Todd Bowles Explains Change To Defensive Focus
July 22nd, 2025
Change is coming to the Bucs defense, and it started in the spring.
The stop-the-run, stop-the-run, stop-the-run mentality of the Bucs defense has gotten some tweaks.
Head coach Todd Bowles expalined during his sitdown with the JoeBucsFan braintrust (drain?) yesterday at One Buc Palace. Here is part of the exchange.
JoeBucsFan.com: After all the offseason studying and all the steps you take, what’s the difference, however subtle, in Todd Bowles this year?
Todd Bowles: Probably turning more over to our defensive coaches as far as what we want to do. We’ve been heavy run-conscious on a lot of things and we get easily 2-to-1 pass to run. Obviously, we want to stop the run but we want to get more aggressive in the passing game.
Ira Kaufman: How does that manifest?
Bowles: Whether it’s stunting a little bit more, its not a matter of pressuring the quarterback, doing different drills, obviously, trying to get these guys off faster, changing technique a little bit in how their stances are and getting them off the ball quicker. So we’re doing little things like that to try to speed’em up and juice them up and get them going a little quicker.
More context from Bowles via the full interview can be heard on the latest Ira Kaufman Podcast.
The Bucs defense of the Father Dungy/Jon Gruden era had a mindset of stopping the run on the way to the quarterback. It sounds like Bowles is moving more in that direction, and giving players the tools to be pass-defense first machines.
July 22nd, 2025 at 3:14 pm
Like Rice said, keep throwing fastballs. Make them react to you.
July 22nd, 2025 at 3:15 pm
I like the new focus of the defense. Too many times, this Bowles defense has allowed mediocre QBs to have carreer days, enough is enough.
July 22nd, 2025 at 3:26 pm
Of all of the significant developments by Bowles this off-season, this certainly is one of them.
I like it.
July 22nd, 2025 at 4:15 pm
“Whether it’s stunting a little bit more“
Put a smirk on my face, like the grinch. Kancey is a human scud missle on stunts
July 22nd, 2025 at 4:18 pm
Stopping the run is important unless they find that they don’t have to run much. I’m banking that SVD is what they claim he is. Is tomorrow’s practice open to the press?
July 22nd, 2025 at 4:52 pm
Really, it was the defensive play calling, defensive players
That led me to have low expectations of this team last season
No disrespect to anyone,
But KJ Britt your starting MLB
JTS, your starting Edge Rusher
Dean and Zyon your starting Corners
And Kancey “”as usual”” start the season injured
With their less talented starters, and their lack of depth
No person with half of a football mind, would have betted that they win 10 games. This team has new talent on defense, Todd Bowles has to get more aggressive on defense
No more excuses, the time is now
A 36 year old vet shouldn’t be our best defender
We’re going to fix the defense, and win 12 games
We are going deep into the playoffs
The Super Bowl is not unrealistic for us
July 22nd, 2025 at 5:05 pm
Lakeland, I completely agree! Maybe we need a new young leader on D to step up and hold players accountable. Mayfield gets the offense fired up, now we need someone with an edge to fire up the defense.
July 22nd, 2025 at 5:45 pm
All I care about is having the corners play press and disrupting the timing of the routes. Stop giving up 15 yards of grass for free slant passes all game.
July 22nd, 2025 at 6:04 pm
Swag. Needing a little swag on our defense. Playmakers make a play and the whole defense feeds off of that and before you know it they are all in the zone. These guys need to que up some Buccaneer game film from back to 2000 and watch some defense playing with some swag. I think we’re close to seeing some of that and I think that’s what Bowles and Licht are looking for.
July 22nd, 2025 at 6:06 pm
Warren. A human scud middle. How are we supposed to not be fired up!
July 22nd, 2025 at 6:06 pm
Missle.
July 22nd, 2025 at 6:11 pm
JBF … ‘The Bucs defense of the Father Dungy/Jon Gruden era had a mindset of stopping the run on the way to the quarterback. It sounds like Bowles is moving more in that direction.’
That right there says it all Joe. Sounds like Todd will be willing to give a little on Run Defense to improve our Pass Defense.
I look at defenses like last year’s Chargers’ #1 defense and there seems to be some type of a ‘balance’ in terms of priorities. Chargers Ranked #14 in Rushing Yards Allowed and #7 in Passing Yards Allowed. BUT … if you look at Rushing TDs Allowed, they only gave up 7 TDs all season (ranked #1) and allowed 24 Passing TDs (ranked #12). And in the process they only gave up 301 points (but got their butts kicked in the playoffs).
July 22nd, 2025 at 6:16 pm
Lakeland Buc … ‘We’re going to fix the defense, and win 12 games. We are going deep into the playoffs. The Super Bowl is not unrealistic for us.’
Yes, yes and yes. Of course I was one of those fans ‘with half of a football mind, who betted that Bucs would win 10 games’ last season. BTW, we WILL be a TOP-10 defense this year.
July 22nd, 2025 at 6:28 pm
I’m cautiously optimistic but still a bit skeptical.
The head coach is certainly saying the right things this off-season.
I think we picked up some great defensive talent in the draft. It’ll take the rookies a year or two to settle in, but I think they’ll all prove themselves.
Adding Hassan and Anthony at EDGE and LB also shows the team is serious about upgrading the D.
And we made some changes in the defensive coaching ranks.
Is our head coach going to walk the talk?
More aggresive defensive play? Be ballhawks?
That’s where my skepticism comes in.
Personally, I hope he does walk the talk.
Very good things will happen if he does.
July 22nd, 2025 at 6:31 pm
“We’re doing little things to … juice them up.”
Juice?
What variety of “juice” – Lance Armstrong or Lawrence Taylor? One is a 3-5 game suspension the other is 3-5 years in jail. Either way, maybe don’t advertise that you’re juicing players. j/k
Real talk: “That guys has juice.” Is the dumbest saying popularized John Gruden while with the Bucs.
Fun Fact: As of 2024, a small amount of “juice” (ie booger sugar) in Oregon is only a misdemeanor and even encouraged to be completely disregarded by the law unless it’s the culprit to a crime.
July 22nd, 2025 at 7:14 pm
Our edges are playing run first and it’s slowing them down to the QB. Like Rice said, attack with speed and have a counter move ready. Hopefully that’s what Footy is teaching his OLB’s. I bet Reddick is preaching it too.
July 22nd, 2025 at 7:22 pm
The more stacked the defense gets, the less excuses there are. I’m surprised they extended Bowles this early. He’s a good coach but that defense needs to get shored up.
July 22nd, 2025 at 7:42 pm
I want to see what all this looks like on the field this season.
July 22nd, 2025 at 7:46 pm
Honestly it’s better that it is the D versus the offense.
At least Bowles knows how to address it.
Everyone thought it would be the offense that struggled after Brady left.
This team is super close to a SB.
July 22nd, 2025 at 8:25 pm
I’m still trying to get over safeties and corners not watching film together
July 22nd, 2025 at 8:31 pm
Sounds to me like his coaching staff is just as frustrated as many fans are. Running the ball is great, but this isn’t 1993. In the modern NFL, the QB is king, and Bowles’ antiquated beliefs on defense make it way too easy on QB’s.
Until I see someone else calling the defense on game day, I have zero faith that Bowles can change his stripes. He forced zero punts in a playoff game against a rookie QB with one viable reciever on the field.
July 22nd, 2025 at 9:58 pm
Wow. Todd realizes that teams throw twice for every run against him. We’ve seen that for years. Nice he finally noticed.
But “aggressive” against the pass means what? Lining up the soft zones 7 yards of the LOS instead of 15?
Jeenius.
July 23rd, 2025 at 8:54 am
Blah, blah, blah….
Give us a break, Bowles and go coach the saints.
July 23rd, 2025 at 10:23 am
I agree that Bowles and the team has to start employing less “soft” zone coverage. It will be interesting to see how many times we get burned as we are learning a new system.
I expect a learning curve.