TJ Rives Tells Todd Bowles Haters, “Go Away!”
December 2nd, 2025
You won’t ever catch Joe telling a Bucs fan how to be a fan.
If your goal is Tampa Bay winning a Super Bowl, then Joe is not here to judge how you think it’s best to get there.
There are so many different opinions and approaches. It’s a trait of fandom for every professional team. And clashing fan opinions should be celebrated.
In a quest for a Super Bowl ring, the Buccaneers fired a respected head coach, a future Hall of Fame coach, in his prime. The Bucs also fired a Super Bowl-winning head coach after he went 9-7 in back-to-back seasons, the latter of which featured his legendary defensive coordinator announcing he was bolting the team.
Given that history, it’s absolutely logical that some Bucs fans think firing Todd Bowles would be a positive step toward winning a championship.
Joe’s not agreeing with that minority faction of fans today. But essentially, those fans have been conditioned to think that way after Team Glazer fired Tony Dungy (2002) and Jon Gruden (2009).
The Bucs won a Super Bowl immediately after firing Dungy and the Bucs were a 10-win team with a completely overhauled young roster two seasons after firing Gruden.
As Bucs fans who listen to sports radio or dive into the cesspool that is social media know, Bowles isn’t very popular among fans, despite his winning record with Tampa Bay. Those who read fan comments here or follow Joe’s weekly Todd Bowles confidence poll know that as well.
Joe believes the common core among these fans is a belief that Bowles doesn’t have the chops to lead a team to a championship. So that leads some to froth and demand the Bucs move on ASAP so they can try to find a Super Bowl-caliber coach.
Agree or disagree, these passionate fans’ opinions come with the territory and they’re hardly on the level of Sasquatch sightings.
However, longtime Buccaneers employee TJ Rives has a different take.
For decades, Rives has been part of the Buccaneers Radio Network broadcasts as a sideline guy and a host. He’s also hosts an in-season podcast on the team website.
On Sunday, Rives joined Peter Blake of The Sports Web on the field of The Licht House for a postgame chat after the Bucs beat the Cardinals.
It was there that Rives told the Bowles haters to get out of town.
“If you are a Bucs fan and you are rooting for your team to lose, if you are rooting to get the coach fired while you’re 7-5 with everything in front of you with all of these home games, go away. Go away!” Rives urged. “I will hold the door. Leave. The rest of us want to enjoy meaningful football in December and the chance to be in the playoffs. If you want to talk about next year now, go away. There’s opportunity here to be in the playoffs and do damage.”
Joe wonders what would have happened if Rives had barked this from the patio or the bar one mile north of the stadium at Hooters on Hillsborough Avenue. Joe suspects Rives would have gotten some loud blowback and perhaps a few delicious Buffalo shrimp tossed at his head.
Fans are fans. It’s ok to love the coach. It’s ok like him. It’s ok to hate the coach and want him run out of town, or to be lukewarm on the guy.
Nobody needs to “go away.”
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:44 pm
True that.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:45 pm
yea yea yea. join ronde with the tell me how to think club and GFY.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:48 pm
I agree ..Go Away with Bowles Derangement Syndrome…If you lived thru 0-26 and 11 straight 10 loss seasons from 1983-1994 ..Than I will give you a a pass .. But at 56years old I will always take getting in the playoffs and having a chance over I am more deranged about the coach getting fired ..Loose mentality for those usually under 40 yrs old.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:49 pm
Man, you guys HATE Bucs employees. How many times did you mention Jackie last year? Now the new clock/strat guy and now TJ Rives? Sheesh, you guys get spurned for a Bucs job and have an axe to grind? Why make things up? What axe? Newsflash, Joe covers the Bucs, aka Bucs employees. Yes, Joe will write and talk about those in the public eye. Jackie Davidson did a national TV interview last year. Joe has talked about the clock/game-management position, not the person. Rives WANTED everyone to hear this. Don’t blame Joe for sharing. And no, Joe has never applied for a job with the Buccaneers?–Joe
Thanks for the heads up about TJ. Who cares? Everyone has an opinion. I don’t care for Bowles the (sorta)DC. But as a HC…I don’t know I can argue yet. We will see where we end up at the end of the season I guess.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:51 pm
There is a big difference between Gruden’s roster, Arians’ roster & even Dungy’s roster compared to Bowles. Just losing Gronk, Brady & the crazy Antonio Brown, not to mention a ton of star defensive power. The Bucs @ 7-5 are about where this team should be. Very few superstars on this team! They are a grind it out bunch that can win or lose most weeks.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:51 pm
Fans(fanatics) are who they are cheer and boo at what truth they see but all bucs fans are bucs fans just the same and are welcome settle down guy.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:52 pm
1. This must be Pom Pom Joe.
2. I don’t hate Bowles at all. He’s demonstrated to care about his players, his affection for Tom Moore was super classy. He’s known s a player relations guru. It would be awesome to crack a few beers with him. I genuinely like what I know of Todd Bowles, the human.
3. TJ is a Bucs employee. What does anyone expect him to say, “Fire Todd?”
4. I don’t see anyone cheering for the Bucs to lose. Expecting them to lose? Yes, of course. How could you not expect them to lose, especially after the Rams embarrassment in which nobody showed up for their 3rd loss in a row, and then the Vomitous showing against the Cadinals.
5. The man is one game over .500 in his tenure with the Bucs and the alleged defensive mastermind consistently fields one of the worst pass defenses ever. He is 1-3 in the playoffs, including an embarrassing no show against the reeling Cowboys at home in Tom Brady’s last game and an embarrassing loss to a rookie QB where Todd didn’t force. One. Punt. That’s zero punts forced for the math challenged.
6. If the Bucs win out and compete for the NFC Championship, Todd will deserve flowers and the extension he got handed.
7. Missing the playoffs, or sliding in through the back door and getting Rams-beaten one and done……well Glazers fired Gruden a year after giving him an extension so no one should blame the owners if that’s what happens.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:53 pm
No one is telling anyone how to think but the obsession of being able to go I am right about Bowles is over winning games is for losers
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:55 pm
I see no Blame for Licht ..Do you think Bowels has studs at DE or at LB ? He has to do exotic stuff to get pressure..
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:55 pm
I do enjoy having a chance to make the playoffs year in and year out though. Compared to the early years where we were out of it literally in October.
December 2nd, 2025 at 3:59 pm
💯 People that think teams should tank for picks or to fire their head coach are losers.
You guys really think this team would hire an A1 coach? Get real you don’t know what you’re talking about. We fire Bowles, get ready for a 5 year rebuild and losing seasons
December 2nd, 2025 at 4:01 pm
People forget how bad the lost decade was… I have ptsd thinking about it. Is Bowles perfect no do I agree with his Defense no would I take him over Raheem, Schiano, Koetter yes !!! Would I take him over dungy perhaps. Dungy had 4 HOF players and possibly 5 and couldn’t get over the hump ijs