Early Dirk Koetter Focus Change
January 29th, 2018
No, this post is not referencing the minor tweak to the Bucs’ offensive coaching staff announced yesterday.
You can read about that here.
This post delves into the whereabouts of Dirk Koetter last week. Koetter did not attend the scouting festival knows as the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama. Many head coaches are in the house scrutinizing draft prospects and gathering intelligence on the participating college seniors.
Koetter attended last year, but he and coordinators Mike Smith and Todd Monken sat it out last week.
So what were they doing?
Well, this is the speculation time of year, and Joe’s got two guesses. Perhaps Koetter is taking a much more active role this year in the free agency process. The free agency dinner bell rings in 45 short days and Joe will speculate Koetter is investing the time there rather than fiddling early with the draft. Expensive Bucs 2017 free agents Chris Baker and T.J. Ward were terrible fits in multiple ways, and DeSean Jackson did not mesh well on the field.
After all, if the Bucs fail in free agency this year, Koetter is unlikely to be here next season.
Another guess would be Koetter is still deep in red zone study time, which Joe wrote about last week. Red zone failure was a major key to the poor 2017 season and it deserves special attention.
But Joe is hoping for the former, that Koetter is much more involved with his staff in the free agency process. Frankly, Joe is just wanting some level of change there. There’s been a systemic failure on that front since 2014, and that has to be more than bad luck.
January 29th, 2018 at 11:07 am
Change for change’s sake isn’t the most prudent way to go about becoming a consistent winner. Are we at all sure Koetter’s involvement in free agency will be any different? How are we to judge? I’ve yet to hear any credible source laud Koetter’s talent evaluation prowess but I would love to be proven wrong.
January 29th, 2018 at 11:07 am
3 practices and a game and he can’t show. he can scout FA’s and watch red zone film in his hotel. gimmy a break.
January 29th, 2018 at 11:16 am
I’m actually hoping for the latter.
The top of the coaching chain needs to be collectively examining everything that has happened over the last 2 years with a microscope. Every situation. Every play. Every decision. With an eye towards – “How could we have done better?” “What could we as coaches have done differently to more positively effect any given outcome?”
Let Jason and his team do their jobs to the best of their abilities. The talent level of this team which is already good in many areas will continue to rise.
Koetter and Smitty need to concentrate on making whatever adjustments they can that will lead to winning outcomes with the players that are available.
There should be lazer like focus from these coaches on improving in-game adjustments for both sides of the ball.
January 29th, 2018 at 11:23 am
Gonna be another long year.
January 29th, 2018 at 11:44 am
My belief is that Licht is getting an offseason to himself. I feel some of his bad FA’s and Draft Picks were out of necessity or by going what Dirk or Lovie wanted (who knows how true that actually is). So while this is a prove-it year for Dirk, I believe it is actually more of a prove-it year for Licht.
January 29th, 2018 at 11:52 am
systemic failure has been in place since 2009.
January 29th, 2018 at 12:02 pm
Free agency has been no “Dinner” for the Bucs so please ignore that “dinner bell” reference…..free agency has been Tampa Bay’s Welfare System for guys who simply cannot play anymore but have totally lucked into a fat payday…!!
January 29th, 2018 at 12:17 pm
If the Bucs do not hit free agency hard then I do not see a great deal of improvement possible.
The reason is the Bucs have so many needs
(The Bucs need two new starters on offense…RB and OG & five new starters on defense DEx2, DT, CB and SS)
January 29th, 2018 at 12:32 pm
@ pickgrin
while I don’t disagree that the focus should on the things you mention.The coaches also have to be involved in the player selection.Jason Licht strength is in the draft. But the most effective free agents were former players of Atlanta in Grimes and MaClain. Still a question,whether DJAX will be the weapon the Bucs thought he was. I would hope that Licht takes input on free agent that the
coaches want to improve the team.
January 29th, 2018 at 12:37 pm
The best D-lineman available in FA are likely going to be DTs so I hope we sign a premium one (Star Lotulele for example). Sign one of those and then the best DE or 2 you can get (Bennet) and hope for Spence to be healthy while adding 2-3 bodies in the draft in the top 5 rounds.
Should also have good CBs available in fA and either OG/C and possibly S. Hit every position we possibly can before the draft; and then still focus on the D-line in the draft + a RB
January 29th, 2018 at 12:47 pm
Preach
January 29th, 2018 at 12:55 pm
I would also add that the self examination should also extend to Licht and staff, while he has done pretty well in the draft overall,there is room for improvement
and circumspection in his free agency signings.
January 29th, 2018 at 1:10 pm
Have you ever considered that your readers care more about the team’s success than the actual players, coaches and owners?
Koetter is doing none of the above. He’s chilling in Hawaii somewhere.
January 29th, 2018 at 1:12 pm
I have no problem with this. Licht had been solid in the draft and needs help with FA. Additionally, counting on day picks, especially picks outside the to 10 to produce now is foolish. Koetter needs to win this year, not 3 years from now. If he invests in the draft he can hopefully set up the next couple for success, but if he wants to coach the draft picks he needs to fill enough holes now to make it to next year.
January 29th, 2018 at 1:18 pm
edit: should have used introspection instead of circumspection but a little wariness on some of his free agency signings is not a bad idea.
January 29th, 2018 at 1:36 pm
@chanepic….I agree
he should know our weaknesses…..he should’ve been out there interviewing players and watching how they perform in practice and at the game….
sounds like he’s on vacation with smitty laughing about the great heist they just pulled off for 2018!!!!….GO BUCS!!!!
January 29th, 2018 at 1:57 pm
Just another Bucs offseason, that’s full of lame excuses. And the Bucs staff giving their fans more false hope. I have more faith in the Cleveland Browns. They have a brighter future than the Bucs.
$111 million in cap space
New GM
New OC
12 draft picks
1st and 4th pick
Three 2nd round picks
January 29th, 2018 at 2:08 pm
Everybody has an opinion on what he should be doing. If he were there, you’d say he should have been wining/dining free agents or working with X/Y/z to improve his red zone efficiency. Hilarious. Go Bucs!
January 29th, 2018 at 2:10 pm
They aren’t going to have a dominant defense this year so he better be in the boring playbook trying to figure out how to score 25 points a game. If the offense is elite I can see the glazers being crazy enough to keep him
January 29th, 2018 at 2:19 pm
Sounds like Jimbo Fisher. Stopped recruiting in September, stopped coaching in September, I fear this coming year will go exactly as the off season has started…complacency. These guys were gifted another years salary (which is robbery). Nothing will change. Even playoff teams are firing the coordinators and head coaches that they don’t see leading them to the promise land. The Bucs? Nah- We’re good. man they make it difficult for the fans. I hope I am here next year eating crow about Koetter and Smith…but my guess…another wasted year. I used to curse my kids for having soccer games every Saturday and Sunday and having to give up my season tix, I guess I should thank them, though we watch every game together and basically just get gut punched every Sunday. Oh well, life of a Bucs fan.
January 29th, 2018 at 2:50 pm
I think it is more likely they let the scouts handle the Senior Bowl, and are instead focusing on finding the right guys for free agency AND the draft.
And do not be surprised if a new staff member is added soon…in a week or so. (hint)
January 29th, 2018 at 3:01 pm
Buccaneer Bonzai Says:
January 29th, 2018 at 2:50 pm
I think it is more likely they let the scouts handle the Senior Bowl, and are instead focusing on finding the right guys for free agency AND the draft.
if they were focusing on the draft, don’t you think they would’ve been at the senior bowl to get in depth Intel on prospects?…..nawl…that would make too much sense….GO BUCS!!!!!
January 29th, 2018 at 3:03 pm
LakeLand Says:
January 29th, 2018 at 1:57 pm
Just another Bucs offseason, that’s full of lame excuses
^^BINGO^^
JJBucFan Says:
January 29th, 2018 at 2:19 pm
I fear this coming year will go exactly as the off season has started…complacency. These guys were gifted another years salary (which is robbery). Nothing will change.
^^BINGO^^
GO BUCS!!!!!
January 29th, 2018 at 3:20 pm
Kowtter ain’t got a clue. If he did he would have revamped his entire Defensive staff after the last game. I’m sure when the pirate ship sinks, Koetter will be holding on to Mike Smiths leg sayin, We gave it a go didn’t we…Pal?
January 29th, 2018 at 3:23 pm
Spending more time with the pro scouts, less with the college ones. They had to be embarrassed by Swaggy. Almost as soon as he was signed, the “lazy, goof-off, doesn’t like to practice, potentially bad for the locker room culture” reports came in on JBF. If I was Koetter, I’d be irritated (pretend this was written in the vernacular).
January 29th, 2018 at 3:45 pm
gamblero,
how about spending more money on college and pro scouts? Should be irritated by the Aguayo pick as much as Swaggy. It is well known as reported by the Joes and other sites that the Bucs do not have a very large scouting department. Either way, the head coach, OC and DC or any combination of the 3 should have been at the Senior Bowl practices talking to these kids so we don’t fall in love with another turd with talent.
January 29th, 2018 at 3:57 pm
I’m guessing Dirk finally got around to watching Hard Knocks and realized what a d-bag he was and is in hiding.
January 29th, 2018 at 4:22 pm
MIKE JOHNSON
LMAO!!!!!…..that’s exactly how they’ll be…..and your right….dirk aint got a clue as to what to do….GO BUCS!!!!
January 29th, 2018 at 5:14 pm
Jjbucsfan.
I’ve spent a half hour trying to find information supporting your claim that the Bucs spend less than other teams on their college and pro scout dept.. Can you post a link to this fact. Thanks
January 29th, 2018 at 6:20 pm
@mike johnson
If it goes bad, that is exactly how it will go down!!!!!! Its called loyalty, and most likely why all the players were playing hard for this coaching staff!!!!!!! And the same reason why they quit on that loser, lovie!!!!!!! That incompetent coach fired coordinators almost yearly ( except if they were his sons)!!!!!!!!!!
That loyalty might just be the reason they are successful in 2018 as well!!!!!!
Fix the “real” problem, the “trenches”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Go Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
January 29th, 2018 at 7:01 pm
Don’t blame Koetter one bit for hunkering down & focusing on our FA selections AND on improving our Red Zone effectiveness. Dirk no doubt has been told VERY clearly by the Glazer Boys what their expectations are for 2018. THAT is what’s driving the train at this point IMO. The Boys most likely told Dirk & Licht to (1) Fix the Defense; (2) Fix the Offense; and (3) Fix Special Teams or they’re all fired. Duh! Fixing all 3 starts with grabbing as many quality FAs as they can to fill as many PRIORITY NEEDS as they can. It’ll be interesting to see what comes out of all this.
January 29th, 2018 at 7:34 pm
Agreed 33. Argued for an “infrastructure upgrade” several times. The Glazers saved $15m by not hiring Chucky and his minions…
January 29th, 2018 at 8:23 pm
Coaching staff and Jason Licht need to get on the same page about what kind of team and schemes are being implemented. Offense and defense were both rudderless.
Choose a path and go down it without veering into the ditch for once. Get the most out of the players already on the roster and quit being so dependant on free agents and rookies.
January 29th, 2018 at 10:31 pm
Agree with Mike Johnson..if Koetter really, really cared about his NFL career, he would toss and moss the entire defense coaches…all of them…
The entire NFL will know if you want Koetter, Smitty goes with him..so you would have to hire both..
Koetter, let go Smitty and BRING IN FOOKING DEL RIO!!!!!!!!!!!!!
January 29th, 2018 at 10:42 pm
I don’t think 3 or four days at the senior bowl would have any effect on free agency or red zone efficiency. Nor would Koetter have to be there for the actual game ……….. Just Weird !!!
Just lots of signs that Koetter is not really a complete head coach and he certainly doesn’t get much from his assistants nor has the Moxie to make change !!!