Todd Bowles signed a three-year contract extension with the Bucs to make him the highest paid defensive coordinator in the league. After a Super Bowl winning season where his defense prevented the Chiefs from scoring a touchdown in Super Bowl LV, it’s well deserved. Plus, Bucs fans were thrilled about it, too.

“I love it here,” Bowles said. “We’ve got a great group of coaches that we put together. We’ve got good players, they’re great to work with. I love the area and the camaraderie. It is not about being a head coach. It’s about being the best coach and getting a chance to succeed and be happy. And I’m happy here.”

Bowles’ contract extension does not prevent him from entertaining a head coaching opportunity next season.

His first and only head coaching position in the NFL was with the New York Jets from 2015-2018, where he compiled a 24-40 record. His best season came in 2015 when the Jets went 10-6, but the team failed to make the playoffs after losing the last game of the year.

Bucs DC Todd Bowles – Photo by: USA Today

Any competitor would like another shot to lead a team again. It worked for Pete Carroll after getting fired from the Jets and then coaching the Seattle Seahawks, as well as Bill Belichick, who was fired by the Cleveland Browns before he took on the head coaching role with the Patriots after a brief pit stop with the Jets.

Maybe the Jets are just the common denominator here.

When asked if he had a desire to be a head coach again, Bowles was mum on the topic.

“I have a desire to get my team ready,” Bowles said. “I don’t look for the job. If you look for the next job, you don’t do the job you have. If something comes up at the end of the year, then that’s a discussion. Right now, it’s the furthest thing from my mind.”

It’s one thing to get a head coaching offer, but it’s another to come into the right situation. There’s an ongoing theory that Bowles could eventually be the successor for the Bucs when Bruce Arians retires. But when that will be is up in the air, as Arians still seems very happy coaching.

With all due respect to the Jets, Bowles never got to coach a roster that is as talented as the one that Tampa Bay currently has. Bowles’ players would certainly be happy to see him get a second chance to be a head coach in the NFL. Defensive lineman Will Gholston said he would run through a brick wall for Bowles.

“I think they need to get a concussion check soon,” Bowles joked in response to the compliment. “We have trust on both sides of the ball with the coaches and the players. We coach them hard and they understand it’s not personal and they respond. They make mistakes and we correct them. We make mistakes, they correct us. It’s a lot of open dialogue, a lot of trust and they kind of build from there.”