Well, that ends that then. The Buccaneers season comes down to a doinked field goal and we all now start doing mock draft after mock draft, as well as whining about what could or should have been. But where did it all go wrong? Because let’s face it, to go out in the Wild Card round isn’t what the Bucs should be doing.
That is by no means throwing shade or disrespect to the Commanders, they played exactly how they have all season to get into the position that were, but as a 4-time NFC South champion (whatever that might mean) the Buccaneers need to do some serious thinking over the now slightly longer off-season.
So where to start? I’m going to go top down from the head coach, as GM Jason Licht will be looked at with the draft talk later.
Todd Bowles (and the defense):
It is very easy to say that the Bucs should pull the trigger on the 10-7 head coach and find someone new, whether in-house or externally. I am of the opinion that he gets another year. But with some kind of changes to support him. And I mean him: Todd Bowles. The Bucs are in a difficult position where their head coach is calling the defensive plays, and our defense is part of what has let us be in the situation we are now in.
Where someone like the Bengals have decided to remove DC Lou Anarumo from his position after they failed to make the playoffs, the Bucs can’t do that as that means firing the head coach. I would then go as far to say that if the Bucs even dared to do this, then everyone would probably be fired with Bowles as the defensive side of the ball would need rebuilding. Which it may well need doing in the long term.
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However, there is another way to look at this. Bowles et al have worked with what they have been given by General Manager Jason Licht and got to the playoffs in consecutive years. More so than any other NFC team in the past five seasons. That is no easy accomplishment for any coach. And look who they have worked with on defense in that time: K.J. Britt, Devin White, Carlton Davis, Logan Ryan, Dee Delaney and Keanu Neal just to name a few. Within that merry bunch there, none remain. We’ve brought back Mike Edwards. Jamel Dean seems to forget most weeks that he needs to use his hands, unless it’s to pretend he needs a trainer for an injury; we’ve got Zyon McCollum who is yet to hit the heights of ‘top CB’.
Now, what I mean by that is, and I may be being hugely disrespectful here, but I really can’t imagine players like Amon Ra St-Brown or Justin Jefferson are sweating over their match up with McCollum in a potential playoff matchup. I think the secondary needs a good, long dispassionate look at itself, from top to bottom.
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I guess my point here is, and it has been a long winded one, is that even with some absolute ham and eggers on defense, Bowles has managed to push through and get the Bucs to the playoffs in consecutive seasons. That has to be celebrated to some extent, irrespective of where they fall short in the playoffs.
All of these points may be used to point in the direction that the Buccaneers may stick with Bowles as a DC purely for ease and continuity. However, what could the Buccaneers do to improve something that if this happens, won’t really change. Well, for me, the answer is that Bowles takes an Arians approach to the situation; he relinquishes the DC play calling to someone new and exciting, cut from the same cloth as Liam Coen. Who that is, I don’t know, but what I do want is to see the defense taken in a different, more efficient direction.
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Bowles’ current batch of coaches are either scared to call him out on his bad play calls, or they are comfortable in the knowledge so long as he stays, wins enough games to get to the playoffs, he will be safe for another year. Or, maybe they are just not all that either. Which for me is a huge problem. And the longer they wait around, the longer they are not proactive to what they want the team to be. Then they will fall further and further behind those elite NFC teams that we certainly are not.
Liam Coen and the offense:
Moving on to the offensive side of the ball, Liam Coen and his offensive team will certainly get their flowers this season. They managed to take the draft picks of Graham Barton, Bucky Irving and Jalen McMillan and turn them into instant stars who look to have a bright future in Tampa. They have got the Buccaneers to be an exciting, mean and mauling offense for the majority of the time. All while Baker Mayfield had one of his best and most dynamic seasons of his career. Watching Baker excites me, I love it when he gets that chip on his shoulder and takes the offense with him and he pulls out fantastic 20 yard run plays or ridiculous throws like the one to Jalen McMillan in week 18.
But, and this is a big but really, why are we having to rely on Baker Mayfield to do something out of this world to win a game? Is it the defense that I have spoken about in detail, or is it something on the offensive side too? I know they have had injuries; the Ravens game will haunt Bucs fans for some time when they lost both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
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But out of that came a next man up mentality that saw Jalen McMillan become the heir apparent to a potentially departing Chris Godwin. Cade Otton turned into prime Gronkowski for three weeks when they needed offensive weaponry. And this is where I have a slight issue with Coen’s offense. It’s like he forgets about people in his offense, and the offense become obvious. I normally write about fantasy football, and nothing gave me more pleasure than saying that Otton was the guy you needed to pick up on waivers. Annoyingly I drafted and dropped him due to injuries in my team, but after those good weeks,
Coen simply forgot about him. Whilst I’m not bothered that it made me look like a mug putting out claims that he will help you down the stretch, it just seems odd to me that Coen and the offense seemed to forget he existed, or that he was a legitimate option. Its not like they were having to make do with Ko Kieft or anyone. Payne Durham was getting in on the action as well in some cases. But Otton should be the focus of that group.
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Then there is the issue of the dreaded Head Coach interviews that Coen has been linked to. If they lose him, just like I hinted at with the defensive side of the ball, they will end up being reactionary rather than being proactive and this is never the right place to be in. An argument can be made that they were late in hiring Coen, and it paid off. But Coen was the guy Baker wanted and look how that turned out. If they don’t get someone similar, who can replicate or enhance what they have already, then they run the risk of going backwards.
GM Jason Licht, Free Agency and The Draft:
Be honest, have you done a mock draft yet? I have. In fact, I think I’ve done at least half a dozen. This week. Which leads me on to what Jason Licht and his team, along with Bowles and Coen, have got their eyes on this offseason.
Are we all of the opinion that Chris Godwin, coming back after his injury, has played his final snap in Tampa? I am taking it at this point that he has. They won’t tag him for a third time, that’s just nonsensical, so I’m taking the route that he’s not going to be here next season.
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So should Godwin go, McMillan replaces him. They’ve had Sterling Shepard on the roster and he’s helped on his vet deal, and let’s not forget, they still have Trey Palmer too. I wouldn’t be shocked if they look to retain a player like Shepard towards the end of the offseason.
They could look for someone like a Tyler Boyd or a Darius Slayton, who are both free agents. I’m not saying that’s who I want, but someone of that ilk. I wonder if someone like a Christian Kirk might be worth a look? He would cost a little more, providing he gets cut of course, which may happen down in Jacksonville. But someone like that would be a massive help to Evans, who can’t do it all, and McMillan who is still learning after his rookie season.
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Anthony Nelson and Joe Tryon-Shoyinka are also likely hitting the market. I would probably look to get Nelson back in the building, but don’t be afraid to walk away if he starts asking for more than he’s worth. Tryon-Shoyinka has not worked out. I feel more annoyed given that they have not had a decent pass rush since that big Shaq Barrett season. And with only two sacks by JTS, he is not worth wasting more time and effort on.
So what do the Buccaneers do?
Well for me the answer is clear. They load up on defense early in the draft. They need to make those first two picks, 19 and 53 the best defensive options they can get. Early on, I’m leaning on a few names, but I’m very much aware that this will change and we are only at January and mock drafts, Combine data and reporting will shape who is favoured and eventually picked.
But for me, as a realistic option at 19 I’m looking towards people like CB Benjamin Morrison out of Notre Dame or LB Jalon Walker out of Georgia.
At 53, and this is very much wish casting as I think he could well go very high in the second round, but they should be looking at someone like J.T Tuimoloau from Ohio. The guy looks incredible. But if not, then go and get some edge rushers in Donovan Ezeiruaku from Boston or Kyle Kennard from Georgia Tech. Ezeiruaku had 16.5 sacks last season and could be the second-round answer to what the Bucs need. Kennard is no slouch either, with 11.5 sacks last year. So, the options are out there and they need to make sure we pick up the right ones on defense to make sure we can complete beyond the NFC.
Overall…
To summarize, the Buccaneers have a lot of work to do even before they potentially lose the OC to a Head Coaching job. They have issues on the defense that I think don’t go away if nothing changes behind the scenes. They have to address this in the draft as well as being proactive in Free Agency. Otherwise, they just simply become playoff fodder for anyone who makes it in the NFC, being picked off in the first round every time. That is of course providing that the other NFC teams, who ran the Buccaneers close in most games, don’t make bigger gains than Buccaneers fans would care to admit. I, and every Bucs fan, will watch on with interest.
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They need to move on from Bowles. They keep saying he led us to 4 division championships. Keep in mind we are in the weakest division in the NFL. We won the division at 8-9 record. He can’t manage the clock, he sucks as defensive coordinator. Move on.
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