The Fat Lady Is Warming Up
December 12th, 2025
So the Bucs have painted themselves into the mother of all corners. The Bucs, barring something totally unforeseen, will need to beat Carolina twice to make the playoffs.
Judging by this Bucs defense, if they can’t stop two of the worst teams in the league (New Orleans and Atlanta), and struggled to stop a third garbage team (Arizona), Joe has no idea how anyone thinks the Bucs can sweep the Stinking Panthers.
Joe heard a lot of players — the handful that spoke after tonight’s game — say they didn’t do enough.
Joe would say the defense didn’t do enough.
The Bucs defense is awful and Joe isn’t talking about the past few games since the bye. It’s been that way for years — yet the same ol’ crap happens year after year.
Virtually no sacks from an edge rush, but plenty of times edge rushers cover receivers downfield. Kinky.
Quarterbacks stand in the pocket throwing passes with ease. Seven-on-seven quarterbacks break more of a sweat.
Nothing ever changes. Where are the adjustments? You’d think someone at One Buc in authority would say, “Todd, you can use an edge rush. Maybe let’s bring someone in who can develop an edge rusher and turn him loose.”
Nope, better to have a second-year edge rusher cover a midling tight end going wild with a career night. That’s not a match-up problem, no way!
Isn’t someone at One Buc Palace sick of players setting personal records against this defense? Year after year it happens with no end in sight.
Kyle Pitts was thought to be a next-generation tight end coming out of Florida in 2021. On Dec. 26, 2021, Pitts had 163 yards receiving. That was his best until tonight, when he had 166 yards receiving.
Pitts has a total of 14 touchdown catches in his career. Six have come against a Todd Bowles defense.
You’d think after catching two touchdown passes in Week 1, the Bucs’ defensive coordinator would craft a defense specifically to take Pitts out. Ha! What a foolish idea.
The season is not lost. Yet. But the lifeboats are prepared.
The way this team has looked the past month, specifically the defense, Joe cannot imagine the Bucs playing a meaningful game in January.
The fat lady isn’t singing yet. She’s about to.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:42 am
Anyone calling for Bowles head and not calling for Licht’s head along with him is delusional. The garbage Bowles has to work with is unacceptable. The defense sucks but the talent sucks worse than the scheme.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:42 am
The fat lady may be singing, but the fat slob on the sidelines is the issue right now.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:44 am
She sang last year nobody listened because we trippedi nto the playoffs. Fat lady said fire Bowles make Voen HC. But everyone was deaf.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:45 am
I bet JPP is pretty pumped. He joined the 76 Bucs!
December 12th, 2025 at 12:45 am
Take your headphones off joe then you will be able to hear her. Bucs lost against the saints against a rookie the saints joe. This team can lose to anyone cya Todd.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:45 am
Fire him now please
December 12th, 2025 at 12:45 am
Straight up coaching malpractice, the coaching is beyond pathetic. He should have been fired a year ago. I’m sick of the homers within the organization. Put up or shut up needs to become the new motto. Too much talent on this team to be in this position. Fire Todd tomorrow and put arians in as temp head and see how the season ends
December 12th, 2025 at 12:45 am
No way in He!! We win out. The only win will be the day Bowles is fired.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:45 am
Kitties gonna tear this team apart.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:46 am
With Drake London out…..we had to know that Pitts would be the primary target….and we had no game plan for him.
We put virtually no pressure on Cousins….but Baker was under attack all night from their defense. Our offense was helped by their penalties.
We lost this game badly in the trenches……..very badly…..
December 12th, 2025 at 12:47 am
Tbh I don’t think our talent is that bad brisket. Obviously we have invested way more on offense, but I’m assuming Bowles is telling him he’s happy with his guys. Secondary is young and talented. We need ILBs and edge obviously. Other teams do better with similar levels of talent imo. On offense we had a lot to injuries but staggering decisions. You know an all out blitz is coming and you have everyone with long developing routes down field. Happens all the time. Licht has done decently in terms of hit rate on the draft
December 12th, 2025 at 12:47 am
Coaching Candidates for 2026?
Klint Kubiak
Klay Kubiak
Joe Brady
Mike LaFluer
No defensive coordinators, ever again.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:47 am
It’s not licht
December 12th, 2025 at 12:47 am
What I see more than anything is players loafing or unmotivated. Lack of pass rush obviously too
December 12th, 2025 at 12:49 am
Oh but Dean and Kancey could prevent this. Good bye to them too. Hopefully.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:49 am
BWAAAAHAAAHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHAAAAAAA
December 12th, 2025 at 12:50 am
40 year old JPP is the answer Joe.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:50 am
Waiting for the article about Baker losing the game, with his terrible 4th quarter INT and bad throws when it mattered most. Two weeks in a row, ball in his hands, in the 4th quarter, game on the line, 1st place in the division on the line, and he failed both times.
We all know the defense sucks. Literally everyone knows it.
What we’ve been told is MVP Baker is money… and HE lost the game tonight. Two weeks in a row he lost with 1st place on the line.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:50 am
Wait how many penalties did the falcons have again? And bucs still managed to lose🤣😂
December 12th, 2025 at 12:50 am
Clean house. Jason, scared to make trades Licht. Can go with Todd “ we gotta coach it better “ Bowles. Give me Mike LaFeur from the Rams or Klint Kubiak from Seattle.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:51 am
Fat boi B DUN
December 12th, 2025 at 12:51 am
This is even worse than when Monte said he I was leaving. The entire defense quit.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:52 am
You shouldn’t fire Licht. He didn’t get to pick Bowles; he was forced into him by Bruce Arians. In addition, a good GM drafts the players his coach wants. It doesn’t matter if a player is the greatest ever—if the coach doesn’t like him, he won’t get the job. That’s just a fact. In any field, the best person doesn’t always get the job; more often, the best friend of the person in charge of hiring gets it.
Licht now **gets to pick his coach** and draft according to a plan he develops. Keeping Baker is also his call after the last six weeks, and if Licht can’t fix things with the core he believes in, then it’s a complete rebuild anyway. So yes, at that point fire him and let the rebuild begin. Otherwise, hopefully, Licht knows his core and can hire a coach of his choosing—not someone forced upon him like Todd Bowles was.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:52 am
It always amazes me how “professionals” can’t see what arm chair idiots like us can see as obvious problems on a weekly basis. The sure as hell, they run out there and do the same dumb stuff the very next week.
Bowles loves to preach accountability on the field, but he sure doesn’t hold himself to any those standards.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:54 am
Why they have to win out??? I do not thinks that is right. What if Stanks beat Panters?? Then Seahawks beat Panters????
December 12th, 2025 at 12:54 am
Anybody watch Bowles presser afterwards???
He was dropping f-bombs galore with Bucs media, lol!!!!
He shoulda used this pissed off personality a long time ago.
Never seen this from him before….
Bowles always too late to make changes 🙄
December 12th, 2025 at 12:54 am
Call this the 7 year stink, what was once alive and thriving has now gone rotten. We got our top 4 receivers out there yet we get interceptions and high balls that kill our receivers, and missed wide open receivers that would be huge plays, then this silly defense get increasingly worse. Saw video of our qb headbutting without a helmet. Does a smart person do that. Stupid is as stupid does. Fire over confident mistake prone clueless opposing qb loving Bowles! Immediately.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:55 am
Every level of the defense is trash – DL, OLB, ILB, secondary
The o-line has become below average
Baker is seeing ghosts and panicking
Special teams has belonged in a special needs class for most of the season, although they were fine tonight.
Literally the only bright spot was Mike Evans and J-Mac both returning and looking great (and Godwin since last week). That’s it.
This team is broken.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:55 am
I asked last season what is it about Baker’s and Bowles decision making that makes you think this team could go deep in the playoffs. But I got called a hater and Traskie. What’s happening now has been happening. This team has been average for so long and now the wheels are falling off.
Look at the leadership. Its no surprise the team looks like this.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:55 am
JPP will be like the secret weapon.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:55 am
Falcons had 19 penalties for 125 yards and won
December 12th, 2025 at 12:56 am
RagingBrisket Says:
Anyone calling for Bowles head and not calling for Licht’s head along with him is delusional.
You want to fire a guy in the Ring of honor?
December 12th, 2025 at 12:57 am
When we lose the final home game of the season to the Panthers, will the “Den of Depression” moniker officially return?
Can anyone name one defensive player that has improved under Todd Bowles? Parrish looked great at the start of the season, and now he sucks. Diaby had more sacks as a part time rookie. Izien and McCollum have regressed, etc.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:57 am
At this point just have weinfield and izien play edge defenders so they can cover the tightend geez.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:58 am
I can’t imagine the glazers firing JL. I’d like to see what he does with this next hire.
I also think you can build around Mayfield. He’s not a tier one qb but he can play.
If we can put an offensive HC in place I think we can max out his talent.
This is an attractive opening.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:58 am
Disagree Brisket, Licht has built many very good teams, including a Super Bowl team. Bowles was a very good DC, and should have stayed one, he is not a head coach. Compare him to Bruce Arians, B.A. would run up and down that bench, slapping helmets and butts and would get in player’s faces, motivating and COACHING. Bowles just stands there all game with that stupid grin/wince on his face with his arms folded, DOING NOTHING!!! Same thing RAHEEM did. We have talented players on defense, they’re just not being coached, and couple that with poor play-calling, and this is what you get.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:58 am
Coaching Candidates for 2026?
LITERALLY ANYONE NOT NAMED ‘Todd Bowles’…
December 12th, 2025 at 12:59 am
Yep….Stills….the chicks secret weapon.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:59 am
And BTW:
What is up with that field? One rainstorm and it turns to an ice rink…
December 12th, 2025 at 12:59 am
1. Bowles can’t scheme. Even the announcers said, “This zone isn’t working.”
2. Baker had happy feet and was missing WR all game.
3. Bucky isn’t running, Tucker is, and they stick with Bucky.
4. All the WR (except Tez) played great.
5. 3-14 and we all knew they’d get the 1st down.
December 12th, 2025 at 12:59 am
Joe I was in the stadium Sunday sitting in the rain very depressed at the way the Bucs played on both sides of the ball. Thursday night I am double depressed and f….ng frustrated. After 3 years and all this talent, the Bucs have yet to win a big time game under Bowles
December 12th, 2025 at 1:00 am
Well I am go bed but I still do not understand how Bowzo lost this game.
December 12th, 2025 at 1:01 am
Kiffin???
December 12th, 2025 at 1:03 am
Joes,
We wasted a fantastically mediocre performance by the special teams tonight. Only one almost lost fumble, but otherwise all fixed. I for one really appreciate the time and effort our HC put into making sure we limit our opponents’ returns. And it worked so well that it gave his D the perfect opportunity to loaf and play soft zone while up 14 points midway through the 4th quarter. Don’t be mad at the OC or Baker. They all couldn’t wait to have Riley Dixon drop one in there to get the D out there one last time…just like Todd scripted.
Don’t let our 28 points fool you—most of those came on the backs of the zebras and the only guy who played like he wanted to be there, ME13. My point
December 12th, 2025 at 1:03 am
It’d be cool if Jason Lichtmynutz takes the sandwich out of his mouth for a second and did something
December 12th, 2025 at 1:06 am
Yeah flush that’s one of the reasons I think the d actually has talent. I’ve seen it. They’ve just all gotten worse under Bowles or looked promising and never developed. Winfield, McCollum,. Diaby top or the list
December 12th, 2025 at 1:09 am
Bosch- why not? Dungy and Gruden were fired and last I checked they are in the ring.
The talent level on this team is mediocre. Bowles didn’t forget how to call or construct a winning defense. He has no talent to work with. Outside of Vea, who was a good player on the defense tonight?
December 12th, 2025 at 1:09 am
Bowles departure has to be a foregone conclusion now. Glazers have to be tired of being embarrassed week after week. Glazers need to execute Todd since he is clearly unable to get his players to execute the plays. Bad coaching for years has finally reached full contamination. There are no other options than to totally clean house of the coaching staff and any players too damaged from the contagion. No need to wait until the end of the season. Start the search tonight.
December 12th, 2025 at 1:12 am
Steve- the superbowl team was constructed with stars via free agency. Who scored all the points in the superbowl? Not one point from a drafted player.
Licht is so overrated and local fanboys can’t see it.
December 12th, 2025 at 1:18 am
He had 1 job.
Stop Bijan and Pitts. Couldn’t really do either.
For the last 6 weeks it’s been obvious we can’t create much pressure with 4.
Vs Stafford and Cousins we needed to rush 3 and have aggressive back end coverage. Vs Shough, we prolly needed to send the house a few times.
Maybe that’s silly and wouldn’t have worked but at least it would have been trying something different so you stop getting carved!
December 12th, 2025 at 1:46 am
The one bright thing about tonight is that the Glazers have no choice now, Bowles has to go. If they bring him back they will have zero credibility. I wonder how Bowles will handle that exit interview, will he try to blame the lack of talent (the players and Licht) or even more likely the injuries????? What will he say when the Glazers ask him why his team is 5-15 in prime time games? Will he blame the creamsicle curse (to be fair, those jerseys suck). I feel bad for the assistants who will also lose their jobs but that is part of the life, they trusted and put their faith in Bowles, it backfired.
December 12th, 2025 at 2:15 am
It’s too late – the answer was in the building ly and they let him walk bc of the optics of moving on from a division winning black HC – they might as well keep him now there aren’t any innovative OCs to bring in – they made their bed they can fu%#ing lie in it