“The Trick Is To Win While You’re Doing It”
September 6th, 2023
Todd Bowles
Interesting comments from Todd Bowles today during his first game-week news conference of the season.
Bowles talked about how his team is sort of an unknown commodity.
“That’s yet to be determined,” Bowles said when asked to name his team’s strength. “Obviously, you gotta get a lot of kinks out of the way in the first couple of games; the trick is to win while you’re doing it. So we feel like we got a lot of strengths. And until we setttle in to what we are around Week 4 or 5, you know, we’ll see. We feel like we’re great in a lot of areas, but you got to play the games to be sure.”
Joe was intrigued by Bowles talking about a team identity forming around Week 4 or Week 5. Tampa Bay has its bye in Week 5 this season.
It sounds like Bowles is prepared to be patient.
Joe realizes a lot of fans think a quarterback change might be in order if the Bucs don’t start fast. But with a new offensive coordinator, a first-time playcaller, is it reasonable to think the Bucs will start fast, especially facing beastly defenses of the Eagles and Saints in Weeks 3 and 4?
Joe expects Bowles to have a rather steady hand through at least seven games this season. Maybe big changes will come at that point, if necessary.
September 6th, 2023 at 1:51 pm
Very odd season can’t remember a Bucs season where the team was a total mystery
September 6th, 2023 at 1:54 pm
Bowl movement is always patient. Hence his tired demeanor that makes it nearly impossible to rally around.
Why name a captain at this point? Oh that’s right, cause he’s practicing patients on that one too.
Seriously guys, Todd has to go. The Bucs will never amount to squat with him at the helm.
September 6th, 2023 at 2:22 pm
he’s scared to be proven wrong if he says this or that is our strength & then to have it obviously a weakness in the game…
inside , he knows this season is pivitol for him ..
September 6th, 2023 at 2:46 pm
we suck.. lets all meet sunday at 1259 and jump off the skyway together?
September 6th, 2023 at 2:46 pm
We have a lot of new players, a lot of rookies so the character and style of the team will be different. Totally fair and honest statements by Bowles.
September 6th, 2023 at 2:48 pm
Expecting perfection early in the season is unrealistic for all NFL teams. As Coach Bowles put it, you hope you can put some wins on the board while it’s all sorting out. But if you have more Ls the Ws in that first month it’s not the end of the season. Teams often start slow and finish fast.
During Tom Brady’s Super Bowl winning season for the Bucs in 2020, the team started out only 7-5 … hardly league championship performance … but then the Bucs went on an 8-game win streak culminating with a defeat of the favored Chiefs in the Super Bowl whom we’d already lost to back in Week 12 after which the winning streak began.
As to Mayfield he won’t be judged only on Ws and Ls – it depends very much on how well he plays. If he obviously looks lost, and not getting any better, and the Bucs are 0-4, he might get yanked by the bye week. Short of that he probably keeps starting until it looks like he’s a lost cause … or until the end of the season.
September 6th, 2023 at 2:52 pm
The Bucs simply need to hold serve against the Bears at home and then win either the Vikings or Saints game to go into the break 2-2. They’d be in good shape at .500.
September 6th, 2023 at 2:56 pm
Our opponents already know what HC/DC is gonna do before he does it.
September 6th, 2023 at 3:07 pm
He’s right in the sense that these players get so little time actually playing football during the offseason.
I mean – they talk about it a lot – and implement and watch film and do individual drills and walk throughs and half arsed run throughs and play a good bit of underwear 7 on 7 and 11 on 11…
But Blocking, tackling, sacking, hitting – you know – real football are all minimized in the off season and even in training camp now to the point of ridiculous….
So it takes a couple/few live games these days for even the world’s best football players to acclimate their minds and bodies to the fundamentals of actual blocking and tackling.
September 6th, 2023 at 3:27 pm
I was going to be a doctor…but I had no patients.
September 6th, 2023 at 3:39 pm
Sunday can’t come fast enough!!
September 6th, 2023 at 4:54 pm
This team isn’t a total mystery, it’s a top 5 draft pick waiting to happen. 13 rookies on the roster isn’t the formula for a winning season. Neither is your top wideout having a contract dispute. Or a new QB that has been around the block a little bit. It’s just a matter of Williams, Maye, or Penix. I am hoping for Penix, and a return to a throw-first offense.
September 6th, 2023 at 4:56 pm
So he doesn’t know who this team is. Yet he refused to play anyone in the preseason where more competent coaches work some of this out in meaningless games. No Todd will wait until 1/3of the season is gone to do this work. I just don’t get any inspiration or confidence from anything he does or says. Go Bucs
September 6th, 2023 at 6:43 pm
The Saints defense lost a lot this winter. They are not beastly.
September 6th, 2023 at 8:17 pm
“Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.” -Mike Tyson
By the bye there will be a change at QB.
September 6th, 2023 at 11:52 pm
He’s probably not wrong, but yikes man… At least have some confidence and throw out a strength or two.
My suspicion over Bowles’ ability to motivate and galvanized players continues to grow.
September 7th, 2023 at 2:28 am
Bowles speak…I gotta set up my future excuses in case we go 0-4.
Go Bucs!
September 7th, 2023 at 2:29 am
Leftnut is not around anymore to blame it on.
Go Bucs!