It’s been about one month since the Bucs promoted pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard to the offensive coordinator role that was left vacant when Liam Coen left for the Jaguars’ head coaching job. But Tuesday was the first time Tampa Bay general manager Jason Licht and head coach Todd Bowles spoke publicly since the hiring of Grizzard, doing so at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Bucs OC Josh Grizzard – Photo by: Adam Slivon/PR

As excited as both Licht and Bowles were about the continuity that Grizzard’s promotion provides for the offense, what stood out when they spoke to the media was just how thrilled Tampa Bay’s offensive players are to see “Grizz” or “The Wizard” take charge of the offense in 2025.

“A lot of great emojis and memes and GIFs sent,” Licht said about the players’ reactions to hearing of Josh Grizzard’s promotion. “He was a very popular person in the locker room, amongst all players. The O-line I got a FaceTime from, they were in the Bahamas. They were all cheering and having beverages and things like that. So, a lot of excitement.”

Given his own conversations with his offensive players, Bowles echoed Licht’s sentiment.

“They were excited about it, you know,” Bowles said. “I talked to Baker [Mayfield] beforehand and told him what we were thinking about. Obviously, I talked to Tristan [Wirfs] and those guys and everybody was all for it. They have a great relationship with ‘Grizz’ and they look forward to it.”

Bucs Brass Believes Josh Grizzard Is “The Right Guy”

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Matt Matera/PR

Todd Bowles is certainly no stranger to conducting searches for offensive coordinators. He has now done so three Januarys in a row, first hiring Dave Canales to replace the fired Byron Leftwich before bringing in Liam Coen to replace Canales after he left to take a head coaching job with the Panthers.

Now, it’s Josh Grizzard coming in to replace Coen, who is now the head coach of the Jaguars.

So, what has the repeated process taught Bowles, especially since he has hit on back-to-back coordinator hires in Canales and Coen before Grizzard’s promotion?

“Number one, it taught me I don’t get a vacation,” Bowles said, referencing those searches coming directly after the end of the season. “The biggest thing is at least we know we’re picking the right guys. This one was a little different than the first time because our system is still in place with this one and the coaches are the same and Grizz was at least here a year. So, it shouldn’t be wholesale changes. Obviously, there will be some different things.

“But you try to pick the right guys. And it’s not the ‘right guys’ depending on how smart or good they are, it’s about the right guy [for] how your team is built and how you think your guys can get the most out of what they’re coaching. So, we try to do a good job picking that and making sure we got the right guy that way, and we think Grizz is that guy.”

Bucs RB Bucky Irving and pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The on-field results in 2025 will ultimately decide whether Josh Grizzard is the “right guy” the Bucs offense needs, but it’s hard to argue against the logic for naming him Coen’s successor.

Tampa Bay was a top-five offense last year, averaging 29.5 points per game to rank fourth in the league. The team’s 399.5 total yards per game ranked third, as did its 250.4 passing yards per game. Not to mention, the previously 32nd-ranked run game jumped up to fourth, averaging 149.2 yards per game on the ground.

Grizzard was here for that success, and he was a part of it. As the man in charge of third downs, he led the way as the Bucs led the league in third-down conversion percentage. So, his body of work combined with the continuity factor made him an intriguing hire. Licht said as much on Tuesday.

“Well, we wanted to hire someone from Lizard Lick, North Carolina, and he fit the bill. No, I’m kidding,” Licht joked. “Josh did a fantastic job all year. Everybody in the building saw how smart he is… Easy to get along with, with the players. In front of the room, he was fantastic. They call him ‘The Wizard.’ A lot of players have mentioned that. I’m just very excited to get to see Josh in that role. I know he’s excited to get going. He’s going to bring some fresh ideas, which is always good.”

As for the continuity? It’s not just about Josh Grizzard. Licht said it’s huge for them to bring back the majority of their offensive staff.

“Well, it was important to have Josh,” Licht said. “It was important to have as many of the offensive staff as we could. As great of a coach as Liam [Coen] is — we all have a lot of respect for him — he was one part of it. There’s a lot of other parts, including players and coaches. To have that core group, with offensive line coaches, our tight ends coach, our receivers coach, I could go on and on, Jordan Somerville, Jeff Kastl. We added some other people to our staff, too, that we’re excited about. We felt continuity was very important, especially for the players. That’s what they were excited about when the hire was made.”

So, yeah, excitement is plentiful in the Tampa Bay locker room. Licht has the emojis, memes and GIFs to prove it.