Coaching Survival Game Next
October 14th, 2018
Dirk Koetter is responsible for the Buccaneers’ terrible defense every bit as much as Mike Smith is.
That fact isn’t lost on Joe or anyone minding the store at One Buc Palace.
The head coach can’t get a mulligan presiding over what currently is the worst defense in the history of professional football — if you count things like points allowed and the completion rate of opposing quarterbacks. Yeah, it’s that bad.
Today’s loss to a bad and depleted Falcons team dropped the Bucs to 2-3 and they’re riding a three-game losing streak.
Up next, the Browns on Sunday at the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway.
Joe doesn’t think it’s a stretch to say Koetter’s job is on the line in that game. No, Koetter won’t get fired if the Bucs lose to the Browns. However, Joe firmly believes a home loss to Cleveland, truly an unthinkable happening, would launch Team Glazer into coaching-search mode.
Bucs players, not all, admitted they heard the Chucky-to-Tampa chatter last fall and realized they better start playing harder to save their coach’s job. Joe hopes the players wake up in a hurry to the reality of this year’s situation.
Sunday should be treated as the Super Bowl for everyone associated with the organization.
Losing to the 2-3-1 Browns is not an option under any circumstances.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:26 pm
Losing to the 2-3-1 Browns will be another day at the office for this team.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:28 pm
Mike Smith has already spotted the Browns 14 points
October 14th, 2018 at 6:30 pm
Yep, season is done if they lose next week and it won’t be easy.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:34 pm
Fire the coaching staff. Trade off worst defense for as many draft picks as you can! Although you won’t get much for the whole lot!
October 14th, 2018 at 6:35 pm
Mike Smith really is the worst cornerback in the league.
Wait, what?
October 14th, 2018 at 6:37 pm
In all honesty it is becoming embarrassing wearing a Bucs hat in public. This front office and staff are tarnishing the image of the team.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:40 pm
Let’s be honest… we’re losing against the browns and it’ll be because of the defense.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:40 pm
Don’t underestimate the Browns. 2 of their losses have been to NO and the NYJ, both by 3 points each. And Baker Mayfield is playing much better than expected.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:43 pm
It’s time to cut McCoy, LVD, KWON, Grimes and Miko, Definitely Ryan Smith, and the whole coaching staff.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:44 pm
America’s QB my ass Joe. Winston hasn’t been good. Doesn’t deserve an extension. And if you come back at me with the Dirk answer, I’ll laugh my ass off. All that matters is wins. He doesn’t win.. He’s a LOSER. With all of this said, I’ll lay money that Cleveland beats us like a drum and Winston throws at least 2 more pics.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:45 pm
Usually on board with you Joe… but regarding “playing for the coaches job”?
Players may rise up for that once. But it should never happen a second time. They will either play for this staff or they won’t. And if they rise up and play just when it means saving his job, the coaching staff is whacked. And if it does, not only do we have the wrong coach, but we have the wrong players.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:46 pm
Tell Koetter to take Jameis with him when he gets canned. Maybe they can share an Uber out of town.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:47 pm
How can we win with our secondary?
Also we only have one guy who can rush the passer
We also have some major issues on the O line
We have 6-10 talent
We can win some games with 3 but not a championship
October 14th, 2018 at 6:48 pm
People it’s the GM and the GM only
October 14th, 2018 at 6:52 pm
Destin… don’t doubt Licht is part of the problem, looking back at the Aguyo and Spence draft picks, particularly. But we have problems in nearly all facets of the game.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:58 pm
CHRIS PETERSEN – WASHINGTON HUSKIES
October 14th, 2018 at 6:59 pm
The Bucs host the Browns and then are at the Bengals, the two teams that beat the Ravens. Potential wins are looking fuzzy in the near term. Then again the Chargers laid waste to the Browns so who knows.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:59 pm
The ONLY thing that is going to save Koetter now is winning the superbowl. Screw talking about the draft, let’s talk about who the next coaches will be.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:59 pm
This team has followed the same pattern with Dirk at helm, starts very strong the first game , the next 4-5 games gets blown out, very mediocre the second half and gets lucky the very last game of the season.
October 14th, 2018 at 6:59 pm
Mayfield goes for 350 and Winston will have the standard 2 picks and a 35-20 loss.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:00 pm
@Joe … “Dirk Koetter is responsible for the Buccaneers’ terrible defense every bit as much as Mike Smith is.”
And Jason Licht is far more responsible than EITHER OF THEM. He’s stocked this team with a number of superstars and a BUNCH of hacks to go with them. This GM doesn’t have a clue how to build a winning TEAM.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:05 pm
Ryan Smith shouldn’t be in the nfl, Father Times has caught up with Grimes n Kwon n Lavontae r average LBs. McCoy doesn’t make a difference n MSmith is clueless. Get DC Greg Williams from the Browns n I guarantee our defense improves.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:09 pm
Big Game Baker will outplay Small Hands Winston next week.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:11 pm
@Mort … “Mike Smith really is the worst cornerback in the league.” LMAO Mort. I’ve supported Smitty almost solely because he had crap to work with. But he had enough talent available on the defensive side of the ball today to beat the Falcons … but he came up short as a coach (and not just him; the rest of this coaching staff too).
With a bunch of rookies & near-rookies in the Secondary, he CHOSE to play Grimes. And guess what, Grimes sucked (he should’ve retired after last season obviously). And because Grimes plays off, Smitty had everyone else playing off. That tactic MIGHT have worked IF our DLine pressured Ryan, but they did absolutely nothing. And our LBs were as lost most of the time as they’ve looked all season. People will pat Kwon on the back because he had 10 tackles, but that dude was as lost on all the other plays as I’ve ever seen. I thought we MIGHT be able to get to 4-12 this year after what I saw in Chicago, but now I’m not so sure. Glazers will probably end up blowing this whole thing up, and if they do, they’d better fire Licht first. He’s the architect of this mess.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:11 pm
Mike Smith, Dirk Koetter, Jason Licht
Clean House
October 14th, 2018 at 7:12 pm
I’m optimistic we can win this one, and get back in contention.
The Mike Smith stuff is way over the top. Give the young guys in the secondary a little time.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:15 pm
We don’t have the players
October 14th, 2018 at 7:18 pm
The Bucs made a mistake in not drafting Mariota. He’s 10 for 15 for 117 yards 0 TDs and 10 sacks. Now that’s a “real Bucs” man if I ever seen one.
Mariota has thrown for almost 200 more yards than Winston this SEASON and 3 LESS TDs. Somehow some way but yea Winston was definitely the wrong pick he’s garbage.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:20 pm
Oh the coach is going to get fired so let me play harder so I can half-arse it next, if I don’t the glazers will get someone in here that’ll actually make me earn my paycheck. That’s exactly how these guys play. Blow it up
October 14th, 2018 at 7:25 pm
This is why he was on the chopping block last year and after a full offseason of evaluation and roster overhaul they are worse than last year. If the Glazers truly care about being competitive they’re already searching for a new regime. Koetter simply the offensive version of Lovie and glazers wasted another year. Licht you gotta go to for being dumb enough to think rookies would improve the pass defense. He over values draft picks and doesn’t know how to balance draft vs trade. Meat head scouts shouldn’t have gm title
October 14th, 2018 at 7:28 pm
i’d like to award mike smith 2 “purple nurples” for this game since us fans all got titty twisted again…
if they lose next week, who cares about standard operating procedures – fire both koetter and smith and make monken and dufner interims for the time being…why not shake and stir the pot…
i agree – i don’t wear my bucs gear publicly anymore…we currently have the worst defense in nfl history – something has gotta give at this point…
we should be 4-1 if not for smith and his defense…
this is absolutely ridiculous – the one thing we bucs fans can hang our hat on is “we have a defense”…over the years, that’s where our pride has been …from the dungy era to the gruden era…we had a pride in our defense – smith is tarnishing team pride – this must stop asap because he truly doesn’t care about anything but giving good podium…
#SomeoneManUpAnCanTheSkyBoxLounger
October 14th, 2018 at 7:28 pm
you idiots are in denial… it’s not the coaches it’s the entire freaking organization led by the glazers. there have been 4 regimes since the last meaningful win. at one point will you fools recognize the reality that there is truly no hope nor regime out there that can overcome the glazers curse or complete incompetence your choice.
3 to 4 years without a meaningful win is a slump 16 years without a single meaningful is total organizational incompetence.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:32 pm
watching matty ryan toss the ball at will in the first half was like watching a top pro team go up agains a div 3 college team…it was pathetic to watch…it’s like unreal to watch…
smith had 2 weeks to prepare and gave us all another
“c*ckmeat sandwich”…
attention glazers: you are looking foolish to not take the bull by the horns at this point…the league is watching all this…
#SmithMustGo
October 14th, 2018 at 7:35 pm
we have a the top offense in the league…and if we can get the running game a little more dialed, even better…
if we get new coaching and hone in on fixing the defense up a bit, we can still have a decent season…
glazers please take the bull by the horns – so the season isn’t a wash!
October 14th, 2018 at 7:37 pm
Its past sad or disgruntled now. Its..comical. You gotta laugh to keep from cryin.
I mean you got the..Cleveland Browns//Lickin their chops at us. They know..the formula. Everybody does. I got Baker Mayfield comin in here..Gun slingin!!
BUC LIFE BABY!!
October 14th, 2018 at 7:39 pm
This is the BATTLE OF CLEVELANDS, loser leaves as the official new Cleveland, sad thing is Cleveland North on the rise & here Cleveland South is the mistake by the Gulf, Sam Wyche will deliver bad news to losing team
October 14th, 2018 at 7:43 pm
The Falcons would have scored 40-50 points , if Calvin Ridley, Mohammed Sanu don’t leave the game.
That’s why I said the Bucs offense should have took control of the game, when those guys went out
October 14th, 2018 at 7:47 pm
Over and over we have idiotic comments blaming the QB when the defense is on pace to be the worst in NFL history.
Joe is correct in blaming Koetter for the terrible defense.
October 14th, 2018 at 7:53 pm
Yeah. You’re right Winston’s 2 pics had nothing to do with this lose. LMAO.
October 14th, 2018 at 8:01 pm
FIRE MIKE SMITH!!!!!!
October 14th, 2018 at 8:06 pm
The Browns are a better football team. Had they started Mayfield right from the get go they would have a winning record. I’m not saying this as a beleaguered Bucs fan. It’s the truth.
October 14th, 2018 at 8:10 pm
D-Rome Says:
October 14th, 2018 at 8:06 pm
The Browns are a better football team.
The Browns are a much better ORGANIZATION not just team, top to bottom.
October 14th, 2018 at 8:13 pm
Dead men walking. Koetter, Smith, Licht. After today they are gone they just don’t know it yet. No new coach is going to protect our boneheaded QB, he is gone also. America’s Quarterback, LoL. What a joke.
October 14th, 2018 at 8:21 pm
the party is over
there is no saving the entire staff
and if we persist with JW we will be a below 500 team for decades
October 14th, 2018 at 9:21 pm
I’m starting my evaluation of coaches in the rest of the league to see who we can get for replacements.
October 14th, 2018 at 9:23 pm
Not sure if JW is gone, the dude did throw for 395 yards and 3 TDs, but this coaching staff and GM have got to go. Whatever this is it is a complete and utter failure. It is not fun to watch a team get steamrolled everytime the defense comes on the field. They will most certainly lose to Cleveland. I will be surprised if they get two more wins this season. F all of them. As a life long Buc fan watching losers like Koetter and Licht destroy this team and stick with ineptitude like M Smith I will be happy when you clowns are fired.
October 14th, 2018 at 9:30 pm
Hire Raheem Morris, to be the head coach.
October 14th, 2018 at 10:12 pm
Dirk after last week’s debacle. “We fire Mike Smith. Okay, then what would the next move be”? The next move will be firing Mike Smith and you too Dirk. I think Dirk’s a good coach but his selfishness keeping his buddy instead of putting the team first warrants firing him too. I lose all respect for this organization if they don’t force Dirk’s hand in firing Smith. Fire him or you walk the plank too Dirk.
October 14th, 2018 at 10:14 pm
@Troy. Make sure to keep one eye open for Jack Del Rio. I wouldn’t want him as Head Coach but I wouldn’t be surprised he was willing to be DC
October 14th, 2018 at 10:56 pm
IT may be a merciful end for Koetter and Smitty. New coach won’t come here
without a new GM. No question Licht is part of the problem. Yes the defense is bad and has been not had the talent infusion that the offense received. I don’t see Jameis being here either. Time is wasting for this team and even an attempt at game management style for Jameis failed. He still forces ball and has enough off target passes to give any coach the willies. His inconsistencies in the middle of first half didn’t help a defense that was missing tackles and coverages badly.
October 14th, 2018 at 11:01 pm
They have a stretch coming up of 6 games that they should win 3 at minimum (Brown, Giants and 49er’s). Anything short of that and the season is over and it’s time to clean house. If they, by some miracle get 4 of 6, then maybe we’ve got something.
October 14th, 2018 at 11:35 pm
The sad part is now we go through another rebuild, and the Glazers normally flip between an offensive and a defensive coach, and they’re sure to get a defensive coach next, who in turn will shutdown the offense, wasting all that talent. Simple fix, said it for 2 years now, remove Dirk as head coach, make Mike Smith the head coach, then get a real DC. Dirk brings nothing to the table as a head coach. Absolutely nothing, and if he was working again, 24/7 on the offense, you’d see improvements there. Or if he just let Monken do his thing you’d see improvements. But no, Dirk had to stick his nose into the offense starting with that Monday night game (well actually starting with telling Monken to run the clock with 8 mins left in the Saints game and nearly let them back into it). Dirk is not head coaching material and his team is never prepared. Mike Smith however is a terrible defensive coordinator, but a proven head coach, and yes dopes, there is a difference. If the team had a real DC and Licht wasn’t going into the season with Ryan Smith and Chris Conte as key players in the defensive backfield, then someone could probably get production out of this unit.
But it’s all for not, Dirk gets fired, Smith gets fired, Monken gets fired, they clean house, go through yet another rebuild, and maybe in 3 years we’re back to 7-9.
October 14th, 2018 at 11:41 pm
How Joe chooses to shift blame from DC to HC vs the freaking dumbass who built the roster, drafted VHIII, Ryan Smith, signed Brent Grimes to another extension is absolutely beyond me.
October 14th, 2018 at 11:47 pm
Rod Munch
Welcome to reality. It’s the glazer way.
October 14th, 2018 at 11:51 pm
Hey joe can you go ahead and start the 2019 draft categories. Its a buc life after all.
October 15th, 2018 at 2:33 am
Reality-is-a-beotch
Still have faith in my Bucs, but this is what needs to happen with 7 picks:
Round 1. DT (there are a lot of em projected in round one)
Round 2. RG (Benenoch is 100% dumpster water. Top RG available)
Round 3. LB (Things could happen with Beckwith, Kwon, and LVD. Build through the draft)
Round 4. RT (Dot’s time is up)
Round 5. DT (More depth after GMC taking a long limp outta OBP)
Round 6. RG (depth or diamond in the rough, o-line is final piece for offense)
Round 7. CB (depth after we hopefully can get a decent vet)
October 15th, 2018 at 4:24 am
@Rod Munch … “remove Dirk as head coach, make Mike Smith the head coach, then get a real DC.” I had also thought (previously) that approach could work, but I don’t any longer. Too much water under the bridge at this point. Glazers have little choice but to let Koetter & Company finish out this season. However, this ENTIRE coaching staff AND GM needs to go soon as the season is over, and with them quite a few players. I’d personally jettison the owners too if I had the choice, but somehow doubt that’ll happen.
Bucs had enough talent available to them yesterday to beat the Falcons, but they crapped all over themselves. Offensively, Jameis threw for a lot of yards (whoopee Joe) but he kept coming up short when we desperately needed a momentum shift. His 2 INTs in the end zone were killers (should’ve been 3 INTs there BTW) & his deep ball inaccuracy continues (those are missed 7-pointers folks). Kept focusing on the OLine & they all looked like zombies … against the most beaten up defense in the league.
Defensively I was beyond disappointed. DLine applied no pressure on Ryan … the kiss of death … and to make matters worse, they couldn’t stop the run when it counted. Our LBs were LOST IN SPACE yet again for most of the game. Soon as Grimes started the game (Davis was out) I knew we were going to lose (and in case anyone noticed, Ryan Smith plays quite a bit more aggressively when Grimes isn’t out there, although he’s still not starting outside CB caliber). The rookies looked as lost as our LBs IMO.
Even our kicker sucked … while the 43-year-older we gave away (yup, Matt Bryant) sealed our fate with a 58-yarder. Sad day in Bucsville. Time to start all over again.
October 15th, 2018 at 7:44 am
This is the one game that I thought Jameis would play up to his potential.
He came back as a slimmer ,quicker runner. I see a QB that would be more at home in a sandlot game. where the pressure is off. It appears that Jameis is playing nervous . There is pressure to play more consistently and complete the
explosive plays and Jameis just is not responding when it counts.
On defense we can’t get enough pressure to affect the QB.,so bad corners
are exposed. Also expected better tackling and coverage from Ryan Smith.
Grimes was a better tackler than Smith, better in coverage but I saw him out of position too often for a corner with his experience.
It appears our best corner is on IR and he has not made it through the last two years without injury.
Jason Licht has not shown the capability to build a roster capable of competing with the better teams even at half strength. His misses in free agency and
misses in the draft have hurt the team. Time for him to go. I don’t see how the coaching staff survives either. It will be up to them to evaluate and improve this team. It might take up to five years this roster,IMO.
October 15th, 2018 at 9:51 am
Tired of watching these to clowns
October 15th, 2018 at 2:26 pm
here comes another ‘breakout game’ for a rookie QB.
October 20th, 2018 at 1:45 pm
Ownership is where all responsibility lies. Chucky was fired after a playoff season-go figure.