Report: Todd Bowles’ Meeting With Team Glazer Complete; Changes To Assistants On The Table
January 7th, 2026

Update.

For Bucs fans, black smoke is sifting above One Buc Palace.

(For those unaware, black smoke over the Vatican means the conclave of cardinals has not selected a new pontiff.)

Bucs coach Todd Bowles currently remains as the team’s leader.

However, plugged in Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports changes to Bowles’ staff are very much on the table. This could (keyword: “could”) include a defensive coordinator.

Todd Bowles met with ownership Tuesday and has a staff meeting scheduled for Wednesday. Signs point to Bowles returning for a fifth season as Tampa Bay’s head coach. One model that Tampa has kicked around is beefing up the staff around Bowles with a new offensive coordinator and additions to the defensive staff (possibly a coordinator role). Think back to the Eagles when they went big with Moore and Vic Fangio two years ago. Doing so is costly and could prevent Tampa from following suit. But these are the type of big-picture ideas discussed in Tampa lately. The offense’s regression — the team fell from third to 22nd in yards per game over the past year — could prompt change. Improving the defense isn’t so simple. Bowles is still considered a skilled defensive playcaller, and the lack of elite pass rushers could complicate any push for a top coordinator candidate.

Joe is all for a new defensive coordinator, someone not previously affiliated with Bowles who has free rein to run the defense as he sees fit.

This nonsense of never developing an edge rusher must stop if the Bucs are to be anything more than the kings of a crap division, better known for getting their hats handed to them whenever they are on national television.

When you consistently have a struggling, if not inept, pass defense in a passing league and you have the worst (as in No. 32) red zone defense, at some point an adult in the room with a sober mind has to sit back and confess what has been attempted in years past simply is not working.

And no, Joe does not trust Bowles to develop an edge rusher, sorry. When he develops his next double-digit edge rusher, it will be his first. YaYa Diaby is a nice edge rusher for a No. 2 guy.

Joe has no idea how special teams coach Thomas McGaughey can continue with the Bucs. Good guy, responsible guy, bad results. A superior kicker can only cover up so much.

If there are no staff changes, that just tells Joe the Bucs are not serious about resolving long-standing issues.