“Urgency”
September 26th, 2026
Pressure is on.
Joe has been fortunate over the years to have many interactions with KitKat-eating Bucs coach Todd Bowles. And he has people conned.
His public demeanor portrays a man with slightly more personality than a houseplant. That’s not the Bowles that Joe knows. Far from it.
Away from cameras, Bowles is borderline gregarious. Joe tells that to people and they think Joe is out of his mind. Fans cannot believe it. But people can only see what they see.
(If anyone caught Bowles trying to hum “Hail to the Victors” at Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield a week ago as Mayfield (Oklahoma grad) lost a bet to Bowles (whose son Troy is a starting linebacker at Michigan), that’s more like the Bowles that Joe knows.)
Fans see Bowles as the guy who often is as wooden as an oak tree at the podium, and a guy who stands on the sidelines looking like he’s in a trance. The word “urgency” never applies to Bowles for most fans. Because the public personality of Bowles doesn’t suggest he puts urgency on anything.
But that is exactly the word Bowles used for tomorrow’s game against the Vikings.
“There is definitely a sense of urgency,” Bowles said. “There is always a guy here or there, whether it’s a penalty or whether it’s a guy making a mental mistake, but we’ve got to correct that part of it.”
In the eyes of the Joe typing this here story, the Bucs’ backs are against the wall. Short of a league-wide work stoppage in the NFL, the Bucs have never made the playoffs after starting 0-2. And Joe doesn’t foresee the NFLPA staging a walkout in the next three months.
(That same work stoppage in 1982 flung the doors open for the NFL’s dregs to back door their way into the postseason as Neil Lummox Lomax and the perennial loser Cardinals made the playoffs, too. Over half, 16 of the then-28 NFL teams, advanced to the playoffs that winter.)
And if the Bucs go to 0-3, their playoff hopes are microscopic.
On the flip side, if the Bucs pull off an upset tomorrow, Joe can easily see the Bucs going 2-2 as a week from tomorrow the Packers come to town. Green Bay looked terrible being curb-stomped by the Dixie Chicks on Thursday night.
So yeah, there better damn well be urgency tomorrow. Otherwise, Bucs fans largely start looking toward the draft and studying potential candidates to replace Bowles in January.
September 26th, 2026 at 12:08 am
“replace Bowles in January.”
All that needs to be said!
September 26th, 2026 at 12:17 am
I like the new offense its kinda cool but the defense no like at all worse I’ve ever seen
September 26th, 2026 at 12:48 am
The offense and Defense are amateurish and embarrassing. Every other team with competent leadership can see it but not the Yuccs.
September 26th, 2026 at 12:49 am
New offense is boo boo I see it has one of us fooled lol
September 26th, 2026 at 12:53 am
How many times have we been in a must win situation and .. come out completely flat?
Bowles is and always has been a terrible HC, and his days of D guru are long over.
September 26th, 2026 at 12:54 am
Defensively we do nothing to knock a wr out of rhythm and that’s why they are always open..we need a bump and run scheme and I think Benjamin Morrison and Ayden garnes can get the Joe done with Parrish and Scott at nickel but hey i am no coach just an observer who knows what needs to change to register sacks and incompletions instead of madden busted play scheme Bowles been running.
September 26th, 2026 at 1:16 am
Wow, haven’t heard this before.
F this guy and his “team”
September 26th, 2026 at 1:20 am
Weren’t the Browns “curb-stomped” by El Serpiente’s Jags the week before the Bucs met them? And Green Bay doesn’t play again from their curb stomping last night until they meet the Bucs.
September 26th, 2026 at 1:54 am
there is none
September 26th, 2026 at 2:14 am
We need urgency alright – in the front office! Real coaches coach as if every week needs urgency. It’s the NFL and they make a gazillion dollars.
September 26th, 2026 at 3:25 am
0-3 is coming.
September 26th, 2026 at 4:04 am
The urgency is the D is going to have to go off script at times and MAN someone regardless of what todd says!!! PLAYERS, TAKE YOUR TEAM BACK!!!!
This BS of zone and allowing anyone, especially a TE to just run right past you, over the middle because you’re covering ghosts is stupid!!!
September 26th, 2026 at 4:56 am
Where was the sense of Urgency last week? Seriously, it was the home opener against a team that had no business winning. This team under Bowles has gone through long stretches of being flat and unmotivated. The common denominator in ALL of these losing streaks is lack of fire. The Glaziers should be more worried than anyone! If I were a young fan looking for a Jersey, who would I buy? Freaking no one on this team I’d get a Jags jersey! Not one single team captain is stepping up. They’re ALL unacceptable!
Glaziers if this team loses Sunday you need to break from tradition and fire Bowles before the day ends. The season will be over!
September 26th, 2026 at 5:23 am
Losing is the team telling the front office they need a new head coach and staff.
September 26th, 2026 at 5:38 am
Sure has me conned , I thought he was a nfl defense guru lol
September 26th, 2026 at 5:41 am
I have a feeling the Bucs will win on Sunday…
The MO of this franchise under Bowles is they lose when you believe in them and they win after you believe they are hopeless losers.
TB – 24
Min – 21
I wouldn’t consider it a major “upset” – Min is only favored by @ 1.5…
September 26th, 2026 at 5:47 am
Joe says: the Bucs have never made the playoffs after starting 0-2
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Wasn’t there an article on this here blog yesterday talking about making the playoffs after a 0-3 start?
September 26th, 2026 at 6:33 am
Assuming the Bucs can easily go 2-2 if they somehow beat Minnesota tomorrow is a bold assumption. The Falcons have something called a pass rush. The bucs do not. The falcons have arguably the best player in the NFL on offense, the Bucs do not. Doing this thing where people argue this team beat that team so therefore if they can do it we can do it doesn’t work and is always the worst argument and it especially makes for the the most terrible college football schedule arguments where everything deteriorates in to the brain melting takes that have been recycled for the last 50yrs. It amazes me that people don’t get tired of parroting the same takes year over year. It doesn’t work.
September 26th, 2026 at 6:36 am
Licht will get his walking papers too as no decent coach like McDermott or Gruden will take the Tampa gig without total control.
September 26th, 2026 at 6:39 am
Hope Bucs lose out the season so they can “urgently” blow up this whole coaching staff.
September 26th, 2026 at 6:45 am
There’s a whole lot of urgency all over the place for tomorrow’s game. Bowles should be have packed KitKats ny now.
September 26th, 2026 at 6:49 am
“Mental mistake” has been a long running theme here. The Tampa Bay Mental Midgets
September 26th, 2026 at 6:54 am
Sean McDermott is the only real option
September 26th, 2026 at 7:10 am
Joe … ‘On the flip side, if the Bucs pull off an upset tomorrow, Joe can easily see the Bucs going 2-2 as a week from tomorrow, the Packers come to town.’
Please don’t do the Nostradumus thing any more Joe. There’ll be NO ‘easy’ games for the Bucs this year. Every game will be a struggle unto itself.
And besides, the Packers are 1-2 right now (they did beat the Jets) and have a long 10 days to heal up until they play the Bucs. They’re undoubtedly thinking the same as you … ‘We can easily make it to 2-2 because we’re playing the Bucs next’.
September 26th, 2026 at 7:21 am
Todd Bowles … “There is definitely a sense of urgency. There is always a guy here or there, whether it’s a penalty or whether it’s a guy making a mental mistake, but we’ve got to correct that part of it.”
THAT RIGHT THERE defines the biggest problem with Todd Bowles’ defense. It can work, but demands near-perfection to work satisfactorily.
Newsflash to Todd: Penalties ARE a part of the game, for better OR for worse. Players’ mistakes ARE a part of the game, again for better or worse. The problem we’ve been seeing is that the mistakes (turnovers & poor tackling especially) are the most fundamental of all mistakes. Pros DON’T fumble the ball 4 times in 2 games and expect to win. Pros DON’T have 18 Missed Tackles in their first 2 games and expect to win.
BOTH games were perfectly winnable IF you take away those 2 most fundamental problems. They’re BOTH fixable, so STOP TALKING AND FIX IT.
September 26th, 2026 at 7:29 am
Heading into the season we all knew that our offense would likely need to carry the team. So far it appears that Bowles and Robinson have been oblivious to the type of offense that Coen created — an offense that moves the ball and is capable of putting 29 points on the board consistently.
Bowles and Robinson — the blind leading the blind.
September 26th, 2026 at 7:44 am
If ever there was a must win game this is it. Worse than going 0-3 is going 0-2 at home in September. That’s going back to the earliest days of futility. I’m not as confident as Joe that we’ll beat the Packers to go 2-2. It’ll be a home game for GB, and they’ll have extra time to prepare. This is a must win game. Lose this week, and next? Fire Bowles.
September 26th, 2026 at 7:49 am
The attendance will show it to the owners. I am busy tomorrow. I’ve asked 4 couples to take my seats…..Bucs fans, mind you. All declined.