Bucs offensive coordinator Liam Coen – Photo by Jeffrey Jones/PR

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

QUESTION: As long as the Bucs don’t implode, it will be another impressive turnaround and no way you make a coaching change. How on earth do the Bucs keep Liam Coen? Make him the highest-paid offensive coordinator and guarantee him it’s his team after one more season? Are you still confident he stays?

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: USA Today

ANSWER: The first two questions are similar and I chose them because this topic is complex and I’ll have plenty of room to elaborate this way. I’ll start by giving Todd Bowles his props. For the second straight year, the Bucs have weathered a 4-6 storm (last year the team fell to 4-7) and have managed to dig themselves out of a midseason hole to put themselves in position to win the NFC South. Should Tampa Bay stay on course and win out, the team will have won its third straight division title under Bowles.

That would put the team in a precarious situation regarding Bowles and hotshot offensive coordinator Liam Coen, whose play-calling brilliance is starting to attract national attention. Coen will race near the top of hot head coaching candidates by the end of the 2024 season, especially if the Bucs keep winning and his offense keeps scoring 30-plus points per game.

It’s hard to suggest that the Bucs fire Bowles and promote Coen the longer the winning streak goes on, especially if Tampa Bay’s defense continues to excel after the bye week. Bowles has done a remarkable job with his steady-handed leadership during the Bucs’ four-game winning streak – following a four-game losing streak prior to the bye week. And Bowles’ defense has allowed an average of just 15 points per game over the last four games, which is awfully impressive, especially shutting out the Chargers, 27-0, in the second half of a 40-17 win in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and OC Liam Coen – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Bowles has put his defense together at times with rubber bands, twine and glue due to a multitude of injuries that have hit his unit, especially in the secondary. The Bucs were one of the healthiest teams in the league last year, yet this year they are one of the most injured, unfortunately. That makes the coaching job Bowles has done even more impressive. Unless Bowles’ defense craters down the stretch and becomes the reason the team doesn’t make the playoffs somehow or is the reason the team loses in the postseason, it’s difficult to find a reason to replace Bowles.

The best-case scenario for all parties involved is that the duo of Bowles and Coen allow the Bucs to ride into New Orlens for Super Bowl LIX and win it. Then perhaps the 61-year old Bowles calls it a career and retires on top, allowing Coen to take over as head coach. The Glazers could even continue to pay Bowles his salary for the remaining years left on his contract as a thank you – and to provide the incentive for him to step aside and ensure that Coen stays in Tampa Bay and takes over.

Yet if Bowles isn’t ready for retirement and wants to defend his Super Bowl title in 2025 under this scenario, keeping Coen might be improbable. Now let’s look at a scenario where  the Bucs don’t make it to the Super Bowl and what could happen with Coen then. And yes, I’m still confident that the Bucs find a way to keep him in Tampa Bay.

QUESTION: With Liam Coen’s offensive unit continuing to explode he’ll be considered for head coaching jobs around the NFL. That being said, what do they actually do with Todd Bowles? They can’t let Coen just walk.

Bucs OC Liam Coen – Photo by: Jeffrey Jones/PR

ANSWER: Bucs offensive coordinator Liam Coen just turned 39 and is a wunderkind. He has a brilliant offensive mind that is tailor made for a league that has become all about offense. Coen’s offense has worn the superhero cape for much of the season in Tampa Bay, only scoring less than 20 points in just one game game this year – a 26-7 loss to Denver back in Week 3. The Bucs offense is scoring 28.8 points per game, which ranks fourth in the NFL, and has averaged 31 points per game since the bye week. Keep in mind that this is Coen’s first year as an offensive play-caller, too.

I think he’s just scratching the surface. Just wait until he has more experience under his belt. We could be talking about the next Kyle Shanahan or Sean McVay here with Coen. So the Bucs can’t afford to let him walk as he could provide some long-term stability in Tampa Bay, especially given his rapport with quarterback Baker Mayfield, who is only 29. Coen and Mayfield could make the Bucs legitimate Super Bowl contenders for years to come if the quarterback continues his high level of play and gets a new contract extension beyond 2026.

Todd Bowles just turned 61 and it’s unclear how much longer he wants to coach in the NFL. Finding a reason to replace Bowles with Coen would be hard to justify, especially if Bowles wins three straight NFC South championships in his first three years as Tampa Bay’s head coach.

But we have seen legends get replaced with other legends before in the NFL. Green Bay traded Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre away so that Aaron Rodgers, a future Hall of Famer, could take over. And before the Packers did that, the 49ers traded away Hall of Famer Joe Montana so that San Francisco could keep another quarterback that the team thought was a Hall of Famer in Steve Young.

Is there a way the Bucs could keep both Bowles and Coen and create a scenario where Coen gets a massive pay increase and is guaranteed to take over in Tampa Bay once Bowles eventually retires? Possibly, but that is a complex scenario that would require loyalty from Coen and a massive amount of cash from the Glazers. Coordinator salaries typically aren’t public knowledge, and not even head coach salaries are widely known or published. But the Lions gave offensive coordinator Ben Johnson a hefty raise to stay in Detroit and continue working with Dan Campbell, and he might be the league’s highest paid offensive play-caller.

Bucs OC Liam Coen, QB Baker Mayfield and HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Johnson has turned down head coach interviews in each of the past two offseasons as he is waiting for the right scenario, and Pro Football Network has done some reporting on this situation: “It’s unknown what exactly Johnson makes, but it is believed to be in the upper echelon of offensive coordinators. The average coordinator makes around $1.5 million a year, with the top guys being paid around $3-4 million. Head coaching jobs, on the other hand, earn usually $30+ million guaranteed.”

So there is a big discrepancy between head coaching money and offensive coordinator salaries – even for the elite play-callers. Would $3 million-4 million per year keep Coen happy enough to stay in Tampa Bay? Is it a better situation for Coen to stay with the Bucs and eventually inherit an offense he helped build and create rather than go to a team that is a dumpster fire and would need a heavy rebuild like the New York Jets?

We don’t even know how ambitious Coen is. He’s a first-year play-caller in the NFL. But we did see Dave Canales leave Tampa Bay after just one season last year to take over in Carolina, and the thought of having the next McVay or Shanahan leave the Bucs to coach elsewhere is a downright frightening thought. Somehow, some way I still believe the Glazers and general manager Jason Licht find a way to keep Coen in Tampa Bay. He’s simply too important to this team’s future to lose and I think the Glazers and Licht understand that.

QUESTION: If the Falcons lose, will the Bucs have any playoff-clinching scenarios next week?

Bucs co-owners Joel and Bryan Glazer and Falcons head coach Raheem Morris – Photo by: USA Today

ANSWER: If Atlanta loses at Las Vegas on Monday Night Football, the Falcons might be done. The Raiders are one of the worst teams in the league with just two wins and the Falcons are Falconing with four straight losses after a 6-3 start to the season. The Bucs’ win at Los Angeles puts even more pressure on Raheem Morris’ bunch to get a win in prime time and stay in the hunt for the NFC South title as Atlanta is just one game back from Tampa Bay.

The Bucs would be in position to clinch a playoff spot via winning the NFC South with a win in Dallas coupled with losses by the Falcons to the Raiders on Monday night and the Giants the following week. Tampa Bay would be 9-6 and Atlanta would be 6-9 and it would be over. Even if the Bucs lost their final two games and the Falcons won their two remaining games, a 9-8 Tampa Bay team would beat out an 8-9 Atlanta team for a fourth straight division championship.

The Bucs can’t control what the Falcons do, and Morris and Co. should beat the lowly Raiders and Giants over the next two weeks and remain hot on Tampa Bay’s trail. But never underestimate the Falcons’ ability to Falcon – i.e. choke. That’s what that franchise has done best – hence going 0-2 in Super Bowls. The Bucs control their own destiny and just need to win out, which looks like a real possibility.

QUESTION: Your thoughts on Zyon McCollum possibly getting a new contract in the offseason?

Bucs CB Zyon McCollum – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

ANSWER: I think cornerback Zyon McCollum will get an early contract extension in the offseason even though he’ll be entering a contract year in 2025. The team won’t make him wait until the 2026 offseason to extend him. That’s a smart move and will likely mean the Bucs will be getting McCollum at a cheaper price as a result. Yet McCollum won’t be the only Buccaneers player who will likely get an early contract extension.

Right tackle Luke Goedeke has been an absolute stud this year and will be handsomely rewarded as well in 2025. The second-round pick has become an elite offensive tackle and getting him signed sooner rather than later will wind up costing the team less down the road. Tight end Cade Otton is also due for a contract extension in 2026, but he’ll likely get one this offseason as well. Otton is incredibly durable and has taken a big step forward as a blocker and a receiver in the passing game.

The reason the Bucs can look to extend these players’ contracts early is because only one player will command a huge contract this offseason – wide receiver Chris Godwin. This isn’t like last year where quarterback Baker Mayfield, wide receiver Mike Evans, linebacker Lavonte David and All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. were all free agents in the same offseason, and that will help assistant general manager Mike Greenberg and G.M. Jason Licht focus on these extensions.

QUESTION: What’s Santa bringing the Bucs?

Bucs ILBs Lavonte David and KJ Britt and 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

ANSWER: I know that another NFC South title is on Tampa Bay’s holiday wish list, and that Todd Bowles has instilled a Super Bowl mindset in the team since the eve of training camp. So nothing would be better for Christmas and Hanukkah than a surprise Super Bowl LIX title for this year’s Bucs squad. And you can add keeping offensive coordinator Liam Coen in Tampa Bay for 2025 and beyond to the team’s wish list, too.

The gift of good health would also be in order. Teams that win the Super Bowl typically have two things going for them down the stretch – health and momentum. On the heels of Tampa Bay’s 40-17 dismantling of the Chargers in Los Angeles, the team is peaking right now and playing its best football in December.

Now if the Bucs could just get healthy – and stay healthy – a Super Bowl run could be legit. Remember, this is a team that has already beaten the likes of Detroit and Philadelphia – albeit earlier in the season.

As for next year, the Bucs could use upgrades at inside linebacker, especially if the legendary Lavonte David calls it a career at age 35. SirVocea Dennis is talented enough to be one starter, but the team needs more talent and depth there. Also finding another starting-caliber cornerback is a must given Jamel Dean’s inability to stay healthy throughout the entire season. A better, more effective edge rusher is also a must, in addition to a better outside linebackers coach to replace George Edwards.