Another Finger Pointed To Bucs’ Tough-Practice Culture
January 22nd, 2023
“Julio, I never really liked that little guy.”
Todd Bowles said last week that he’s looking forward to changing the Bucs’ culture next season, which sure seemed like a bizarre take with Tom Brady on the roster since 2020.
Brady, per seemingly everyone with a key card to One Buc Palace, was the ultimate tone-setter and culture-changer for the Bucs. So why the change? That will baffle Joe for a long time.
One thing Bowles doesn’t want to change, Joe suspects, is how seriously the Bucs take practice. From Brady to Bowles to everyone in between that Joe’s heard, the Bucs had a great practice culture this season and shoddy work and preparation was not their problem.
Joe was reminded of this upon hearing Bills receiver Cole Beasley on The Pat McAfee Show last week. Beasley was signed by Tampa Bay early this season but bolted for retirement after a few games. It was an odd departure because he unretired and signed with Buffalo. In between he was open about how much he wanted to play with Brady.
McAfee asked Beasley why he retired and unretired so quickly. Beasley replied instantly saying the Bucs wanted him to work too hard.
“Tampa Bay had me doing 45 plays in one practice. I couldn’t hold up,” Beasley said.
Joe realizes Beasley might have been joking, but Joe highly doubts it.
Joe wonders if a Brady return for 2023 might make it harder to find cheap free agents to bolster the offense? The lure of Brady and working like a dog to play with him might have worn off after the Bucs went 8-10 and Brady’s game slipped.
As for Beasley, it seems he went soft/melted in Tampa. So Joe is glad he quit.
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:29 pm
Practice!!! You talking about practice!!!
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:30 pm
Oh, so now its practice was too hard? That’s why they played poorly?
This is a joke.
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:39 pm
So Beasley went back to the Bills who lost to the Bengals today to end their season. They lost by 17 points to the Bengals – and they only managed to score 10 points in the game. I guess having a mobile quarterback with a canon arm (Josh Allen) might be overrated – it’ll be interesting to see if Josh takes the same ‘he’s done’ criticism that Brady always seems to command after sub par outings. Ooops, sidetrack – Beasley was a big disappointment for the Bucs – was hoping for so much more at the time.
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:44 pm
Todd Bowels,
If any “culture” needs to be changed it’s your coaching style because you are the one who is supposed to be creating an environment where everyone can become the best version of their self–that’s a head coach’s job. You should always be the first person you point your finger at to blame because you are the head coach, so stop with the “it was everyone’s fault but me” act, that’s terrible leadership–you wanted the head coaching job so accept the responsibility that comes with it. Wear and tear on the human body is irrefutable, so if our players tell you that you’re working them too hard then listen to them. Work SMARTER, not harder “scaredy cat”.
-A Frustrated Bucs Fan
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:44 pm
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Watching our guys play this year, it just looked joyless. Especially for Brady. Talk about tone setters, that sour puss face he had all too often, it had to rub off on some guys. Bowles wants to change culture? Start with that.
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:48 pm
The biggest takeaway from this is the fact Brady pushes his team to play and practice at the highest level possible.. Makes you wonder if some of these players didnnt have the same passion Brady had.
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:53 pm
Hard practices? These guys hardly hit anymore during the week. If it’s conditioning we’re taking about, then it certainly didn’t show up in games. I remember this narrative once Bowles took over. They were going to practice hard and with purpose. It Didn’t really matter.
Cassius, agreed on Allen. That team is built for a dome, not Orchard Park. Roflmao
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:54 pm
I think Bowles is referring to how the Bucs players walked around like they were the 90s Bulls. Entitled, and felt they had so much more talent that effort wasn’t important. Names on the back of a jersey don’t make a team and that’s all the Bucs were this year – big name players on the back 9.
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:57 pm
Brady told Irving that they didn’t even practice with one on ones
January 22nd, 2023 at 6:57 pm
Fans can only express their opinion of Bowles record and whether he is the best option this time of year. The Glazer’s certainly could not think that Bowles and an offseason with a few new coaches is the fundamental change that needs to happen this offseason.
Bowles has failed
January 22nd, 2023 at 7:08 pm
Bucs took a number 2 with Bowels.
January 22nd, 2023 at 7:09 pm
They sure as hell didn’t spend time stretching.
January 22nd, 2023 at 7:20 pm
Here comes the clown culture.
January 22nd, 2023 at 7:22 pm
I wonder if these hard practices is why the Bucs have had so many injuries the last 3 years.
January 22nd, 2023 at 7:27 pm
lol.. it is impossible to have physically hard practices in the NFL during the season.
January 22nd, 2023 at 7:58 pm
Maybe that’s why we had so many injuries was from grinding these old nursing home vets to hard. I mean damn there hamstrings barely hold up to begin with. This team is a damn dumpster fire. Get us some professional coaches and some younger players that can hold up with the longer NFL schedule.
January 22nd, 2023 at 8:08 pm
SB~LV is correct there are certain rules set for practices.
January 22nd, 2023 at 8:49 pm
Beasley was a weird freak.
he got the Bucs just to be able to say he caught a few from the GOAT.
January 22nd, 2023 at 8:52 pm
Ray Perkins did 3-a-day practice’s. I’m going to guess those players would think the current Bucs practice habits are a joke.
January 22nd, 2023 at 8:54 pm
Fansince76 Says:
January 22nd, 2023 at 8:49 pm
Beasley was a weird freak.
———–
I didn’t see this at the time, but he gave an interview saying that the Bucs had no plans to use him, and he was going on the practice squad, so he went home.
January 22nd, 2023 at 9:15 pm
It might explain the health of our wide receivers
January 22nd, 2023 at 9:30 pm
If you’re afraid of working, we don’t want you in Tampa.
January 22nd, 2023 at 9:33 pm
The coaching staff had everyone working like busy idiots.
amazing
January 22nd, 2023 at 9:37 pm
I am skeptical about this take. I think that our starters don’t practice much and that was our problem and the bottom of the roster guys like Beasley would have been get all the reps and that’s why the offence has chemistry issues.
January 22nd, 2023 at 9:53 pm
The OC is gone and I think it’s time to move on from Brady also. I am not the only person who saw all those poorly thrown passes this year. It is time to retire sir. Yes that will definitely be a culture change. We have a 2nd round qb pick that has been riding pine for to many seasons. Get his ass out there and LFG
January 22nd, 2023 at 10:01 pm
Geez how was it they always looked so unprepared I dont even know what to say to this so many missed assignments from coverage to offensive execution.
January 22nd, 2023 at 10:20 pm
When a leader is as clueless as Bowels is, they say desperate things in order to “fake it.” Such are Bowels statements on culture change. Did anyone ask him to elaborate? If not, then how do you know he wasn’t just blowing smoke?
January 22nd, 2023 at 10:25 pm
Beasley didn’t go soft. He just dtpidnt want to reason the true reason he left because it would be too disparaging.
January 22nd, 2023 at 11:20 pm
Practicing hard is irrelevant if you don’t prepare properly. This physical wasn’t the issue it was the mental that made this team so bad
January 23rd, 2023 at 12:56 am
¿You think practice is too tough? ¿Have we really gotten this soft as a society? Absolutely depressing, need to cheer myself up with a BroMosA….
January 23rd, 2023 at 7:09 am
4-13 next season.
January 23rd, 2023 at 7:30 am
DG060 at best.
January 23rd, 2023 at 12:58 pm
You got Rooney ruled Tampa, you are done for a decade. Bowels is terrible, horrendous as a HC. That’ll teach you to be a red state
January 24th, 2023 at 1:04 am
However tough it is, they must repeat the same mistakes over and over in slow motion. They have it perfected on the field.
January 24th, 2023 at 8:23 am
Lots of finger pointing after a lousy season. Hard to pinpoint the one big factor, but team morale had to be a big part of it. Poor coaching resulted in sloppy effort and poor execution and low morale. Towards the end even Brady looked way down. It was really hard to watch how bad the whole season began and never improved.