Bucky Brooks Thinks Todd Bowles Will Do Just Fine
July 16th, 2022
Good vibes.
Joe remembers how aggravated former Bucs Super Bowl-winning coach Bucco Bruce Arians was that none of his top-flight assistants were hired away by other teams.
Specifically, Arians had his coordinators, Todd Bowles and Byron Leftwich, in mind when he voiced his displeasure. After teams had their coaching staffs filled out, Arians corrected one of the oversights by stepping down to allow Bowles to take his place.
So even if Arians isn’t hands-on any longer and is more of an onlooker, the fact the coaching staff is pretty much in place from last year on a team that earned a No. 2 seed should greatly help Bowles in his first year as head coach.
Bucky Brooks of NFL.com, a former scout and defensive back, believes consistency in the coaching staff will make Bowles’ transition from defensive coordinator to head coach pretty much seamless.
Bowles was dealt a tough hand in his first head-coaching opportunity, going 24-40 with the New York Jets from 2015 through 2018. It’s a lot easier building a champion when you have a seven-time Super Bowl winner at quarterback. With Tom Brady electing to end his brief retirement, Bowles inherits a title contender with a three-time MVP teaching a daily master class in winning football. Although the team will undergo a bit of a learning curve with Bowles taking over for Bruce Arians, the continuity within the coaching staff should ensure stability that allows the Buccaneers to race out of the gate when the regular season starts. If Bowles can get the defense to play at a top-five level, he might help the team add another Lombardi to the trophy case.
Because of this, Brooks believes the assistant coaches returning plus Tom Brady returning to a stacked roster means Bowles has the best chance of all the new coaches for 2022 to make a Super Bowl run.
Who does Brooks have as the No. 10 coach? Why, to no one’s surprise including Joe, that would be lousy Lovie Smith.
July 16th, 2022 at 8:38 am
Joe … ‘Who does Brooks have as the No. 10 coach? Why, to no one’s surprise including Joe, that would be lousy Lovie Smith’.
Shoulda led with that Joe. I’m now very suspicious of Bucky Brooks’ opinions.
July 16th, 2022 at 8:58 am
This is now …TB’s TEAM!
July 16th, 2022 at 9:22 am
DR, the Bucky Brooks article was 10 NEW NFL coaches. Brooks put Lousy Lovie last, as he should be.
Personally, I am shocked Lovie got a 3rd gig as an NFL head coach. But I believe some of that was bc of the Brian Flories lawsuit. Lovie cant even coach in college let alone the NFL. He had to be the worst coach ever for the Bucs.
July 16th, 2022 at 9:30 am
Tennessee ready Smith – made Richard Williamson and Leeman Bennet look like solid hires
July 16th, 2022 at 10:19 am
Didn’t Lovie Smith coach a Super Bowl team in Chicago? He isn’t a lousy coach either. It all just depends on the talent of your roster, coaches and GM. Lovie had nothing to work with in Tampa. I’m not sure he has much to work with in Houston either. Therefore I understand the ranking.
July 16th, 2022 at 10:24 am
Senor Harry … Thanks for clearing that up for me (I thought that Brooks rated Lovie as #10 out of 32).
July 16th, 2022 at 10:25 am
Lovie Smith has proven to be the most horrible coach in football since he left the Bears. Horrible loser with the Bucs, a nepotist and a defense that was historically bad. Tennessee Ready ha! Then he proceeded to Illinois, where he made a bad program worse. He was so bad the university had to eat a ton of his overpaid salary just to fire him.
The Texans being the Texans, they fired the guy who showed some life as a coach in Culley, getting the most out of a terrible roster. Lovie backstabbed Culley and took over. He will be horrid to new levels in Houston, that is money in the bank.
I’ll be shocked if Bowles can coach the Bucs to be a top 10 defense, and would take that gleefully.
July 16th, 2022 at 10:59 am
I too was shocked that Lovie Smith got the Houston head coaching job!
I think Todd will do just fine here as head coach
July 16th, 2022 at 11:42 am
Lovie would be fine if Brady was his QB.
July 16th, 2022 at 11:48 am
@Goat
“I’ll be shocked if Bowles can coach the Bucs to be a top 10 defense, and would take that gleefully.”
Shocked? Really? Perhaps some inventive hyperbole for a sports blog.
If the Buc’s D remains healthy…and I concede that’s a BIG IF..especially given that both our DL studs in the middle have problems with availibility and LVD still has to prove his health…but if we are healthy I think Bowles should have us in the top five.
As they say though your opinion may vary. I’m just curious what you base your “shock” on?
July 16th, 2022 at 12:12 pm
“A team loaded with talent…”
It’s such a pleasant experience to hear that after all the years of rosters devoid of talent. Remember when an Alvin Harper landing in FA made Buc fans go all giddy?
Rear-view mirror…for now.
Enjoy the present and savor every game this season.
July 16th, 2022 at 12:14 pm
IF David is healthy, and the D stays healthy, there is ZERO reason why this bunch cannot be a top 5 defense.
Top 5 D + Top 5 O = a game in February 2023.
July 16th, 2022 at 12:29 pm
Lovie, Leeman Bennet, and Sir Ray Perkins Sir …
The three stooges of coaching.
July 16th, 2022 at 1:29 pm
SPBF – based on last year.
2020 we were extraordinarily lucky on the injury front.
2021 was a reversion to the mean, as injuries happen. We proved that our DB depth was challenged, as anyone’s would be. Todd still called schemes the players didn’t know their assignments on. The blitzes failed, OCs across the league are figuring out the Bowles blitz packages.
2022 — while net depth in the defensive backfield has improved, the front 7 have regressed. After LVD and DW, we have no one. Minter was slow but knew what he and others were supposed to do. Now?
We traded off the consummate, durable leader in Suh for an oft-injured guy with a proven attitude problem if things don’t go as he likes. JPP is gone, leaving the opposite dies of Shaq to a rookie and a headless chicken. Neither the run defense nor the pass rush will be as good as it was in 2020, I’m hoping that it can at least be to last year’s standard. All that rolled up, we’re lucky to be in the Top 10.
July 16th, 2022 at 6:08 pm
Is Goodwin still the Assistant Head Coach? Players love him and I’m kind of surprised he was never talked about in the HC conversation, or seemingly in the “mix” at all..
July 16th, 2022 at 9:04 pm
Every year and team is different. I sure hope bowles does things different than BA, especially where practice is concerned. I think one of the things that drove Brady nuts, was how lax and laid back the practice field was. If you aren’t practicing with a purpose, you’re waisting time. Brady is most comfortable when coaches take over a bit. He’s a creature of habit. Practice should always be goal oriented.