Todd Bowles Said A Few Players Are Dragging Down Bucs
December 12th, 2025
Some players tuned out?
Joe has suspected, maybe going back to last year, that the Bucs have a locker room issue.
When Joe sees guys leave the locker room early, that is a red flag. Though not to paint with a broad brush, more often than not, guys who race into the locker room and are the first ones out, even before the locker room is open, those are guys that either don’t want to be there or have more important things in their lives than football.
DeSean Jackson and Swaggy Baker are two guys who did this regularly.
Last year Joe started seeing a few players do this, including one guy who Joe thought was maybe the most standup guy in the locker room.
Coincidentally, his play has dropped.
Then, when Baker Mayfield, Lavonte David and Todd Bowles all unloaded on teammates, separately, in a span of a month, that told Joe there are locker room problems. If not, then why were two team leaders and the head coach reading teammates the riot act in almost successive weeks? That doesn’t happen with good locker rooms.
Then when the Bucs signed Jason Pierre-Paul and were open about how they needed his juice, that was confirmation of Joe’s fears.
Guess “I Am That Man” was susceptible to con artists, too?
Joe brings all of this up because last night in his postgame remarks, Bucs coach Todd Bowles all but said some players simply are not listening to coaches and that is why the defense has caved in since the bye.
“The coaches have done everything they can do,” Bowles said. “This is a player-driven team in the last four or five weeks. You got to execute. They got to hold each other accountable.
“As a coach you can sit there till you blue in the face. Until they start holding each other accountable and doing the little things right, and that’s not everybody, we’re talking about a small, select few.
“But the small, select few is what’s getting us beat. Until that happens, it’s not going to get right.”
That almost sounds to Joe like Bowles has lost a chunk of the locker room. May not be many, but enough to Pearl Harbor the entire team.
Joe saw the clip of Mike Evans hollering on the sidelines last night. Joe cannot tell at all if Evans was yelling at Bowles. It looked like Evans was having a s(p)it fit and he just happened to turn briefly in the general direction of Bowles in the middle of his rant.
Last night Bowles effusively praised Evans so if Evans was hollering at Bowles, the Bucs coach didn’t seem bothered by it.
Joe can say there were three players who were visibly angry at the loss. One was Evans. As he approached the locker room, he doubled over in rage, face grew red, clenched his fists and screamed, “This is f’ing bulls(p)it!”
Vita Vea yelled something that Joe couldn’t make out. Tykee Smith yelled, “We ain’t done s(p)it!” It was as if he was saying the Bucs haven’t earned the right to drag tail.
If Joe has interpreted Smith correctly, he’s right on.
December 12th, 2025 at 4:34 am
I’d say a few Coaches are what are bringing the Bucs down.
FIRE BOWLES
December 12th, 2025 at 4:43 am
Season is done – change is needed
December 12th, 2025 at 4:52 am
Calm down Players….season is over because of todd….but its all good. We’ll bounce back next year. We need Sonny Styles in the draft…and we’ll move on from todd. Just trust the process š
December 12th, 2025 at 4:58 am
Zion ??? Reddick is a joke at this point..AWJ has been invisible as of late as well..Do tell Joe !!!
December 12th, 2025 at 5:10 am
Are we talking about #31?
December 12th, 2025 at 5:14 am
Zion is one im sure….too many times given up on plays, ive seen it. Reddick too at times….and Braswell just looks like he dont care anymore, he’s all about his religion that doesnt fit well sometimes…sorry, just saying its showing.
December 12th, 2025 at 5:17 am
btw, misspelled on purpose….
December 12th, 2025 at 5:19 am
Knew they were done when I saw Vildor playing. Sucked for the Lions, pretty much the same in TB
December 12th, 2025 at 5:20 am
Bye Todd.
Thanks for the mediocre memories.
Waste of a season.
Get rid of Bakey too.
December 12th, 2025 at 5:25 am
The stat shown on Prime at halftime interview was all too telling; 16-51 career record when trailing at halftime as a HC, and 0-6 this season. Make that 0-7 now.
December 12th, 2025 at 5:43 am
Tough to watch. To and insult, our last two OCās are now HCās and doing wellā¦and there are no clear cut candidates to replace Todd. We canāt even do succession planning right.
December 12th, 2025 at 5:50 am
If some of the players on the team are toxic, sit their butts on the bench. I’d rather have an average player playing their hearts out than a toxic superstar just playing average.
December 12th, 2025 at 5:51 am
Bring back Gruden but don’t let him be involved in picking players.
December 12th, 2025 at 5:57 am
In the guys arenāt listening forget that I also to the coach medical then the coach doesnāt need to be there.
December 12th, 2025 at 5:59 am
Simple question. Why are these few still on the team much less starting
December 12th, 2025 at 6:02 am
No doubt our defense blows chunks, but how come no one is talking about how bad the 0line played? Baker never had a drop-back with any time. Every snap he was running for his life.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:05 am
Bowles’s profane rant is telling, he knows this may have been the last straw for his tenure here. With nothing to lose, personally I’d like to see him now take more radical leadership decisions. For instance, these few guys on defense who he said are not listening – bench them in a must-win game (e.g., our next game). Or bench them until the second half. And regardless of what happens in that one game, being benched for this reason will be forever remembered on the career resumes of these few guys.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:15 am
I am going to guess that the locker room issues Todd mentioned and Joe has alluded to must include a high paid defensive player who simply cannot be launched do to salary cap implications and the fact that it would make Licht and Bowles look like fools. I am guessing we are talking about either Zyon McCollum or Winfield. Zyon used to be mentioned on some local blogs as a really good dude, friendly and down to earth, perhaps the coin got to his head. Winfield? Who the f*** knows what is up with hm. You would have thought he would have played with a chip on his shoulder after getting boned by the refs out of 2 defensive TDs in the Big Easy but instead he has gone incognito. It seems to me the only guys who have any fire on the defense are Vea, Tykee Smith and LVD. Time to start targeting the new offensive mind who will be the opposite of Bowles. No way he gets a reprieve even if the Bucs manage to win a game or 2. He allowed this locker room cancer to torpedo his team.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:17 am
While Bowles isnāt wrong, he shouldāve included himself and Licht.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:21 am
I wonder what Gruden could do with this offense?
December 12th, 2025 at 6:24 am
I thought the approach was to draft “Buccaneer” men, football loving guys over talented guys with character flaws?
December 12th, 2025 at 6:24 am
hopefully some journalist somewhere puts pen to paper and lists out some names.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:26 am
Dungydunce, good idea, but wouldn’t that have repercussions for the organization with agents and the like who will not appreciate Bowles putting a scarlet letter on their boys and hence hitting the agents in the wallet???? Then again, I suspect some of the loafers/cancers are already paid and others should not be on any NFL roster and if Bowles is gone after game 18, what can it hurt????
December 12th, 2025 at 6:27 am
F this entire organization from the Glazers to the towel boy.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:31 am
Knows what the problem is but can’t or won’t fix it. This why Bowles sucks as a HC.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:35 am
The lack of accountability starts with Bowles himself.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:38 am
we had cohen and let him go to keep bowles/ hows that working for ya?
December 12th, 2025 at 6:40 am
Oh good, now we are blaming players too. Todd, your job is to get them up or put someone else in. Joke of a staff and squad.
Donāt waste your time watching their product. They are lifeless clowns that get paid to defraud the fans.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:42 am
Itās joever.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:43 am
Youāre the head coach?? If you have a few players that are dragging the team down bench them and set an example!
December 12th, 2025 at 6:45 am
Tired of seeing the Gruden posts. Awesome Bucs HC 25 years ago, but he washed too.
December 12th, 2025 at 6:57 am
Of course blame the players not himself
December 12th, 2025 at 6:59 am
BS. Three coaches are dragging this team down. ST, OC, and HC
December 12th, 2025 at 7:00 am
Joe, could some of the bad blood in the locker room be on account of Bowles playing any favorites? Just asking because some posts in other threads I have read have mentioned when Benjie Morrison took some snaps from Dean in the Bills game, it could have angered some other players on the defense? I mean, it made no sense to pull Dean for an unproven rookie who did not get any reps in training camp, but Todd did and the results were not good at all.. I could see that creating a bit of festering resentment…..
December 12th, 2025 at 7:00 am
Bowles says thereās a few players dragging down the Bucs? – BENCH THEM and bring up the practice squad guys – give them the reps. Iād rather see guys on the team trying to do their jobs then the hot mess we have now.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:01 am
Whers 50 been this year? I iso on him a lot. I see a slow lackluster 50. Contract year in 26. I’d like to see what we could get for him. Hes not helping us now. No waybwe should resign a 31 yo VV next year.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:02 am
Are the owners blind?
December 12th, 2025 at 7:07 am
Glazers should do something they’ve never done, fire Bowles today. Get in line with the other league bottom feeders who need a new H.C.. Bowles has to go, will Licht be included? He has not put together a good roster. What I don’t know is how much say Bowles has had with regards to the players. Are these his guys, or Lichts? What I do believe is Licht is to in love with his players to be objective. Example was giving Zyon an extention early thinking he was going to blow up in a contract year. Think we need a whole new set of eyes on this roster. Think a new guy coming in should make EVERY player on this roster available for trade. Wirfs, Winfield, Zyon, Dennis, any, and all off them. Let a new GM, HC, build a team in their immage. What we’re seeing from Licht, and Bowles has got to go.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:09 am
With the exertion of games where Baker Mayfield has put his body on the line to gut out a yard and dragged effort out of this team, it has been 55 guys collecting a pay check. That is a problem with leadership and leadership starts with the head coach!
December 12th, 2025 at 7:18 am
This is embarrassing
December 12th, 2025 at 7:19 am
A whole lot to unpack. First and foremost I agree with everything you said Joe. Bowles doesn’t adjust his defense which is a shame, because I believe he has made strides in other areas. For the defense to be falling apart because it’s too complex that one guy screws it all up, plus the other stupid crap, yeah he needs to step aside and be a BA or retire. Those are the only options at this point. He becomes a ceo type coach, gets a legit DC or leaves.
The bad apples in the locker room… I’m guessing Reddick is a huge one. He said he didn’t like to go into coverage and what’s he doing? Dropping in coverage. He’s also not making the most of his pass rushing reps and I think he’s done. At least with the Bucs if not NFL. He was a bust. I don’t want to believe it, but AWJr may be mailing it in after the payday. No one expects an all pro, but he’s invisible. The fact he’s leaving early, like Joe said, red flag. I defended him last year, not anymore.
I think LVD is done. I don’t blame him, he’s just about done physically and everything is falling apart. I think Mike may be done, at least with the Bucs unless there’s a MAJOR change. He has no reason to stay with us other than loyalty, record is gone (thanks Detroit š”). I don’t know, I wouldn’t blame him, although I’ll be devastated.
Guys who get a pass this year, but could lose favor: Wirfs, one bad year due to injury, not worried about him at all, he gets 2 years honestly. Godwin, I told everyone he was hurt and it’ll take time. He’s looking better. Yaya I think just isn’t being used right with the bs scheme. Same with Braswell, although year three he needs to step up when he’s out there. There’s been like 0 flashes. Grizz gets a year, rookie play caller, needs to hit the books and film hard. It was bound to happen tho, can’t get lucky 3x
Zyon was a mistake, clearly. Special teams coach, gone. The way things are going I doubt we make playoffs. That said, if we do, these changes need to change. No more slumps, no more terrible defense. Change or leave.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:24 am
Sorry guys but if if itās āfew guysā cratering the team then the Glazers are giving Bowles an out and heāll be back next year even though itās his fault for being afraid to bench playersš¤¢š¤®
December 12th, 2025 at 7:26 am
Yeah Todd there are more than a few players dragging us down, but not nearly as much as your bad coaching and Jason’s refusal to address team needs in the past 4 drafts. Todd is delusional if he thinks he is not the biggest problem this team has. Neither him or Licht should be fired they should RESIGN! We can’t tackle anyone. We can’t pressure anyone. We can’t cover anyone, and we can’t protect our QB. Baker wll likely get blamed for the loss for his interception, but this loss is squarely on Todd and Jason. Grizzard’s playcalling has been questionable, but I would give him a second chance with better fellow coaches around him.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:34 am
Players will tune you out once you start screwing with their next paycheck. Reddick is an obvious question mark for me. Heās been a problem every where heās been trying to secure his next big contract. Guessing heās not happy with how Bowles uses him because ultimately sacks is what will get him paid and you canāt get those chasing a TE or RB or playing zone.
McCollum is anotherā¦.the sudden lack of focus is perplexing and itās like every game he contributes to a key play that hurts us.
Winfield doesnāt seem as impactful as he once was but he seems to be in there hustling trying to make a play.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:34 am
Whereās Waldo Winfield?
December 12th, 2025 at 7:35 am
Todd is also dragging the team down how do you not run on second down take it to the two minute warning then run a third down after the two minute warning with a falcons team out of time outs cya todd you are so done it really looks like you lost that entire team not just a few guys.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:36 am
No doubt that Winfield and Zion are 2 of these players Todd is referring to. They should both be benched for the rest of the season. Someone posted that thereās not many good options to replace Bowles and they are right. We had the bright young offensive coach calling plays last year and the Glazers let him walk and turn a dismal Jacksonville team into a playoff team overnight. Iām afraid there is nothing out there but the next Dirk Kotter at this point. If we hire another has been defensive coordinator I will forever be done with this team
December 12th, 2025 at 7:38 am
How can you not lose the locker room is you’re blaming your players, not leading / coaching them?? You are the head COACH.
December 12th, 2025 at 7:44 am
The players need to step up, Bowles will take the fall, but never forget, whereās the $20 million dollar safety? Heās invisible.