Todd Bowles Named As Best Bucs Pass Rusher
June 25th, 2025
Intriguing data-driven take here by a retired NFL defensive back who logged seven years in the league.
Domonique Foxworth spent seven his career with the Broncos, Faclons and Ravens before securing a Harvard MBA and working in executive roles with the NFL and NBA players associations.
Smart dude. Foxworth is now an ESPN personality and host, so perhaps it’s worth noting that during a deep dive on The Mina Kimes Show this week, he ranked the 2025 Bucs as the seventh-best defense in the NFL.
Foxworth based much of his reasoning on data “from Week 9 on” last season while removing forced turnovers from the evaluation.
He claimed the Bucs defense was ranked sixth in EPA per play, and he said the Bucs still had a strong EPA even on non-blitz plays. For those flummoxed by “EPA,” it’s not a government agency tasked with monitoring ozone. It’s a stat metrick that Joe understands but not one that’s worthy a nerdy explanation here. Simply put, Joe finds EPA to be a reasonable metric for grading a defensive or offensive unit, but not when it’s applied to individual players. EPA looks at a unit’s yardage output — or prevention — and factors in field position and down and distance.
Foxworth added he likes how well the Bucs are coached and he believes the Bucs aren’t blitzing out of desperation as many claim.
Pressed by Mina Kimes about Bucs edge rushers, Foxworth countered that plenty of teams with good pass rushers have poor defenses.
“Todd Bowles, his schemes are the best pass rusher,” Foxworth said.
For those wondering, Foxworth has a lot of respect for Jamel Dean, as many stat geeks do.
June 25th, 2025 at 1:58 pm
Great news and loving it. Todd is the best! It’s going to be the Bucs year. Feeling it.
June 25th, 2025 at 2:11 pm
Bucs would be much better at pass rushing if Bowles did not use edge rushers as DBs.
June 25th, 2025 at 2:16 pm
Took me a minute to figure out what this actually meant. The headline at first looks like a misprint of some sort….
Its still a little confusing and/or convoluted but I believe the bottom line is this Foxworth guy thinks Todd Bowles is an excellent defensive coach and has some ‘advanced’ stats from the second half of last season to prove it.
And the headline is reflective of dude’s (correct) contention that Bowles gets pressure and sacks whether he has stud pass rushers up front or not…
As every year since Todd took over the defense in 2019 the Bucs have gotten between 45>50 sacks. Both with and without good edge rushers.
Last year was WITHOUT a decent edge rush – but the sack #s were still good overall – thus making Todd’s SCHEME the “Bucs Best Pass Rusher”….. I guess…. LOL
Hopefully Reddick and Diaby will be able to bring enough heat rushing just 4 guys that Todd can do more ‘scheming’ from the backfield with 7 in coverage this year.
June 25th, 2025 at 2:29 pm
O boy…. Sure. Yeah, really great.
I’m reminded of something I just can’t believe much less get out of my mind. And that’s the last game of the last year and our Utter inability to force a single position changing punt.
I’m told Only the weakest or “top of the bottom” defenses could pull off that feat.
It would be perfect if the goal was to keep us as far away from scoring as possible and to keep the opposition as close as possible to scoring.
I ALWAYS heard that 3 and OUT was the MINIMUM Objective for ANY and ALL defensive units in the history of the game. Who knew those fools were wrong about that all this time OR “Strategy SURE HAS CHANGED!”
Top six defense according to who? Did this guy actually watch any of the games? You know the ones. The ones were the Middle of our defense was CONSTANTLY WIDE OPEN! And did this fella miss the stat that shows us of being the proud owners of THE 29TH RANKED SECONDARY IN ALL OF FOOTBALL?
Times they are a changing. (Into Bizarro World)
He IS Smoking some Very VERY GOOD STUFF!
June 25th, 2025 at 2:35 pm
Also…. 17.66 ppg last 9 games 😳
Objectively very good job by the D, regardless of some “fans” often repeated statements to the contrary.
To quote several other commenters “results matter”.
June 25th, 2025 at 2:38 pm
Pickgrin … ‘Hopefully Reddick and Diaby will be able to bring enough heat rushing just 4 guys that Todd can do more ‘scheming’ from the backfield with 7 in coverage this year.’
Would absolutely love for the Bucs to be able to do that consistently this year Pickgrin. I keep thinking that we could pull it off rushing 5 (say Vea, Kancey, Hall, Reddick & Diaby), but rushing 4 might be a little ‘light’ against many of the quality NFL OLines. Also wondering how effective it’d be if Vea & Kancey were on the bench (those other 35-40% of the plays we’ve gotta deal with).
June 25th, 2025 at 2:50 pm
L.Hall showed some improvement in his pass rushing skills…
he and vita should work magic imo…
i would like to see kancey on the edge on 1st or 2nd down…
KANCEY, VITA, HALL, REDDICK on the early downs…
YAYA, VITA, KANCEY, REDDICK on 3rd down….
GO BUCS!!!!
June 25th, 2025 at 2:54 pm
OK…..It’s content but not reality. Bucs defense effort other than run stopping, provided you ignore Derrick Henry, was abominable last year. No way can anyone put lipstick on that pig.
A defense that drops a 375Lb Vita Vea into coverage is really just outsmarting itself.
June 25th, 2025 at 3:18 pm
@Gipper
With all due respect, dropping linemen into coverage occasionally is not a Todd thing. Many DCs do similar. It may not have resulted in a bunch of sacks but no one has yet presented a single play where that strategy resulted in direct, negative results.
PPG is the bottom line statistic.
June 25th, 2025 at 3:55 pm
WEAK ON 2 LEVELS
1. Bowles “schemes” never get pressure when the game is on the line. The whole notion here is a farse.
2. Not a single OLB was worthy of making the list so they had to use a copout.
How humiliating is this for Buc pass rushers and player development crew?
June 25th, 2025 at 4:01 pm
Glad Jamel Dean got some kudos too. Since Todd hired a director of football research, the clock/game management will improve this season.
June 25th, 2025 at 5:04 pm
GoneGator Says:
June 25th, 2025 at 3:18 pm
@Gipper
With all due respect, dropping linemen into coverage occasionally is not a Todd thing. Many DCs do similar
================================
I must have forgotten but now it is coming back to me how effective the Bucs pass defense was last year. Kirk Cousins had career days and, not once, but twice, he beat those complicated pass rush, coverage schemes. When he wasn’t playing Tampa he was in the process of losing his starting job. The entire Bucs pass defense whether we are talking about DB’s, safeties and dropping defensive tackles into coverage was pathetic last year. Don’t know anyone other than silly stat guys who would disagree.
June 25th, 2025 at 5:09 pm
If our D improves to be anywhere close to 7th best, we will not only likely be the #1 seed in the NFC, we will probably be a favorite to win it all.
June 25th, 2025 at 5:11 pm
Well just WOW!
“Somebody”, (We’ll just call this fan “Rose Colored Glasses”) mentioned dropping linemen into coverage. I think you left out 300+lbs. Lineman to cover TE’s and receivers that literally RUN CIRCLES around the mentioned linemen. I’d say the “content certainly Does Matter” on that one.. And it’s classified as a “Common Man Moment”
Hang on a minute…. I need to see things a little differently. I’m gonna put me on these here Rosey Colored Glasses…. All right that’s better. Now what was I saying?
I’m not sue what I’m concerned about. Todd Bowles is in a master class of his own. Shoot, some of you people are Crazy! If we remove Bowles we may never win again..!
For instance when they removed Dungy (WHO ACTUALLY HAD A TOP 5 DEFENSE) and put Gruden In, well We WON OUR VERY FIRST SUPER BOWL IMMEDIATELY! And Changed our history for the SO MUCH BETTER!
Oh, wait a minute… ummm durr uhhh.
It’s these Rosey Colored Glasses! I Just CAN’T Think Strait when I put them on…..
June 25th, 2025 at 5:50 pm
Weren’t we like #7 in sacks without a double digit sacker and DTs leading the way. That means we got sacks from many places. That’s Todd Bowles!
June 25th, 2025 at 6:13 pm
@Gipper
You’re switching gears…. My comment to you was specifically regarding dropping line men into coverage.
You respond by bringing the much broader topic of the pass defense into the conversation instead of what I was actually talking about. DROPPING Linemen.
Anyway, like I said, I don’t think there are ANY SPECIFIC EXAMPLES where dropping a lineman resulted in a big play by opponents offense. Not saying it’s a good thing to do, just pointing out that it’s pretty widespread strategy in the league.
June 25th, 2025 at 6:20 pm
The defense was about as effective as a Mike Smith defense last year.
June 25th, 2025 at 7:01 pm
Did any if you guys giving probs to TB watch out last game? Mobile qb’s destroy this team . I am a bucs fan but it’s alm hype and bs for the next few months
June 25th, 2025 at 7:02 pm
Auto correct strikes again
June 25th, 2025 at 7:14 pm
This defense is good with proven pass rush if not he puts de in zone honestly it’s not great but big plays don’t happen but small play with right players can go far just saying I fell like everyone is mad but not mad at the pass rush because they aren’t elite people like to talk about our sb year we had 3 most likely hall of famers on dline suh jpp shaq we getting back to that so relax
June 25th, 2025 at 7:54 pm
OR Buc: That means we got sacks from many places.
That’s what she said.
June 25th, 2025 at 11:26 pm
As I understand it we finished 6th in the league in total defensive sacks. Pretty good IMO and it underscores the theme to this piece.
If we can get more from the edge and tighten up on the outside.
I think a d coach of Todd’s ilk should be able to handle that given health
June 25th, 2025 at 11:36 pm
How many times did the D give a late game drive to lose?
It happened too many times,
Including watching Wash go down the field very easily, running out the clock and kicking a field goal to beat the Bucs in the Playoffs.
Those Defensive stats mean a hill a beans if you are a paper tiger at crunch time.
Hopefully things will change.
Speaking of good defense, the Bucs keeled down 8 straight games including the SB.
That is because the D would stop the other teams and give the ball back for Brady to Ice the game.
The offense will be fine in 2025
The defense needs to carry their weight, if they step up, the Bucs are legit SB contenders.
If the Defense does not step up, then divisional Rd of Playoffs is the ceiling.
Time will tell……
GO BUCS!!!!!!!!
June 26th, 2025 at 4:11 am
One thing I will always give credit to Bowles for is his ability to manufacture sacks. We have been missing the likes of JPP and Shaq and he has somehow managed to get sacks in other ways. My only problem with this is it stresses other areas of the defense. Such as dropping a 260 lb OLB into coverage in order to bring someone else on a “blitz”.
Go Bucs!