NFL.com: Josh Grizzard A Top-24 “Young Head Coach Candidate”
November 20th, 2025
Future head coach?
Thanksgiving is in seven days. And the week after Thanksgiving is when the coaching rumor mill really heats up.
Already Jeremy Fowler of ESPN tossed out Bucs offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard as a possible candidate. Grizzard’s name was not the only assistant Fowler floated.
Over at NFL.com, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com did a little more than float Grizzard’s name. Pelissero published a list of what he deemed the 24 top young coaching candidates for jobs that will open up in a few weeks.
In no particular order, Pelissero had Grizzard’s name among his top-24.
Bucs OC Josh Grizzard, 35: A former Yale player turned student assistant, Grizzard interned with the Panthers in 2012, coached Daniel Jones at Duke and returned to the NFL in 2017 with Miami, where he held a variety of roles under three head coaches before joining the Bucs last year. Injuries have decimated the Bucs’ offensive line and receiving corps this season, Grizzard’s first as OC. But the Bucs still rank in the top half in scoring (10th, 25.2 points per game) and lead the NFC South at 6-4. Dave Canales and Liam Coen got head-coaching jobs after their first seasons as Bucs OC. Could Grizzard make it three in a row?
We all know the last two Bucs offensive coordinators were one-and-done under Bucs coach Todd Bowles.
Dave Canales hooked his wagon to Baker Mayfield, a guy no other NFL team wanted as a starting quarterback (Baltimore and Los Angeles wanted Mayfield as a backup).
Much of the NFL had already given up on Mayfield. Under Canales, Mayfield turned into a Pro Bowl quarterback and he actually gave the Bucs a little ride in the playoffs.
If you are credited with fixing a quarterback, you’re pretty much going to get a job. And sure enough, David Tepper hired Canales, in part, to save Carolina quarterback Bryce Young.
Canales, in his second year, is nipping at the Bucs’ ankles in the NFC South race.
Then there was Liam Coen who replaced Canales. Coen had a fantastic offense. The Bucs’ run game went from one of the worst in the NFL to one of the best.
Coen, too, bolted after one year and is now the head coach of the Jags.
Joe doesn’t know if Grizzard has made so much of a mark in his first year as the Bucs’ offensive coordinator to get a job right away like Canales and Coen did. The Bucs offense has been pretty mediocre this year, largely due to injuries.
If the Bucs make a deep run in the playoffs, that may give Grizzard the boost he needs to get on teams’ radars.
In the last 15 years, there have been 107 coaching changes, or an average of seven openings a year. With Grizzard being one of the top-24 young candidates, that means Grizzard’s odds to get a head coaching gig this winter seem a bit long.
November 20th, 2025 at 12:14 am
Hah!! really?
November 20th, 2025 at 12:16 am
I could just tell after watching an interview with him before the season started, something wasnt there….and now we see….sorry just being honest.
November 20th, 2025 at 12:19 am
Its obvious to most that the Bucs royally missed out on naming Liam Coen the Bucs next HC! Could have been a dominating season this year for the Bucs…
The Bucs DESPERATELY need to pivot to a modern OC as HC but not convinced that Grizzard is the guy!
November 20th, 2025 at 12:36 am
Cool. Maybe McDaniels will be available.
November 20th, 2025 at 12:38 am
He’s probably number 24
November 20th, 2025 at 12:38 am
Mike Mcacarthy or Todd Monken
November 20th, 2025 at 12:59 am
Lincoln Riley…
November 20th, 2025 at 1:50 am
He’s going to have to massively improve.
Although, to give a little credit, after starting off the game like an idiot – he actually, finally, started calling plays in an order and manner that almost reminds of Coen on a bad day. So that’s a big improvement. We saw 2 back sets, misdirection, not always running up the middle on 1st down. If he does that more, he could move up the list if the Bucs go on a big run after the Rams game and the offense finally takes off as guys return.
November 20th, 2025 at 1:52 am
Tye Says:
November 20th, 2025 at 12:19 am
Its obvious to most that the Bucs royally missed out on naming Liam Coen the Bucs next HC! Could have been a dominating season this year for the Bucs…
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People keep saying this, but they again just ignore that racist anti-white hiring rules the NFL has in place. To hire Coen, the team would have to fire Bowles first, then go through a sham hiring process of doing multiple interviews. That opening would have given any other team a chance to hire him first. It wasn’t like the Bucs could have just made a deal and done a clean hand-off.
November 20th, 2025 at 2:09 am
Someone like the ATL or TN might make a run at him if the Bucs stsrt moving the ball and putting poinrz on the board like Cien did.
November 20th, 2025 at 3:17 am
Lane Kiffin?
November 20th, 2025 at 4:03 am
I said before the Bills game, that if the Bucs offense ran on 50% of their plays, they would score 40 points. Well, I was mistaken; the Bucs offense did run on 50% of their plays they only scored 32 points.
Still, the Bucs failed to run the ball in many situations when they should have run the ball. And, some of those were critical situations.
On the first drive, having marched down the field with five rushes and one pass, the Bucs had:
– averaged five yards per carry
– had a median of 3 yards per carry
– had a mode of three yards per carry
With 2nd and 8 from the Buffalo 39, the statistics suggest that, by continuing to run the ball, the Bucs were likely to gain a first down, and were very likely to reach field goal range. Abandoning the math and the tun, the Bucs threw for no gain on second down, threw an incompletion on third down, and punted on fourth down.
After an interception gave the Bucs the ball at the Buffalo 7, the Bucs ran for two yards and then for zero yards. Facing 3rd and goal from the five yard line, the Bucs had:
– averaged 1.5 yards per pass attempt and 3-2/3 yards per carry
– had a median of 0 yards per pass attempt and 2.5 yards per carry
– had a mode of 0 yards per pass attempt and bimodal 2 yards and 3 yards per carry.
Again, the numbers say run the ball for a probable touchdown. But, the Bucs attempted to pass the ball, threw another incompletion and settled for a field goal on 4th and goal from the five yard line.
And, so it went for too much of the game. Even if the Bucs didn’t gain a first down running on either possession, they at least would have possessed the ball a little longer. As it was , the Bucs won the time of possession 35 – 25. If they had just dominated it a little more by risking drives ending on runs rather than passes, the Bills may not score at the end of the first half. And, the Bills run defense may have been even weaker in the second half.
Trailing in the fourth quarter 37 – 32, with 3rd and 2 from the Bucs 39, with 7:32 left to play and averaging five yards per carry, the Bucs have to run the ball on 3rd down and fourth down; instead, after an incomplete pass on third down, they punted and the game was over.
The Bucs got away passing for a while because Egbuka and Tez were unknowns that teams were unprepared for. But, everyone has film on them now. And, this offensive line is better blocking for the run than for the pass. Likewise, there is plenty of film on the Bucs trying to use screen passes as a substitute for running the ball. So, Grizzard needs to apply his creativity to making the run game as multifaceted and unpredictable as possible while playing to the strengths of the players he has healthy enough to play.
Save the pass for surprise shots on 15 – 20% of 1st and 10s, for 30 – 40 % of 1st and short and 2nd and short, for 30 – 40% of 3rd and short when you know that you are going for it on fourth down, and for when time is running out at the end of the half.
And, when passing, use play action so that it looks like yet another run.
November 20th, 2025 at 4:06 am
Todd Monken
November 20th, 2025 at 4:11 am
Joe … ‘If you are credited with fixing a quarterback, you’re pretty much going to get a job.’
Canales is 6-5 at Carolina right now, but his offense is mediocre at best (ranked #28 scoring 207 points … 18.8 PPG … and producing an average of 5.0 YPP). Bryce Young isn’t their answer. Their defense (ranked #13), led by DC Ejiro Evero, has shown to be a more significant factor.
Coen is 6-4 at Jacksonville right now, but his offense is a tad better (ranked #13 scoring 240 points … 24.0 PPG … and producing an average of the sme 5.0 YPP). Trevor Lawrence doesn’t impress me (59.8% completion percentage – 11 TDs & 8 INTs). Their defense (ranked #12), led by Anthony Campanile (from the Dolphins), has shown to be a more significant factor.
I don’t think Grizz is going anywhere. He’s running an offense that he inherited, with some top talent in almost all positions. Injuries are of course a factor in its’ results, but ours is still ‘The Baker Show’. I’d personally credit that much more to Todd Bowles than to anyone else (Todd has now hired 3 young OCs to run the offense that he specifically wanted). Neither Canales nor Coen ‘fixed’ Baker Mayfield IMO. They both got smart & let ‘Baker be Baker’.
November 20th, 2025 at 4:26 am
A lot of competition for Head Coaches in the future. And most on the article’s list are around 40 years old.
Timing has a lot to do with it along with the fit of the team too. Baker meshed well and he had Mike, Chris, and other dynamic players in the mix too. Baker also has had several OCs over the year. I give him a lot of credit in his progression. Unluckily for Grizz, the injuries have quadrupled.
November 20th, 2025 at 4:28 am
toopanca … ‘Grizzard needs to apply his creativity to making the run game as multifaceted and unpredictable as possible while playing to the strengths of the players he has healthy enough to play.’
Excellent analysis; I enjoy reading those. I consider the above to be the bottom line (for right now at least). Grizz has to do a better job with the run game. Worked nicely against the Bills woeful Run Defense, but needs to be far more ‘unpredictable’ against more sophisticated defenses (like the Rams) to be effective.
I think we can in fact beat the Rams, but odds aren’t in our favor. We’re playing in their house (across the country), and we’ve had one-third of our team down sick thus far this week. Rams have the #6 offense (scoring 27.2 PPG) and the #2 defense (allowing only 17.2 PPG). They own a Turnover Differential of PLUS 10 (8 giveaways to 18 takeaways) and sport an average TOP of only 29:36 (my guess is they score quickly). They run on 43.3% of their plays (their run game is adequate, but their passing game is deadly).
Keep the Rams’ offense on the bench, don’t allow quick-strike, explosive plays & we have a chance. Not a great chance, but a chance. Never know.
November 20th, 2025 at 8:16 am
He has as much chance of becoming a HC in 2026 as I do.
November 20th, 2025 at 8:16 am
It’s always easy to look back at a play that doesn’t work and say we shoulda done this or that. And we didn’t miss on Coen either as was stated above, he also had a healthy offense most of the season. The defense get’s paid too folks but I agree with some of the run comments on here. Whether a pass or run the play has to be made when it’s there, that means the right blocks have to be made, putting the ball on target and of course not dropping it. Now they’re not robots who are programmed they are going to make mistakes but consistency is the key. Grizz has said running different plays out of the same formations can keep a defense guessing, and he’s right. So they need to do that but they also need to make the play when it’s there even if the right defense is called.
November 20th, 2025 at 8:45 am
Top 24? Hahaha what happened to top tens? Maybe 3 jobs will open
November 20th, 2025 at 9:13 am
Are you kidding me ? No way ,he has yet to see what he can do here. Not impressed so far!! So what are the bucs supposed to be a farm team for head coach candidates ? Jason light needs to find a winner and lock them up . Still say he dropped the ball with Coen.! Should have made him head coach not boring bowles C l ! LOOK AT THE JAGS NOW IN HIS FIRST YEAR . WE HAVE IDIOTS IN CHARG HERE !
November 20th, 2025 at 9:41 am
Two sides to every medal.
On one side, no, Grizz has not been at the level of Coen, he is also a lot less experienced than Coen.
On the other side, he has shown some potential (he is a first year play caller after all) and maybe we can actually have a semblance of continuity on offense if he doesn’t get poached during the offseason. One has to assume he will keep improving as he gets more comfortable in his role
November 20th, 2025 at 9:44 am
@ Rod Munch
Not just that but Id wager there was a conversation in the room amongst the Glazer bros about the possible mainstream blowback they would get if they fired/“promoted” a minority HC after taking them to the playoffs for an up and coming HC who just may have been the best OC they’ve had in the building…only problem was he’s a white guy. The thought of being perceived as racist owners made them hesitant to pull the trigger and thought they could handcuff Coen to a handshake deal to be the highest paid OC. At first I was pissed at Coen for leaving the way that he did. But now I can’t blame him one bit. If I was offered the chance to be a HC for life changing money (much more than what TB was offering) and be in control of my own destiny/future id do the same thing, especially if the alternative was having my future in the hands of Turtle Todd. There was no guarantee that if the Bucs had a down year and Blows was let go, that he’d get another HC offer. Look at Leftwich, he ironically had his chance to go to Jacksonville and (albeit his own misdoings) he blew it, now I have no idea what he is doing. Glazers and JL had a golden opportunity to make the right move and they didn’t have the balls to do it.
November 20th, 2025 at 9:48 am
Please, Please, Please someone hire him. He is the next Bill Walsh, a pure genius so please hire him somebody, anybody.
November 20th, 2025 at 9:58 am
Grizz will be the BUCS OC next year
GO BUCS!!!!
November 20th, 2025 at 9:59 am
@Rod Munch
Not just that but Id wager there was a conversation in the room amongst the Glazer bros about the possible mainstream blowback they would get if they fired/“promoted” a minority HC after taking them to the playoffs for an up and coming HC who just may have been the best OC they’ve had in the building…only problem was he’s a white guy. The thought of being perceived as racist owners made them hesitant to pull the trigger and thought they could handcuff Coen to a handshake deal to be the highest paid OC. At first I was pissed at Coen for leaving the way that he did. But now I can’t blame him one bit. If I was offered the chance to be a HC for life changing money (much more than what TB was offering) and be in control of my own destiny/future id do the same thing, especially if the alternative was having my future in the hands of Turtle Todd. There was no guarantee that if the Bucs had a down year and Blows was let go, that he’d get another HC offer. Look at Leftwich, he ironically had his chance to go to Jacksonville and (albeit his own misdoings) he blew it, now I have no idea what he is doing. Glazers and JL had a golden opportunity to make the right move and they didn’t have the balls to do it.
November 20th, 2025 at 10:46 am
You can have him
November 20th, 2025 at 11:08 am
TheVerv7 SAYS:
Not just that but Id wager there was a conversation in the room amongst the Glazer bros about the possible mainstream blowback they would get if they fired/“promoted” a minority HC after taking them to the playoffs for an up and coming HC who just may have been the best OC they’ve had in the building…only problem was he’s a white guy. The thought of being perceived as racist owners made them hesitant to pull the trigger……..:::::;;;;;;;………….
Dude shut up. Mainstream blowback from who?? GTFO stop bringing race into sports. Blazers could give to farts aboit that. They have hired and promoted tons of minorities. Makes me sick as a half Black half white man to read this drivel.
November 20th, 2025 at 12:36 pm
TheVerv7 — The media of course would run with that angle, but I don’t think it played a part. I think the Glazers are pretty hands off in general, would only get involved if the team was really underperforming, and frankly, with this roster, I think they’re about where they should be as a team.
Personally I would not have let Coen leave, and the team made him the highest paid OC in the game to try to keep him. But firing your HC, going through that circus, who knows what happens. Also, while I have no issues with Coen taking the Jags deal, I mean who is turning down $12M/year for 5 years to take $4M/year for 3 years – what if his rep is that he doesn’t keep his word, and you made a deal to become HC and he backed out to take another job after Bowles is already fired.
The way things are setup by the NFL don’t make a clean handoff possible in this scenario, and they need to get rid of all this nonsense already. Plus, on top of everything, the Bucs didn’t even get the 3rd round pick for losing him because he’s ‘white’ – meanwhile what demo is more endangered in the NFL than a ginger?
November 20th, 2025 at 12:43 pm
DrunkInYbor – “Mainstream blowback from who” … Come on – you’re telling me you don’t think ESPN and Florio are running with the “black coach fired to hire a white guy angle” – race based stories make up like half their content.
But it was Todd Bowles himself who slammed Jenna Laine for trying to bring race into the game vs the Steelers with Tomlin when she asked a stupid race based question, and he shut her up with her dumb question.
Todd is great on that nonsense, and as a DC I loved him. But as an HC, he just makes too many poor decisions, and then that filters back to his role as the DC as well. I wish there was a way the team could just move him back to being the full time DC – because in that role he excels. And that’s not a knock, with as much as I loved Monte Kiffin – I don’t think he’d have made a good head coach – and he’s the best DC of all time.
November 20th, 2025 at 12:50 pm
@Drunkimybor
Cleary they do if they were so quick to bend the knee and remove Gruden from the ROH.
November 20th, 2025 at 1:06 pm
Journalist, broadcasters, podcasters (especially ESPN) bring it up ALL the time.
November 20th, 2025 at 5:12 pm
813BUCBOI Says:
November 20th, 2025 at 9:58 am
Grizz will be the BUCS OC next year
GO BUCS!!!!
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The Bucs have been through it with injuries, and constant changes of the offensive head coach. Grizzard hasn’t proved anything. He’s a rookie at the position, and look at what he has had to deal with the injuries. Not only that, but the off-shore gambling/ Vegas racket is being watched. Bucs have had to deal with the usual B/S. Go Bucs Sunday night!!
November 20th, 2025 at 10:52 pm
Man, the NFL has low standards for a HC candidate.