COACH” GO BUCS!!!
July 5th, 2017 at 10:08 am
Not one to think history repeats itself but in my personal opinion I believe Koetters status as one of the a few OC’s to put together a top 10 offense for multiple teams is the kind of ‘history’ I think is relevant. It seems Dirk will get the job done, his clock management needs to improve. It was absolutely terrible and may have actually costed us games last year
July 5th, 2017 at 11:18 am
Globull warming just makes the anticipation and wait for the real Bucs games that much hotter.
July 5th, 2017 at 9:26 pm
Although a very short stint, Raheem Morris was our defensive coordinator before being promoted to head coach.
July 5th, 2017 at 10:46 pm
Wasn’t Marinelli our ST coordinator and he went on to be a HC? Maybe that doesn’t count or maybe I am remembering wrong. It is past my bedtime and my brain isn’t functioning from the beer.