“I Think I Might Have Been Around Too Much Last Year”
April 25th, 2023
Bruce Arians watching the Bucs and Titans practice in Tennessee last August.
Man, this one was one ironic statement from Bucco Bruce Arians last night at his foundation fundraiser in Palm Harbor.
Arians said over and over again when he was Bucs head coach that he stayed out of the way of his coordinators and didn’t call the shots for former offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, despite many thinking he did.
Then Arians retired abruptly 13 months ago and bragged about how he wasn’t around the team all day as a front office advisor and played golf most afternoons last year for the first time in his life.
On the flip side, Arians was an active coaching participant in training camp last year and got in trouble with the NFL for starting trouble on the Bucs sidelines during Tampa Bay’s win at New Orleans in Week 2.
Arians also had a heart-health scare last season and missed some games.
Last night, Arians, while addressing JoeBucsFan.com columnist Ira Kaufman, implied his frequent presence around the Bucs wasn’t beneficial overall to Todd Bowles.
“It’s his imprint now; it’s his footprint. And that’s the way it has to be,” Arians said of Bowles. “And I think I might have been around too much last year. You know, I’m not going to be around that much this year on purpose because it’s his. Whatever the Bucs need I’m going to be there, whatever Jason needs or whatever Todd needs me, but I’m going to step back and get out of the way.”
At the NFL Annual Meeting in Phoenix last month, Bowles said he talks regularly with Arians and he doesn’t expect that to change.
Assuming Arians is true to his word, it seems this year they’ll be talking less about what Arians is seeing at practice.
April 25th, 2023 at 2:21 am
Wouldn’t Canales want to learn from the quarterback whisperer? Didn’t Arians want an opportunity to work with Mayfield and now here is his chance? Bowles knows little if anything about developing a quarterback. Wouldn’t it be best for the team to work together?
April 25th, 2023 at 2:38 am
I’m going to go out on a limb and assume Bruce is following the mantra
He feels it is best for him to get out of the way.
Or this is an attempt to take some of the blame for SpongeBob Poopypants.
April 25th, 2023 at 4:03 am
Hey Joe, how am I supposed to enjoy my lunch break without a morning cup of Joe and some more articles?
April 25th, 2023 at 4:20 am
I wish he was around more last year and this.
Bowles needs someone to tell him when he is full of it.
Canales too. As Alita said, he might be able to get more insight from Arians than from Bowles.
April 25th, 2023 at 4:59 am
It just sucks arse he is not our head coach any more!
April 25th, 2023 at 5:08 am
BA did everything The Bucs could hope for…and more…when he came to help Licht rescue his career and turn the team around. Resigning when it was too late to search for a legitimate replacement is where things went sideways. I like Bowles…as a defensive coordinator. He’s not wired to be an NFL head coach. No shame in that…only about 2 dozen fellas on the planet are. The Bowles Era will likely end with a whimper in the next year or two. Thank you BA for an excellent run…and publicly telling Joe that Brady is behind Door # 1.
April 25th, 2023 at 5:21 am
Agree with Winny, Todd Bowles will last only 1 or 2 more years.
April 25th, 2023 at 6:18 am
So why exactly is BA on the payroll if he
(1) didn’t help fix the offensive mess last year
(2) doesn’t want to help mentor Canales, Trask and Mayfield this year
Time to retire and play golf AND time the Bucs look for someone else to fill that offensive mentoring role
April 25th, 2023 at 6:39 am
Talk about talking out both sides of your mouth
April 25th, 2023 at 6:48 am
No !
The two turds you left in the toilet were around too long.
Still have one that didn’t flush..
Thanks for nothing
April 25th, 2023 at 7:27 am
This is BA falling on his sword covering for his guys, plain and simple. He wants his guys who don’t have jobs to be given another shot and to try and take blame from Bowles for last years mess.
April 25th, 2023 at 9:25 am
Arians might not have been calling the plays as head coach but he definitely helped craft the game plan for Leftwich.
April 25th, 2023 at 9:27 am
BA is trying to be diplomatic as he knows the pressure is on for Bowles.
Maybe it was not fair to Bowles how BA abruptly retired but this off season Bowles is 100% full control.
April 25th, 2023 at 9:53 am
Reducing visibility w team, not coaches. Cool.
Go Bucs!!!
April 25th, 2023 at 10:02 am
How about not being around at all? Or, coming back as head coach? One or the other, please.
April 25th, 2023 at 10:33 am
Problem is Bowles brilliant game and practice plans. Prepare for the season of The Bowles Curse.
April 25th, 2023 at 10:45 am
I’m going to go ahead and state the obvious: Arians wasn’t around enough and Bowles was the one who was around too much. Well, unless you’re a QB on the sideline. Bowles seemed to avoid them like the plague.
April 25th, 2023 at 11:22 am
TRANSLATION: “Bowles can float or sink on his own.”
April 25th, 2023 at 11:25 am
SB~LV Says
“No !
The two turds you left in the toilet were around too long.
Still have one that didn’t flush..
Thanks for nothing”
Except a Superbowl. And a 13 win season. And a playoff spot.
They were the right guys at the right time. Don’t blame Arians if the Glazers did not fire Bowles last year. They could have. They didn’t.
April 25th, 2023 at 12:02 pm
Licht gave BA a chance at a coaching tree. It was probably the right call. Bowles will get one more year. I don’t see him as the HC in 2024 if he doesn’t deliver 7-8 wins.
April 25th, 2023 at 1:23 pm
Does Arias fluff Bowles before he goes to bed with his wife?
Stop tying yourself to the railroad tracks for this guy Bruce. Let him sink or swim on his own merits.
April 25th, 2023 at 1:44 pm
Not nearly enough. Season went down the drain after they kicked BA out of the field.
April 25th, 2023 at 2:43 pm
Tell Grandpa Arians to stay away this year. Guy’s ego is a problem. He just needs to go away and stop having FOMO. He tries to hang out in the equipment room pumping those guys for info from the lockerroom.
April 26th, 2023 at 7:40 am
He should still be a huge resource to have, but keeping what he said here in mind, maybe it would be best that he’d be a resource to the new OC by providing advice on how to coach coaches and leave the player interactions to the official coaching staff.
April 26th, 2023 at 8:49 am
Arians is doing the right thing. He doesn’t agree with the direction Bowles took the offense last year. Replacing his high production “no risk it no biscuit ” with a run heavy ball control offense. So he’s stepping aside. So Bowles gets all the credit or lack thereof!! When your on a sinking ship, you get in the life boat!
April 26th, 2023 at 9:06 am
Might as well sell the whole farm. Not doing squat with this head coach.
April 26th, 2023 at 9:10 am
Bucs fans, you know what time it is! It’s time to suck and for our coach to get fired, only for us to draft a seemingly talented qb who disappoints us and wastes many seasons going under 500! Except, this time, we won’t have Tom to save us! Yay!
April 26th, 2023 at 9:43 am
Jeff’s grandpa & Mike S, 100% correct, Arians covering up first the shat HE caused by quitting on the team. Ironic he disappeared last season when they were losing and miraculously appeared after they Rams win. Guy’s a phoney. What team can win with a part-time coach/ADVISOR???