The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday Night Football dropped them further down the NFL standings. After entering the season viewed as the Super Bowl favorite in the NFC, everything is now spiraling out of control in Florida.
Facing questions about his decline, 45-year-old quarterback Tom Brady remained inconsistent on Thursday and the issues that haunted the Buccaneers’ offense all season remained. Tampa Bay is now 3-5, seemingly on the verge of a collapse that could push it out of the NFL playoff picture.
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Immediately after the stunning 21-3 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, head coach Todd Bowles shot down the idea of making changes to the coaching staff. However, hie response changed after the Buccaneers’ third consecutive loss.
Asked during his post-game press conference about potential coaching changes, the Buccaneers’ head coach left the door open to everything and that includes shaking up his staff of assistants.
“We’re going to talk about everything this weekend. When you’re not playing well, everything is on the table for us and we’ll discuss that as a staff.”
Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles on the possibility of making changes to the coaching staff (H/T Pro Football Talk)
It’s not a surprising admission considering what happened in Week 8. The Buccaneers converted just 30.7% of their third-down attempts and went 2-of-5 inside the red zone. Tampa Bay still has the worst rushing offense in the NFL – 61.5 rush ypg – and it ranks 24th in scoring (18.3 PPG).
- Todd Bowles record: 29-45, 3-4 with Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Injuries are no longer an excuse for the offense. Mike Evans, Julio Jones and Chris Godwin are all healthy, with Jones scoring a touchdown and Evans eclipsing 100 yards on Thursday. So, that leaves the coaching staff as the next possible adjustment.
What coaching could be made to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaching staff?
There are a variety of issues with the Buccaneers right now on both sides of the ball. It opens the door for Bowles to go in a variety of directions if he believes new voices are needed inside meeting rooms and on the sideline.
Harold Goodwin is one of the most prominent members of Bowles’ coaching staff, serving as assistant head coach and run game coordinator. Considering the woes of Tampa Bay’s rushing attack, it’s plausible that Bowles assigns Goodwin to another role.
Another candidate would be veteran coach Kacy Rodgers, currently serving as run game coordinator and defensive line coach. After being one of the best run defenses in the NFL for years, Tampa Bay is now allowing over 130 rushing yards per game and four opponents have eclipsed 150 rushing yards in October.
Positional coaches like running backs coach Todd McNair, inside linebacker coach Larry Foote and outside linebackers coach Bob Sanders are also overseeing groups that play a role in the disappointing start. While firings are unlikely, Bowles is clearly open to making changes after a rough start with the midway point of the 2022 NFL season approaching.