Does Todd Bowles Have Time To Develop An Edge Rusher
April 20th, 2026
Bucs coach Todd Bowles.
Here is a hidden reason why “this Joe” would refrain from drafting an edge rusher at No. 15.
Well, the obvious reason for “this Joe” is that when Bucs coach Todd Bowles drafts and develops his next double-digit sackmeister as a defensive coordinator or head coach, it will be his first.
That’s 13 years through three organizations. Call Joe weird, but Joe does not like high-stakes gambling against never (Joe doesn’t even like low-stakes gambling against never).
Wanna pick an edge rusher after the first round, knock yourself out. The pain, if the guy doesn’t break out, is less damaging.
Several rookies in the past decade or so broke out as pass rushers. Beforehand, this was not the case.
Joe doesn’t know if that’s a temporary trend or if colleges have guys ready to battle grown arse men better coming out of college than previously.
Kevin Patra of NFL.com believes if Bowles really does know how to develop an edge rusher, the time is now.
The Bucs have swung and missed on improving their edge rush over the past few offseasons. Getting it right this time around is paramount for Todd Bowles’ crew, which struggled to get after the passer without sending extra men in 2025. Signing veteran Al-Quadin Muhammad was a short-term rotational solution. Tampa needs a heat-seeking missile off the edge to transform the D.
So here is the hidden reason Joe is hesitant to put so much faith, money and effort behind Bowles breaking from his entrenched cycle with rookie edge rushers: Does he have the time?
Bowles just suffered his first losing season that included missing the playoffs. Since Team Glazer bought the Bucs in the mid-1990s, the only coach who survived two straight losing seasons was the same guy who got Team Glazer its first Super Bowl. That would be Chucky.
Every coach since had his One Buc Palace keycard deactivated after two losing seasons.
Does Bowles have the luxury of another losing season in an effort to develop a top-shelf edge rusher when he has yet to demonstrate an ability to do so?
You know, the same guy who when asked about edge rushers, often replies, “We ask them to do other things.”
April 20th, 2026 at 6:02 am
6-11 or 7-10 season coming, hate to say it. I have no faith in the coach anymore. This Joe is right. Todd can’t develop a pass rusher, never has, what makes any of us think he’s going to now ?
April 20th, 2026 at 6:29 am
Joe, I’m with Ira. No edge rushers we’ve drafted have left us to become anything good. That’s like blaming the Bucs coaches for not making freeman and jamies a hof quarterback. You have to pick the right guys. Just like Licht had an ugly run drafting running backs for a while he’s had an ugly run drafting DEs. Im more worried he’s going to pick fhreast talented one. Noah spence, Chris braswell, shoyinka???
April 20th, 2026 at 6:31 am
If JTS or Braswell suddenly become all-pro ELSEwhere I’ll subscribe to this. We’re just using the wrong criteria to select them
April 20th, 2026 at 6:34 am
Now this is a good question. And it is why ‘if’ they take an edge with their first pick it will be Messidore. He is already a good pass rusher so Todd just has to teach him how to drop back and cover RBs running wheel routes down the sideline for 40 yards
April 20th, 2026 at 6:46 am
That’s the nice thing about Mesidor. He doesn’t really need all that much development..
April 20th, 2026 at 6:57 am
Does he have time? He’s going on his 7th season as DC, and 5th as HC, he’s had the time, just not the result. He obviously didn’t turn Shaq, or Jpp into an edge, they came that way. All our edge rushers haven’t developed into anything special under Bowles, that’s not going to change.
April 20th, 2026 at 7:13 am
Licht is drafting for the franchise, not Bowles. This will be Bowles last season, but after he leaves, we will still have Mesidor playing for a new coach who knows how to develop edge guys. Mesidor is also one of the most NFL-ready edge players.
April 20th, 2026 at 7:15 am
ProudBucFan … ‘This Joe is right. Todd can’t develop a pass rusher, never has, what makes any of us think he’s going to now?’
You surely just made ‘this Joe’ feel good, but MAYBE it’s not so much about ‘development’ as it is about what our OLBs are being asked to do in Todd’s hybrid 3-4 defense. And despite that, personally I think that YaYa has ‘developed’ into a quality OLB. I’m also convinced that Shaq ‘developed’ here more-so than he did in Denver (he had 14 sacks in 4 yrs as a Bronco, but 45 sacks in his 5 yrs as a Buc despite injuries).
Bowles’ defenses here have actually been very consistent in terms of the number of sacks they’ve gotten each year … until 2025. From 2019 thru 2024 we got 2019 – 47 (ranked #8); 2020 – 48 (#6); 2021 – 47 (#9); 2022 – 44 (#10); 2023 – 47 (#8); 2024 – 46 (#11) but in 2025 that fell to only 37 sacks (#19).
Easy to see that Bowles’ defenses ranked in the Top-10 in TEAM SACKS from 2019-2023, but fell out of the Top-10 in the past 2 years. Of course, our defense also dropped out of the Top-10 in 2024 (#16) and 2025 (#20). Lots of reasons IMO, but stinky pass rush ranks right up there.
Point being ProudBucFan, Todd Bowles has always been more concerned with TEAM as opposed to INDIVIDUAL stats IMO. Actually the only OLB who’s had 10 or more sacks in any given year has been Shaq (19.5 in 2019 and 10 in 2021), although JPP came close in 2020 (9.5).
Looks like the top pass rusher starting in 2019 has been Cleveland’s Myles Garrett (105 sacks in past 7 yrs – average of 15 sacks/year … WOW). Yet in those 7 yrs the Browns have only had TWO winning seasons, and their defense had an average ranking of a little worse than #18 and averaged only 42 sacks/year as a TEAM, less than Bowles’ Bucs teams did (45 sacks average from 2019-2025).
April 20th, 2026 at 7:15 am
The better question will be, can Mike Tomlin get the guy to unlearn whatever Bowles and Co. try to teach the him in his rookie season?
Bowles is so focused on stopping the run that he castrates the pass rush. Bowles is a dead man walking.
April 20th, 2026 at 7:22 am
Only if Todd can find a Cold Day in Hell !