Family Matters For Todd Bowles, Jason Licht
May 17th, 2026
One’s football pedigree can sometimes be a blessing.
The Bucs seem to like signing or drafting sons of coaches and players. How are they different from the sons of accountants, NASCAR drivers or school teachers?
That’s debatable.
One could argue the son of an ex-player will have better instincts after being taught at a high level from a young age. One also could argue that player has a lower ceiling and more of a business mindset — one that makes him more likely to make business decisions on the field.
Ages ago, Joe was a Cody Grimm fan. A Bucs 2010 seventh-round pick, Grimm was the son of Hall of Fame guard Russ Grimm.
The young Grimm was a heck of a sleeper pick and started at safety, but injuries got him. He’s now an assistant coach with the Raiders.
Now, the Bucs have guys with strong football pedigree on the roster. Cade Otton’s dad and grandfather were coaches, and Antoine Winfield’s dad was a three-time Pro Bowl cornerback, among others.
Bowles now has another one in rookie linebacker Josiah Trotter, whose dad Jeremiah is a former All-Pro linebacker.
Todd Bowles told SiriusXM radio recently that he appreciates guys who grew up in and around the game, and that’s a bonus when it comes to development.
Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht told Wake Up Barstool last week that “sometimes the DNA doesn’t transfer,” but it has with his new second-round draft pick.
“I don’t want to say that’s part of our strategy, I think it’s an added bonus,” Licht said of targeting sons of players. ” … It’s an added bonus. I mean, [Josiah Trotter] understands the league and a lot of wisdom can be passed down. And there’s a lot of wisdom there from Jeremiah. That’s for sure. In that case, it worked out. In some cases, it doesn’t.”
It’s clear the Bucs are banking on 21-year-old Trotter to be an effective starter from Day 1 — just like they banked on then 22-year-old Winfield in 2020.
May 17th, 2026 at 8:53 am
Q: What sandwich is the Bain of NFC South offensive lines?
May 17th, 2026 at 9:30 am
It didn’t matter that Licht considered Mike “family.” And tbh, AWJ’s pedigree didn’t seem to prevent him from loafing last yr or from falling off of a cliff after his payday, so I’m gonna say family doesn’t matter when it comes to football lineage
May 17th, 2026 at 9:40 am
A: Reuben?????????
May 17th, 2026 at 9:41 am
@ ChiBuc: Where did Mikes father play?
May 17th, 2026 at 10:04 am
Daddy can’t help you on the field.
May 17th, 2026 at 10:11 am
???????????????
Daddy can help you when you step off the field.
May 17th, 2026 at 10:18 am
Even though he’s a former Safety himself, Todd probably don’t care about the family bloodlines of say a Sabby “the goat” Piscitelli, right?!
But I do agree w/ Todd that it’s an added bonus to have that type of pedigree or football bloodlines and grow up in and around the game in many ways. Even if just a tiny bonus or head start on the comp, it’s still a bonus.
May 17th, 2026 at 11:07 am
I kinda figured the “pedigree” thing is a major reason why Trotter was picked by the Bucs over Allen. I still think Allen has a higher ceiling and would have been an impact player this year, but I’m sure the Bucs did their due diligence and figure Trotter is a better fit for their system. Time will tell…I do hope Licht made the right pick ??
May 17th, 2026 at 12:29 pm
There’s levels to it, obviously Trotter having a dad who had his own NFL legacy means he was not only around the game but the business of football. Which, is a little different than Cade Ottons’ grandpa pretty much being an HS football legend in terms of coaching up there on Washington. Benjamin Morrison. Antoine Winfield, pretty sure there are others to lesser and greater degrees.
Football world is small when you hold up next to society at-large, lots of paths crossing. I mean look at our draft history the last decade or so, we’ve gone back to certain programs and had guys who were teammates in school share spots on an NFL roster.
May 17th, 2026 at 4:37 pm
Todd likes the kids of dudes he played with. My take is Trotter better be at least as good as CJ Allen the next two years or JL should be fired for bending to Todd’s friends and family plan.
May 17th, 2026 at 7:00 pm
Don’t forget the Todd Bowles Jr hire.
May 19th, 2026 at 6:55 pm
ChiBuc Says:
May 17th, 2026 at 9:30 am
It didn’t matter that Licht considered Mike “family.” And tbh, AWJ’s pedigree didn’t seem to prevent him from loafing last yr
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You got that right. AWjr was underwhelming last year.. He should be on the trade block. Too many time last year he was yukking it up on the sidelines after another disastrous defensive performance. Don’t understand why Licht rebuilt the defense in the offseason. Munch has reminded us how outstanding the Buc D was last year. Munch is a lowlight. He needs to go back to playing the piccolo.