The Bucs fired offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich following the team’s 31-14 loss to the Cowboys in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. The move, which was first reported by Pewter Report, was a long time coming as Tampa Bay’s offense went from averaging 30 points per game in the 2020 and 2021 seasons to a woeful 18.4 points per game in 2022. The Bucs ranked 25th in scoring as a result last year.

Leftwich went from being a potential NFL head coaching candidate, as he was once the favorite to take the Jaguars job in the 2022 offseason, to now trying to find work as a coordinator again. He’s drawn the interest of the Ravens, who parted ways with Greg Roman this offseason, but is not considered to be a favorite to land the job.

With fleeting interest from NFL teams, Leftwich is now turning to the college ranks. According to 247 Sports, Leftwich has reached out to Notre Dame to inquire about the Fighting Irish’s vacant offensive coordinator post.

Leftwich May Have To Be A QBs Coach Again

Bucs OC Byron Leftwich – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Leftwich will be fortunate to get an offensive coordinator job in the NFL this offseason after so much turmoil in Tampa Bay last year. According to a league source, many in the NFL community know that Leftwich failed to adapt when the Bucs lost a lot of talent following the 2021 season. Tampa Bay’s success was a product of the offense simply out-talented the competition in 2020 and 2021 rather than Leftwich’s play-calling prowess.

Future Hall of Fame tight end Rob Gronkowski retired in the 2022 offseason, as did Pro Bowl left tackle Ali Marpet. Wide receiver Antonio Brown, who has Hall of Fame credentials, left the team near the end of the 2021 season and Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen missed all of the 2022 regular season with a severely injured knee. Leftwich was not creative enough to compensate for a lesser talented roster as the Bucs’ shortcomings on offense led to an 8-9 record despite winning the NFC South division.

If Leftwich cannot find a play-caller role either in the pros or the college ranks he may have to start his climb up the NFL ladder as a quarterbacks coach, as he was in 2017 in Arizona under his mentor, Bruce Arians.