Public Messages To Bucs Players Sometimes Irk Fans
April 18th, 2026
Jason Licht’s messaging.
Leave it to one of Joe’s loyal readers to perfectly capture in an AI illustration what goes through Bucs fans’ minds when they hear Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht’s sometimes confusing if not crazy words (on face value) for his team and individual players.
In the past 14 months or so, including this week, Licht has had some doozies.
* Chris Braswell will shock people. Licht didn’t mean fans needed shock therapy after watching Braswell try to chase quarterbacks.
* The Bucs are excited about edge rusher David Walker. Mind you, Walker has yet to complete a padded practice on the NFL level, much less play in a worthless preseason game or even a regular season game.
* Bucky Irving is a team leader. That was an eye-opener.
* Licht gets the vibe from his roster that it’s capable of a Super Bowl appearance in the near future, similar to the feels he had for other teams he worked for when they were about to bust out and make a run. This got a ton of reaction from Bucs fans, very little positive.
After Licht’s pre-draft media availability this week, fans freaked out over what Licht said, specifically the Super Bowl vibe.
Yes, even Joe had a hard time swallowing that line when the Bucs just lost two future Hall of Famers, one on each side of the ball, and let their best corner walk to Pittsburgh.
(The Bucky line is the one that really threw Joe for a loop.)
But this is what Joe has figured out about Licht: It’s not that Licht disrespects fans or wants to give them a verbal backhand. It’s that Licht is far more concerned with the attitude and mindset of his players.
And when Licht says crazy stuff about his team that makes you wonder if he’s on the sauce when he speaks, he’s using his very public forum to let players know the team has their back. Messages from teams through the media to players are as old as the NFL itself.
Braswell had an invisible rookie season? Don’t worry, we’ve got your back man. Walker blew out his knee right away? Just focus on your rehab, we’re with you. You’ll be fine. Bucky has a rough second year? Keep your chin up, Buck. You’re still our bellcow.
How will the Bucs do as a team without Mike, Lavonte and Jamel? You can still win a Super Bowl if everyone busts their tail and does their jobs. Relax, guys.
So yeah, as the exceptional graphic designed by Bucs fan @SaltyBuc91 below shows, Bucs players likely love it when they hear their general manager fight for them in a press conference. Meanwhile, Bucs fans scowl, wondering why their team’s GM is losing touch with reality.
Fans want Licht to be like their high school coach and call out those who may need a boot in the tail. They want straight scolding, not coddling.
Licht’s not going to do that. And while Licht likes to be liked by everybody, he’s more concerned with players’ attitudes than the court of public opinion.
And that’s why Licht will say something from time to time that has Bucs fans tilting their heads sideways the way a puppy will when it hears a strange, shrill sound.
Joe had a photojournalism class in college once. The professor asked students to bring an example of a current news photo that had “impact” and told a story. Joe brought in two: one from the Iran-Iraq War that showed soldiers celebrating in the foreground with a burning tank in the background. The second was a boxing photo with a boxer’s hand smashing his opponent’s face.
Joe’s professor loved the examples. In that same way, Joe loved @SaltyBuc91’s graphic of Baker Mayfield thanking Licht for having his back publicly while a Bucs fan stands in the background and scowls and looks offended. 
April 18th, 2026 at 12:13 am
I think Jason’s comments are as much for his own benefit as it may be for others. It sure sounds like he’s trying to soothe his own worries and concerns and he certainly needs to be concerned.
April 18th, 2026 at 12:23 am
Jason could have done the thing that would give his players and fans reason to have hope and be excited. He didn’t.
When he is a fired ex-GM in 9 months, I hope his fired failed ex-doublecoach and his nepo-baby buy him some beers.
April 18th, 2026 at 12:39 am
I’ve always said sometimes you could probably put some random person on the street up there in the front office & they’d probably do just as good.
April 18th, 2026 at 1:02 am
Joe, this is one of your best articles. On the money.
April 18th, 2026 at 1:13 am
Thank you!
April 18th, 2026 at 1:19 am
Licht is in cya mode. What’s he supposed to say? That the players he drafts and acquires through free agency suck.
April 18th, 2026 at 2:33 am
yeah 4 wins 2026, it is what it is, keep Bowles on the roster and now Bucs get 4 wins fafo
April 18th, 2026 at 4:00 am
I agree that he’s probably paying lip service to his own choices and trying to support the players he has invested in. and most of it doesn’t seem too reassuring.
but that sad, if just a few of these guys he mentioned turn the corner and break out… ie bmo, walker, and whoever we take this draft… and we win let’s say 10 to 11 games this season… then 90% of these swing vote bucs fans hating on licht now will be shouting his praises from their little houses surrounding the licht house where he will sit resting easy on his laurels as a widely regarded sharp nfl gm.
the nfl is tough, man. IF we go 2 seasons with a negative record and most of the early draft picks are busts then i’ll worry… but right now, in just the last two drafts, we got buka, jmac, bucky, tykee, barton, parrish… all already looking super promising early. more than half the league would kill to be able to say that.
April 18th, 2026 at 4:15 am
Your 2 of your 3 players had very little impact in 2025 and others will pickup the slack I still see this team doing something in the playoffs this year if injuries don’t wipe them out
April 18th, 2026 at 4:18 am
Just go EDGE Mesidor rd1, ILB Hill Jr rd2, CB Igbinosun rd3, TE Trigg rd4, G Stephens Rd5
April 18th, 2026 at 4:21 am
Then we can 4get about Braswell, Dennis, Dean, have another TE and not bank on Walker hope. Take WR rd6, holes filled and our Roster would look a lot better
April 18th, 2026 at 4:30 am
A Super Bowl team needs 3 strong Edge rushers
April 18th, 2026 at 4:36 am
Last thing Bucs need to do in this draft is waste a 2-5 round pick on another reach bust of an Edge. Yaya was a rare gem in the 3rd
April 18th, 2026 at 5:16 am
I worry about players that need their egos massaged.
April 18th, 2026 at 5:50 am
2-7
3rd and 28
4th and 14
Mike
Coverage busts even when it’s obvious.
🤡
April 18th, 2026 at 6:31 am
Bowles is 59-73 as a HC, and 1 playoff win in 8 seasons. I’m no math major, but isn’t that considered below average.
April 18th, 2026 at 6:40 am
And that 1 playoff win in 2023, was against an eagles team that lost 5 of their last 6 regular season games. Not trying to be a Bowles basher, just trying to make it make sense why he is still our coach.
April 18th, 2026 at 6:54 am
Also, Licht paying McCollum before the start of last regular season was yet another super head scratcher. I guess he thought he was going to shock the world last year, and worried his price would skyrocket. I know, hindsight and all, but how did that turn out?
April 18th, 2026 at 6:59 am
Maybe Joe, but I think he really believes what he’s saying. These are his guys. Only a true believer in this roster would’ve paid Zyon early. Licht really thought Zyon could be a pro bowl player. I don’t think many fans thought that. Joe, you think he said Brasswell will shock the world to build his confidence up? I think he really believed it. No Licht isn’t trying to send positive messages to his players through the media, he really believes what he”s saying. That’s been part of our problem, Licht believes this is a superbowl roster, and Bowles is the coach to get us there.
April 18th, 2026 at 7:04 am
This is silly. Part of Licht’s job is to get people excited for Bucs football. Very few if any GM’s ever speak negatively about their own players. First of all, it would reflect negatively on themselves. Secondly, it would cause more strife and drama at One Buc. Neither of those outcomes are conducive to playing good, cohesive and complementary football- so it’s pointless to do it. If you want to question a player’s development do it in person and without others present.
April 18th, 2026 at 7:18 am
Meanwhile, Bucs fans scowl, wondering why their team’s GM is losing touch with reality.
So Joe says this and it’s “ his best work”. I post that Bud Licht is FOS, and get reprimanded.
Crazy times we live in.
April 18th, 2026 at 7:22 am
Maybe the superbowl vibe comment was him trying to set an expectation for players because he and TB were giving an expectation from his Glazer bosses.
He should keep in mind gaslighting fans turns them away. I personally want to see how Brasswell plays this year without that shock the world monkey hanging around his neck. He had way more talent coming out of college than Logan Hall and JTS so maybe he really needs to be used a little differently or cannot handle the scheme. I do know Saban is a way better coach than TB and he thinks Brasswell can play. Edge guys typically start playing their best by year 3 or 4
Because every left or right tackle in the NFL is way better than every one they played against in college so it’s a big adjustment
April 18th, 2026 at 7:25 am
Mike and Lavante weren’t particularly helpful last year, and sucked up a LOT of money that we can now pay to people who ARE. I guess I’m not very sentimental
April 18th, 2026 at 7:28 am
Licht is the good cop. He uses a carrot, instead of a stick. Maybe what he should’ve said about Braswell is, if he doesn’t shock the world he won’t be a Buc! There’s two ways to motivate.
April 18th, 2026 at 7:29 am
Agree. The Braswell, Walker and especially the Irving comments are perplexing.
“It’s not that Licht disrespects Bucs fans or wants to give them a verbal backhand or that he is talking down to them. It’s that Licht is far more concerned with the attitude and mindset of his players.”
Joe, I see your angle—player motivation.
But the players are human too. If we can easily see through this mass of BS, don’t you think his comments anger in lieu of motivating his players?
A blind man could see through Licht’s feeble praising of something that does not exist. And surely the team does too, especially due to its outrageousness.
Wouldn’t the players talk among themselves, wondering if their GM is “all there?” Is he insulting player intelligence?
Unless a member of the referenced three, my guess is there’s not a single team member who doesn’t know that Braswell plays under a Klingon Cloaking Device, Walker has never played at all, and Bucky bucks the system, a far cry from its promulgating mouthpiece.
Joe, I think you are being far too kind in affording Jason Licht with the benefit of the doubt.
April 18th, 2026 at 7:29 am
He may want to concentrate on creating a fire instead of sugar coating things. The sugar coating has created a culture of quit as displayed the second half of last season.
April 18th, 2026 at 7:41 am
I don’t care what he says. I care about the team I see on the field.
April 18th, 2026 at 7:54 am
1 out of 10
April 18th, 2026 at 8:03 am
Why cant Licht tell these lies to the players to their faces, why use the media? Seems like a waste of words and makes him look disillusioned. I’m less concerned about his nonsensical comments and more focused on his drafting and scouting talent…or lack thereof. Frankly, if he drafted better and managed the cap better (not extending contracts of bad/mediocre players) he wouldn’t need to say stuff like this. Has a player ever mentioned that hearing their GM talk about them in random interviews boosts their confidence about themselves? If a player needs that then thats a problem in itself.
This Bucs team is all talk and bad execution. From the GM to the HC to the QB. Its a Bucs life.
April 18th, 2026 at 8:07 am
Man, Joe. You really had to do some contortions there to CYA for JL. I don’t know which is worse if he really believes all that spew or if it is all smoke screen to make himself look better. Regardless, he has no respect for Bucs fans. He could not care less what the fans think, but has somehow fooled most into thinking he has done some miracle job as GM.
April 18th, 2026 at 8:51 am
If Jason Licht catered to fans the Bucs would be the bottom feeders in the NFL. Fans are entitled to opinions and nothing more. As far as sports writers, the one’s who are knowledgeable carry weight in the sports world. For the sports writers who write to disrupt rather than inform fans is all together a different story.
April 18th, 2026 at 8:53 am
licht is a company man executing glazers payroll strategy . that strategy relies on good drafting if he cant to that anymore or lost the staff that was instrumental in helping him then this no free agent spending wont work anymore.
April 18th, 2026 at 8:53 am
Funny how when he gets the grocery lists from Canales, Coen, Grizz and other offensive coaches over the years, he typically brings home the goods to make something special. Yet when he gets the grocery list from Bowles, those players who are brought in miss at a much higher rate.
Coincidence? Highly doubtful.
This time around I hope JL learns to lock toilet bowels in the closet and draft defensive players that will thrive in any system..because trying to draft guys specific to what Bowles wants and hope Bowles can develop them, just hasn’t worked out.
April 18th, 2026 at 8:56 am
Probably the most insightful thing I’ve ever seen you guys write with regard to the team/fan politics. So much better than when you guys try to connect the dots in a weird way between some filler statement Lich makes at a news conference and a conspiracy theory.
April 18th, 2026 at 9:03 am
Way, Way harsh on our GM. Everyone knows 2020-2022. And a Super Bowl. In 2023 tied in the 4th qtr of game to reach NFC championship game. In 2024 lost on a field goal that clanked off the uprights to a playoff team that went into Detroit with a rookie quarterback and hung 45 points on the Lions the following week. So 2025? Our entire offense was gutted. Day one! And the rookie OC was saddled with a job that maybe was an impossible task. Even when a guy would get healthy, the offense didn’t have the field time together to gel, not even a little bit. Jason Licht has been the GM throughout and he’s put together, far and away, the best 6 year run in team history. Of course he is proud of his picks, and the team he has built. And he definitely believes this team has the potential to be a top contender this year. It’s great that he knows where we need improvement to our team and that he is addressing it. He’s reaching the prime of his career and I’d like to announce that Licht and Bowles are gonna shock the world this season. Get JRod! Get McDonald! Go Bucs!
April 18th, 2026 at 9:37 am
You never know anyone can win Mike and lvd will not be missed so move on with that
April 18th, 2026 at 10:03 am
Kenton?
Rare optimism!
I like it. I’m kind of a realist but I see your points and have made them in the past. I’m a wait and see kinda guy.
Wait and see who he draft and wait and see what happens this season.
People can rag on this roster all they want but until the team can stay healthy and still lose more than they win this coming season, we will never really know.
If they stay healthy for the most part, win double digit games and get past the first round of the playoffs, then Licht knew what he was talking about.
If the team stays healthy and hovers around 500 (or worse), then all the negators on this site will be justified in their rants.
Can’t wait till thursday!
April 18th, 2026 at 10:18 am
I’m glad my boss has my back and doesn’t talk bad about me.
I don’t think anyone here would legitimately put up with a boss that doesn’t have your back.
April 18th, 2026 at 10:52 am
Take the excuses, put them on a white board, then invite the handful of Pom Pom wavers over for brownies and milk. Hold hands, touch feet, sing Kumbaya. It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood.
Do this everyday, and by Late October of 2026, develop a new and more creative list of excuses for failure. It’s therapeutic.
April 18th, 2026 at 10:56 am
Anyone who thinks that 2020-2025 was “the best six year run in team history” was obviously living in NYC cheering on the Giants or Boston cheering on the Patriots during the 1997-2002 seasons – that person was obviously not living anywhere in Central Florida at the time – the energy and excitement was palpable – Alstott, Dunn, Brooks, Barber, Sapp, etc, etc, etc – in 2019 Jameis threw his 30th pick and Arians / Bowles were in the doghouse – Brady looks around and sees a shoe that will fit – two years of glory !! then Gisele drops the bomb on the Bucs in 2022 – Bowles has been stumbling along shellshocked for the last four years running through OCs and OLBs trying to revive that “Brady effect” – sorry chums – 1997-2002 was magic – 2020-2021 was magic – 2022-2025 was a doo-doo in the punchbowl
April 18th, 2026 at 11:28 am
Fans don’t matter. Their opinions vary so widely it is impossible to please them. Why even try?
April 18th, 2026 at 11:30 am
Also…fans opinions change constantly. For example:
If the Bucs somehow go to the Superbowl this year, most fans will decide they like Todd Bowles.
Not likely to happen, but there it is.
April 18th, 2026 at 11:58 am
“If the Bucs somehow go to the Superbowl this year”
🤣🤣😂😂😆😆🤪
🥃🥃🥃🥃🥃🥃🥃
🙄
That is truly hilarious. Let’s get more hammered and visit Mr. Wizard.
April 18th, 2026 at 1:32 pm
Terrific piece. Concur. Performance excels in supportive environments across all endeavors that require many people contributing together to reach a common goal. Read: a team. Even if some do not need it as much as others, it is critical to understand that what motivates each of us varies broadly. All of us need a reason to go to work every day. If you already have [enough] money, then you work harder for ______. Love for your given trade, recognition, helping others, obligation to your colleagues/organization are just some examples. Has anyone had a terrific boss be replaced by a jerk who didn’t value you/your contributions? Most people are not going to work as hard for the jerk as they did for the great boss who always had their back. Just one man’s opinion.
The mind is more powerful than muscle.
April 18th, 2026 at 1:52 pm
Get-Rid-of-Licht. The 2000 and 2001 teams made the playoffs and were eliminated in the wildcard round each year and were able to muster ZERO touchdowns in each of those games. They didn’t make the playoffs in 1998. So that 6 year stretch they did make the playoffs 5 times. And no, I wasn’t living in NYC. Even here in Oklahoma I knew what kind of defense Tampa Bay had in those days. And yes, that 6 year stretch may have been better. But not scoring a single touchdown in 2 straight playoff appearances? You’ve still got along ways to go to convince me that was such a great team. That was a great defense, that’s what that was.
April 18th, 2026 at 1:57 pm
Hahaha! Keeping receipts on Licht. WTG 😀
April 18th, 2026 at 2:48 pm
Odds of Licht being gotten ridden of: 0%
Odds of Bucs with no major injuries making the playoffs: 60%. If we draft enough ILB’ers, CBs, and OLB or bring in free agents it goes up to 99%.
April 18th, 2026 at 3:10 pm
Gee, the same idiot crybaby fans that complain about everything find something new to whine about. Shocker.
April 18th, 2026 at 3:39 pm
I still remember seeing the Tampa Tribune headline from 1997 “ 5-0 ! “ – that was when it started – Dungy and Kiffin and McKay built the team defensively but we had Dilfer for too long then Shaun King (good guy) – so they brought in Keyshawn Johnson and Brad Johnson for a little boost for the offense – we saw in the SB how great the defense was and the offense was just meh – but Tampa Bay was going insane – we thought it was the beginning of a dynasty – but no – when Brady arrived during COVID nobody knew what to expect what with the lockdowns – but the excitement was real – then Cooper Kupp ended it – and he we are – maybe this team can surprise but I wouldn’t count on it – many good players but coaching and FO are terrible – maybe Dungy will come back lol
April 18th, 2026 at 4:10 pm
I also remember watching Josh McCown get sacked in 2014 on a TV at O’Maddy’s in Gulfport – I laughed bitterly and thought it could not get worse – McCown was sandwiched between Freeman and Winston – oh the pain
April 18th, 2026 at 7:54 pm
Absolutely NOT biting any of this for a minute. It’s a cop-out. An EXCUSE. He’s always in a CYA mode. The dude is miserable.
April 18th, 2026 at 8:07 pm
@ Allen Lofton – No. They will only be “bottom-feeders” if listening to weak clueless people like YOU and Lickt. Period. End of Story.
This is all BS. Do you REALLY think JL is even “smart enough” to do ever do anything like that!? I mean, seriously!? Come on, Man… Be REAL. It’s total absurdity. Made up.
April 18th, 2026 at 10:51 pm
ISaying Outside lb is the strength of the team last year didnt turn Reddick into even a below average edge rusher can only lean that the areas he praises have big problems and things are desperate and there are ego issues as well.
Never trust a compliment