Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

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Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds answers your questions from the @PewterReport X account this week in the Bucs Mailbag. Submit your question to SR each week via X using the hashtag #PRMailbag.  Here are the Bucs questions we chose to answer for this week’s edition.

QUESTION: Shoot it to us straight. How far away are we from being real contenders? A coach? A whole new staff? A couple of real killers on the defense? Just getting healthy? Or are we more of a complete rebuild away?

ANSWER: It really depends. I think there is enough talent on this team to win the division and continue to be a playoff-caliber team, especially on offense. But this team, specifically on defense, is going backwards under Todd Bowles. That’s not disputable. Despite an influx of new talent, the defense has taken a step back this year, especially since the bye week. And it’s clear from the look on Bowles’ face during his press conferences, the words coming out of his mouth and the product on the field that he doesn’t have the right answers to fix it. At least right now.

Bucs HC Todd Bowles and pass game coordinator George Edwards – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

I have the answer whether or not Todd Bowles sticks around. It’s time for the Bucs to replace several members of his coaching staff, and I’d start with pass game coordinator George Edwards, cornerbacks coach Kevin Ross and safeties coach Nick Rapone. Tampa Bay has a lot of money tied up in cornerback Zyon McCollum ($16 million per year) and safety Antoine Winfield Jr. ($21.025 million per year) and neither player is making enough plays and playing up to his potential. I wouldn’t necessarily mind a complete overhaul to the defensive staff, although I think outside linebackers Larry Foote is worth keeping and I like the energy and accountability he brings.

My last name is not Glazer, so I’m not sure what ownership will do after this season with Bowles or his coaching staff. I know they genuinely like Bowles and want him to succeed. They just gave him a lucrative contract extension this past offseason. But they also gave Jon Gruden a contract extension back in the 2008 offseason and still fired him less than a year later after a 9-3 start evaporated into a 9-7 finish.

Yet that decision kicked off the “decade of darkness” that led to failed coaching hires like Raheem Morris, Greg Schiano, Lovie Smith and Dirk Koetter before Bruce Arians arrived in 2019. Change doesn’t always happen for the better, and the time from 2009-2018 is proof of that. At the same time, the Glazers sensed that Tony Dungy took the Bucs as far as he could in 2001 and their willingness to trade for Jon Gruden produced an immediate Super Bowl championship and three division titles in seven years. Gruden also surpassed Dungy and won the most games in franchise history in the process.

Bucs CBs coach Kevin Ross – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Having said that, I’m not sure what their appetite is for removing Bowles after this season. Maybe the next three games will paint a clearer picture for them, for general manager Jason Licht – and all of us. There’s a big difference between a 7-10 finish and a 10-7 finish – and both are still in play.

I said it after the Saints game – this team has gone stale under Bowles. That’s the vibe I get watching the players play. It looks like some of them are going through the motions. The players don’t seem to be playing with a lot of confidence, especially on defense. And yes, this defense does lack the necessary killers to foster a killer instinct mentality on that side of the ball. I don’t see a complete rebuild coming – even if the coaching staff is changed out at the end of the season. There are a lot of pieces on this roster worth keeping.

QUESTION: If the Bucs somehow make the playoffs despite their recent performances, but unceremoniously lose in the Wild Card round again, does the team still continue with Todd Bowles?

ANSWER: That’s a great question. Thanks to Carolina losing at New Orleans on Sunday in a last-second upset, we’re back to a tie in the NFC South between Tampa Bay and Carolina. Both teams are 7-7 and if one can sweep the other one, we’ll have an easy division winner that won’t need to go down to tiebreakers if they split, but both finish at 9-8 or 8-9. Tampa Bay has a tiebreaker advantage and simply needs to win two out of the next three games to retain the NFC South title and make the playoffs once again.

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

But what if the team doesn’t show any progress? What if the Bucs finish 10-7 again under Todd Bowles and the team loses in the first round of the playoffs at home again? Does Bowles get a pass this year because of all the injuries, especially on offense? What if the Bucs finish 9-8, win the division and lose in the first round of the playoffs, which would represent a step backwards from the 2024 season? I’m not sure if the Glazers would look at injuries as a reason or an excuse for what has transpired this year.

Regardless of what transpires and whether the Bucs finish 7-10, 8-9, 9-8 or 10-7, I think there are some fundamental problems with Bowles’ defensive scheme. This defense gives up way too many touchdowns, has problems stopping the big play on the ground and through the air on a consistent basis, and fails to generate enough pressure with a four-man pass rush. So even if the Glazers want to keep Bowles as the team’s head coach, do they force him to give up play-calling duties? Would he even want to stay on as head coach if he’s not calling the plays? I’m just not sure.

Hang on to something – January could be a bumpy ride for the Buccaneers and their future. It will be interesting to see what happens in 2026 with this team moving forward. One thing is for sure – Pewter Report will have the best offseason coverage of this team regarding any coaching changes, free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft.

QUESTION: The regression/lack development of guys on defense is crazy. Besides Tykee Smith nobody seems to make plays on the ball regularly. Zyon McCollum looks lost, Yaya Diaby doesn’t seem to have added any moves, and Antoine Winfield Jr. isn’t the same playmaker. I’d love to see a different defensive voice. Will it happen?

ANSWER: You make some valid points regarding the development of those players – or the lack thereof. At the very least, it seems like the Bucs could use some different – and perhaps younger – assistant coaches on the defensive side. Sometimes the message grows stale over time and usually energy comes from youthful voices. I remember in 2001 Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin could have gone with some older crony coaches to replace the likes of defensive backs coach Herm Edwards and linebackers coach Lovie Smith.

Former Bucs DC Monte Kiffin, former Bucs DBs coach Mike Tomlin and former Bucs SS John Lynch – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Instead he went with two new young, energetic coaches in Mike Tomlin and Joe Barry and it made all the difference in the world. Defensive backs like cornerback Ronde Barber and safety John Lynch elevated their game to new heights and eventually became Hall of Famers under Tomlin, while Derrick Brooks won the NFC Defensive Player of the Year honors under Barry’s tutelage in 2002 and continued to build his Hall of Fame resumé.

As I mentioned before, the Bucs have two very high-priced defensive backs in cornerback Zyon McCollum and safety Antoine Winfield Jr. who need to reach their full potential and play up to it. Something has to change in 2026 defensively, whether it is a whole new coaching staff and scheme starting with a replacement for Todd Bowles, or Bowles being forced to make some changes to his coaching staff. The team upgraded the talent and depth this offseason, but the defense has been the main culprit for most of the losses since the bye week.

QUESTION: Perception of the Bucs has shifted dramatically this season – from Todd Bowles and Jason Licht being good culture-builders to the team being soft. Looking back, can you identify an event (or events) as the tipping point? Also, any insight into which players were being called out by Bowles for “not caring enough?”

ANSWER: I can’t pinpoint one specific thing where this season took a turn for the worst defensively. The first thing that comes to mind is trying to get rookie cornerback Benjamin Morrison some playing time and experience against the Patriots and it proved to be costly. Todd Bowles subbed out Jamel Dean, the team’s best cornerback this year, and replaced him with Morrison, who was immediately picked on and surrendered a long touchdown pass in a game that was lost, 28-23.

The idea made some sense, as Morrison is being groomed to be the starter in 2026 while Dean won’t return and will be a free agent next year. But to take the team’s best cornerback off the field and replace him with an unproven rookie was not a great idea in hindsight. Also, giving Zyon McCollum a lucrative, three-year, $48 million extension in August instead of making him play out his contract year wasn’t smart in hindsight. McCollum has not had a good season, giving up five touchdowns and producing just one interception and six pass breakups through the first 14 games.

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts and Bucs CB Kindle Vildor – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

I agree that this defense is soft – mentally and physically. The addition of outside linebacker Haason Reddick, a big free agent signing, has not gone according to plan, either. The 31-year old Reddick has just 2.5 sacks on the season – fewer than reserve Anthony Nelson, who has three – and he has not been the difference-maker the team was expecting him to be. He’s missed some time due to injury, but also has clearly lost as step and is closer to the one-sack edge rusher he was in New York last year than he was the double-digit sacker he was in Philadelphia in 2023 when he was 29.

As for the players Bowles seemed to be calling out after Thursday night’s loss to the Falcons, my guess would be cornerbacks McCollum and Kindle Vildor and safety Christian Izien. McCollum left the game early due to a hip injury, but had a critical offside call on a Falcons field goal attempt in the first half. That led to a first down for Atlanta, which scored a touchdown on the next play. That four-point swing was crucial in a one-point loss to the Falcons. Neither Vildor nor Izien played well in coverage, either.

QUESTION: SR, this reminds me so much of Dirk Koetter’s last season. When Bruce Arians was head coach he was always aggressive, hence Todd Bowles was directed to coach defense that way. Seems that since he has taken over, Bowles is so passive with defense and he got so much flak with Cooper Kupp catch in the 2021 playoff game. Fair statement?

ANSWER: Well, Dirk Koetter’s final season in 2018 featured a 3-7 start that got to 5-7 with four games left. The Bucs needed to go 4-0 and win out to get to 9-7 to have a chance at the playoffs. This year’s season under Todd Bowles started off 6-2 before going 1-5 since the bye week. Now at 7-7, Tampa Bay needs to sweep Carolina or win one of the Panthers games and beat Miami to finish 9-8 – or 10-7 with three straight wins – to lock up the NFC South and make the playoffs again.

Former Bucs DT Gerald McCoy and former head coach Dirk Kotter – Photo by: Mark Lomoglio/PR

So from that standpoint it’s different. Yet, the collapse of this team down the stretch reeks of a blend of Koetter’s final season and Jon Gruden’s final season as Tampa Bay’s head coach in 2008. There has been a clear loss of momentum since the bye week, as the team has lost five of its last six games. Back-to-back home losses to Saints and Falcons — teams that have been eliminated from the playoffs — are quite damning. If Tampa Bay can’t beat lesser teams like New Orleans and Atlanta, how are the Bucs expected to compete with and beat more dominant teams in the NFC like Seattle, Detroit, Chicago and Los Angeles?

I do think this team needs more energetic leadership. It’s not just Bowles who lacks fire and intensity, but also a vast majority of his assistants, too. There are a lot of cerebral coaches on this staff who rely a lot on communicating calls through walk-through practices. But what this team needs is more competitive, intense practices with a more up-tempo, energetic pace to them. Football is a game played with emotion, and there doesn’t appear to be enough of that on this team right now.

I’ve used the term “stale” before to describe this team, especially defensively. I suppose you can substitute the term “passive” instead. Bowles has been since 2019 and a lot of his defensive assistants have, too. Perhaps the message is getting lost or simply not getting through to the players, as even Bowles has said that it is not just one or two players who keep screwing up. Rather it’s one or two different players who are screwing up each week defensively that is causing costly breakdowns that surrender big plays and touchdowns.

Bucs Legend Rondé Barber Joins The Pewter Report Podcast Monday At 4:00 p.m. ET

Watch the Pewter Report Podcast on Monday at 4:00 p.m. ET on PewterReportTV YouTube channel as Bucs Hall of Famer Rondé Barber joins Scott Reynolds and Matt Matera to discuss the current state of the Buccaneers.