Danny Smith Wants To Be Head Coach
October 28th, 2026
Bucs special teams coordinator Danny Smith.
Over the past month, Joe has heard lots of fans and analysts bark about how the Bucs don’t have a legitimate interim head coach candidate on staff, a guy that could keep the pirate ship afloat if Team Glazer were to launch Todd Bowles.
The Joe typing here has always found that to be ludicrous.
What’s wrong with long-time defensive assistant and former player Larry Foote? The job is “interim” head coach, not “next great thing.” Foote is well respected and has called Bucs defensive plays. Also, is Joe to believe Bucs special teams coordinator Danny Smith is incapable of leading a group of men? The guy is a commanding presence and he’s got 30-plus years in the NFL.
Think Smith is too old at 72? Think again.
Smith told the The Coaches’ Room this week (Joe listens on the SiriusXM Buccaneers channel) that he tells his players that he wants to be head coach.
The revelation came after Smith was asked how he gets buy-in from his special teams players.
“There’s 22 positions on the field on offense and defense, okay, and the way I do it, it really is in its simplest form,” Smith said. “You got a 53-man roster. So outta that 22, you know, what are the other [31] guys doing? What are they doing? Your job is gonna be on special teams and it’s a pretty good gig.
“I wanna be the head coach. They wanna be the starting running back. They wanna be the starting linebacker. They wanna be to start wide-eyed, but it’s a pretty good gig till we get there. So if we handle that business, we’ll have our chances. If you don’t handle that business, the next stop is out of the league. That sounds simple, but it’s not for young guys. I mean, it’s just not.
“I got a way to make them trust in me and, and I trust in them. We don’t have that problem anymore. That might have been a problem, but we don’t have that problem.”
Joe loved how Smith, a newcomer to the Bucs this offseason, essentially acknowledged that he and the special teams unit had bonding and trust challenges but they are in the rear view mirror.
Smith, who turns 73 next month, also shared how he’s a complete football junkie. He said he watches every play of every game.
“I love preparation,” he said. “I mean, I need it. I need it. I love preparation.
“You know, if there’s something new that occurs in [a] game from another team, it’s new to them as well because I hadn’t seen it. And I will see every play of every game — you know, years. I was taught, you know, when I got in this business, how to prepare by a lot of coaches. I’ve been fortunate to be around great people that trained me. I study a lot.”
Kudos to Smith for the special teams results this season. The improvement has been significant.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:02 am
OMG. Please make him HC here!
He would be an amazing HC.
I would be fine even keeping Bowles as DC at this point.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:11 am
A very good addition to the staff.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:17 am
Cool. Good to know we have a plan.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:17 am
Let his dream come true but only as an interim head coach. He seems like he is doing a good job. The Bucs special teams is interesting this year. The Punter is the worst in the NFL and the Kicker is the best.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:18 am
Glazers,if your listening please make Danny the head coach!
October 28th, 2026 at 10:23 am
Creativity, innovation, and just stealing anything good some other team comes up with is something the Bucs offense could use more of.
Maybe let the Special Teams Coach come up with a Special Teams Special Shot each week for the offense?
Take the Belichick approach to the Special Teams Roster and say, he is not ready to be the starter, but tell me what he can do really well and what can we do with it once that will not be expected.
A special teamer that subs in to give someone a breather or to add an extra blocker could really be the feature guy for that one play. Then, if you establish that tendency, you can use your substitutions as decoys.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:23 am
Man this team would be great if Bowles was the DC an Smith the HC It gets Bowles in trouble when he has to worry about the offensive side of things as well when he can just call defense an be aggressive an we were one play from going back to back super bowls an the call Bowles made was great AWJ just didn’t get back far enough an got beat if not Bucs woulda been Superbowl Champs 2 years straight
October 28th, 2026 at 10:23 am
very heart-warming story – the ST had a great game against CAR –
“I wanna be the head coach. They wanna be the starting running back. They wanna be the starting linebacker.”
but they’re not gonna be – Danny Smith is comparing himself to Kevin Knowles – Benjamin Morrison – Caden Fordham – Anthony Nelson – not gonna get the limelight – sorry
October 28th, 2026 at 10:28 am
Your mind doesn’t get worse at 72 if you are otherwise healthy.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:29 am
I think we are going to finish 10-7 win the NFC South and Bowles will be back. We have the right formula run the ball play great defense. You know who has one of the worst run defenses in the NFL? Atlanta does! We should run all over them like we did Carolina and if Carolina loses to GB Thursday night all of a sudden we are in the mix! Crazy NFL season with all the injuries we are the best team in the NFC South right now with the best identity if we follow it!
Run the ball effectively we win the majority of games rest of this season try to be the greatest show on bad grass we will struggle. IT IS THAT SIMPE!
October 28th, 2026 at 10:31 am
Foote is very fortunate to still be employed at One Buc. Interum HC for Smith would be, at the very least… interesting. Not sure that many on this staff will make it through to next year if Todd gets a pink slip. Smith might.
Hit 70 recently and I still ride my motorcycle three or four times a week. I go and ogle the ladies at the local beach as I sip my coffee most every morning. Old? Yup but far from senile senior status. LOL
Seems to be a common mistruth that older folks are somehow second class citizens these days. We have something that younger folks don’t have. It’s called wisdom and experience. It mostly comes from making the same mistakes those very same people are making right now.
Go Bucs!
October 28th, 2026 at 10:36 am
Smith is no McGaughey, but few are. McGaughey got a bad rap, he had Chase kicking field goals like a maniac. And 5 of those per game is the minimum. I miss McGaughey.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:40 am
We don’t need an interim HC. The moment Todd is gone I will be as happy or probably happier than anyone else but I have every bit of faith Todd can continue his reign of subpar football.
Let him finish the job and get us a high pick. The panthers lack of respect and preparedness probably already cost us a shot at Collins, Mensah or Mestemaker, but I’m very confident Todd will deliver the next few weeks and certainly in the back half of the schedule.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:47 am
I hope the above post about the falcons was sarcasm. Atlanta ranks 4th in total run defense. They allow on average less than 89 yards per game and 3.6 yards per average.
It’s going to be a tough day on Sunday unless Baker has a career day and the falcons take it for granted like the panthers did.
Oh, and if baker decides he wants to brush the dust off of that chip on his shoulder since he’s playing Stefanski and play hero ball, well Cincinnati is a good barometer for the results.
October 28th, 2026 at 10:55 am
Fantastic article! Maybe the best article of 2026 so far. There are options. Rashad Johnson also making a name for himself as the secondary looks very good this year!
October 28th, 2026 at 10:56 am
Once I heard that players would run through walls for this man, I immediately became perfectly comfortable with the idea of making him the interim head coach if Todd Bowles gets ousted.
October 28th, 2026 at 11:12 am
No.
October 28th, 2026 at 11:12 am
Dan The Bucs Fan….
You’re completely wrong about Atlanta’s run defense.
They are 9th best in the NFL in total rushing yards allowed thru 7 games (622 yards)
They are tied for 6th best in the NFL in opponent rush yards per carry (3.8)
October 28th, 2026 at 11:13 am
Todd won’t be fired during the season. Glazers don’t work like that.
October 28th, 2026 at 11:15 am
dan the bucs fan, the Dolphins have a history of running the ball a lot. Boring games and they don’t go anywhere.
October 28th, 2026 at 11:16 am
The secret is effective balance. Get that and you win the rings.
October 28th, 2026 at 11:45 am
If the Bucs had ownership who had the stones to launch Bowles, I would love to give the old guy a try out, not gonna happen though.
October 28th, 2026 at 12:05 pm
Balance creates field goal opportunities. Balance those runs up the middle with bubble screens and RB checkdowns and you’re cooking.
October 28th, 2026 at 12:10 pm
Sounds like a better option than f”[king bowles. Let him finish the season as interim
October 28th, 2026 at 12:11 pm
McBay, try harder dude. You’re not even a good troll.
October 28th, 2026 at 12:58 pm
I mean, field goals and punting… aside from Carolina, he WAS the head coach this year wasn’t he?
October 28th, 2026 at 1:52 pm
@dan the Bucs fan
Yes, let’s run the ball 40 times a game and see where we get to at the end.
Because both championships were primarily our running game right? Wrong!
Both titles were won through the air scoring TD’s with a rushing compliment.
And both HC’s were offensive minded. Bowles believes in run first and lean on the defense.
1-3 in postseason play and 4-12 in the last 16. Absolutely superb. 🤣🤣
October 28th, 2026 at 2:04 pm
Love the team and you’re a troll. Hate the team and you’re a hater. Try harder to be a Bucs fan? Sure. OK. Point taken.
October 28th, 2026 at 2:12 pm
No way is Blows gonna take a back seat to a guy he picked as his S.T. coach and just be a D.C….stop with the nonsense
October 28th, 2026 at 2:34 pm
The bye week will be decision time for the Glazers. They can fire Bowles and put in Danny Smith or Larry Foote as interim coach. Under this scenario, the Bucs can start talking to some former coaches (McDermott, Tomlin) and maybe some college coach’s agents. Or, keep Bowles through the end of the season before letting him go and therefore losing the opportunity to be first in line to hire some, not all, coaches.
October 28th, 2026 at 3:19 pm
If you run “40” x a game, Thats winning football! Now your talking..
October 28th, 2026 at 3:28 pm
Smith is like a slightly younger version of Tom Moore, I like this
October 28th, 2026 at 3:32 pm
You run it “40” x.. you’ve won the game
October 28th, 2026 at 3:38 pm
He’s got my vote for an. Interim HC. Let Larry Foote be DC. At least the team would be motivated!!
October 28th, 2026 at 3:43 pm
You run 40 x your winning the game
October 28th, 2026 at 3:52 pm
Right now the Bucs are tied in the NFL for 5th most field goals made, a sign of a scoring machine. The Bucs can make it to #1. And fans are down on the coaching staff. Whatever.
October 28th, 2026 at 4:37 pm
Of you can Run the ball 40x youve won