Were Bucs Players Worn Down Physically And Mentally?
July 25th, 2026
Nothing beats points.
The Bucs last year never did rally after trailing at halftime to pull out a win.
The Bucs trailed at halftime in eight games and finished 0-8 in those games.
At least one Bucs starter is tired of that.
It seems the ol’ keep-the-game-close mentality has grown stale in the Bucs locker room. Joe gets that sense from listening to tight end Cade Otton.
The fifth-year Bucs tight end appeared on “The Insiders” this week, seen weeknights on NFL Network. There, Otton shed light.
Otton was asked what he learned from how last season ended that he can apply to this year. He noted not only were the Bucs drained towards the end of the season (hhhmmm?) but he said teammates are tired of playing in close games and having to fight and claw in the fourth quarter.
“Us kind of getting game-planned and getting worn down a little bit,” Otton began of what he learned from last year. “You know, I think we all just want to make sure none of that happens this year. We want to start fast. We want to finish strong.
“I think early in the season we were able to have a lot of fourth quarter wins, and you know, sometimes that’s not just sustainable.
“So we we want to do our part to to be ready to win early and often. Not every game has to be close. We need to separate ourselves and blow some games out early and find a way to win late.”
Well, to blow out teams early, that may mean KitKat-eating Bucs coach Todd Bowles will have to deviate from his original coaching plan.
When Bowles took over for Bucco Bruce Arians, he scrapped Arians’ offense in part because, Bowles said, too-quick scoring wore out his defense. Well, last year the Bucs were losing and losing close games and apparently, per Otton, were worn out.
Maybe Joe is a weirdo, but Joe would rather be worn out and win 35-30 as opposed to being worn out and lose 17-13. It’s awfully difficult to blow people out if you are allergic to running a high-tempo offense.
Here is what the Bucs averaged in scoring each season this decade and the rank.
2020: 30.8 (3rd)
2021: 30.1 (2nd)
2022: 18.4 (25th)
2023: 20.4 (20th)
2024: 29.5 (4th)
2025: 22.4 (18th)
The only time under Bowles the Bucs had a top-shelf offense that scored a bunch of points was under Liam Coen.
Bucs fans? Well, they’re all pretty much just plain tired from all the talk and want the Bucs to inspire change beginning Wednesday when training camp opens.
July 25th, 2026 at 12:07 am
Depth at D Line should help.
Also not playing Dan Feeney for 12 games geez.
July 25th, 2026 at 12:07 am
You got that right, Joseph.
Last year, Licht lied to us. Braswell was going to be great. The team would be SB caliber.
And enough of the Baker deniers. Yack. Yack. Yack.
Just get on the field and block and tackle.
July 25th, 2026 at 12:15 am
Man, the first paragraph of this article is rough and needs a re-write.
July 25th, 2026 at 12:23 am
Bowels is a fool. Let’s make opposition defenses tired by running up the score.
I guess he was worried about his geriatric LB getting tired. In the famous words of Forest Gump “ can’t fix stupid “…..
July 25th, 2026 at 12:35 am
I’m mentally worn down by Bowles.
July 25th, 2026 at 1:17 am
It’s Lovie 2.0. All we have is hope. One more week. Go Bucs
July 25th, 2026 at 1:42 am
I said this halfway into the season last year that it seemed like the team was starting to give up on him, etc. Yeah I think they’re worn out & they need somebody else in there.
July 25th, 2026 at 5:16 am
We practice to much outside in dangerous heat. Bowles would be wise to use the Glazer shed more to keep his troops fresher. Our home record is proof we have no advantage practicing down here. We split our 2 hottest September games last season against northern teams. So much for beating ourselves up practicing outside.
July 25th, 2026 at 5:33 am
2022, 2023, and 2025.
What do they have in common?
No offensive line!
2020, 2021, and 2024?
Top 5 offensive line play in the NFL!
It’s no secret!
We need a dominant offensive line to succeed!
July 25th, 2026 at 7:18 am
This isn’t an excuse, but Hodad is correct. There is a very fine line when practicing in the Florida heat. Might even have something to do with the mid-season meltdown they’ve been having recently. Only takes one day of heat exhaustion and their legs are shot for most of the season. Most experts will tell you to stay out of the sun in August and early September.
July 25th, 2026 at 7:29 am
“I think early in the season we were able to have a lot of fourth quarter wins, and you know, sometimes that’s not just sustainable.“
Bingo, and this tracks because Cades’ been around football all his life. Walking on the razors’ edge isn’t a way to win football games week in and week & week out. Hard to build confidence when you don’t know how you’re going to win one game to the next, nor does it help when the sh** hits the fan in terms of injuries, so the team goes into “what do we do now?” mode. Happens at all levels of football
July 25th, 2026 at 7:42 am
To me the most mind boggling stat about Todd B is in 8 years as a head coach his teams have starter 2-0 six times.
I can’t even pretend to know what that might mean. It makes zero sense, but it’s also too much of a sample size to be a fluke.
July 25th, 2026 at 8:07 am
Geeez… hot, worn and tired? You realize many Bucs fans work tough, hot outside jobs, like roofing. Then pay serious money to see a game in a hot stadium.
July 25th, 2026 at 8:08 am
At what point last year did Bowles decide he needed to “help” the offense? At what point did the offense get much worse? It seems Bowles needs to stick with ruining the defense.
July 25th, 2026 at 8:29 am
Don’t take your foot off the excelerator…score 30 plus points per game like Brady and Bruce Arians did. Your defense may get tired whether you are scoring alot or spending too much time on the field. Either way it was a winning formula for the Bucs during the Brady days.
Jason, order Todd to do it or fire him if he doesn’t.
July 25th, 2026 at 8:44 am
“When Bowles took over for Bucco Bruce Arians, he scrapped Arians’ offense in part because, Bowles said, too-quick scoring wore out his defense. ”
So Todd made sure they weren’t scoring too quick. How did that work out? Clearly, Todd is delusional. The turtle has to go.
July 25th, 2026 at 9:23 am
Yeah we should just blow every team out so we don’t get worn out – said everyone that lives on Fantasy Island.
July 25th, 2026 at 10:20 am
It’s a 17 game contest man and supposedly our strength coach was training them to be the best Marshmallows they could be So, there’s a new strength coach this year and maybe, he started something a lot better already. Duration!!! You seen the video Tristan had over 400 pounds on that bar. Strength might be across the oline as they all learn something from him. Let’s see how training camp goes. And we need a whole line of SAPPS up front on defense. Bain can teach Mean as well as a few others now. Let’s Go Bucs !!!!
July 25th, 2026 at 10:36 am
Of course they were worn down…they were backups of backups!
July 25th, 2026 at 10:58 am
Todd is great.
Beer is great.
Todd likes beer.
Beer likes Todd.
July 25th, 2026 at 11:38 am
“So we we want to do our part to be ready to win early and often. Not every game has to be close. We need to separate ourselves and blow some games out early and find a way to win late.”
Cade is a bright young man & TE but, this is not one of his more perceptive statements. Everyone wants to blow-out their opponent, Cade. Easier said than done. It’s the NFL, most games are decided by one score. Perhaps the Bucs can start by having the defense better prepared to stop an opponent on first drives than giving up scores on 3/4 of them.
Now, where can we find a defensive guru?
July 25th, 2026 at 12:47 pm
“Us getting kind of game-planned…”
WTH does that mean? Doesn’t sound good from a coaching and morale perspective!
July 25th, 2026 at 2:32 pm
Defense wins championships. That will never change in the history of football.
July 25th, 2026 at 4:59 pm
Biggest offensive fix is becoming more efficient scoring TDs in the red zone. They ranked 4th in TD percentage in 2024 and 23rd last year with 43 red zone TDs in 2024 and only 26 in 2025. Of course, the Bucs were also in the red zone more in 2024 (64 times) than they were in 2025 (48 times), so a worse TD percentage is that much worse when you don’t get as many tries.
And, any improvement by the special teams coverage unit might be worth at least two games vs. last year.
Should be an interesting season. I really have no clue which way it will go.
July 25th, 2026 at 5:21 pm
Staying healthy in a contact sport…You need to be more efficient more physical, smarter all that crap cant happen when your hurt!
July 25th, 2026 at 10:53 pm
What I find absolutely absurd and ridiculous is how Bowles decided not to replicate what BA did and has done as an HC to win games. BA knew how to win consistently, you would think Bowles would have picked up some things from the guy and replicate his success as a HC. Instead, we get word salad press conferences, bad game planning, unprepared and poorly conditioned players, the list goes on and on.
July 27th, 2026 at 11:07 am
What wears out a defense worse? Too-quick scoring, or being on the field 12-15 play drives that give up scores?
I think I’d argue too quick is better. Every score “for” gives the defense a mindset boost and every score “against” (especially if it’s at the end of a 15-20 play drive) is a detriment.