[](https://www.joebucsfan.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Bowlesrighttightatl.png)In reality, the Bucs are in a very similar cylcle to what they were in during the 2022, 2023 and 2024 seasons. So perhaps a fan freakout now is borderline ridiculous?
Joe doesn’t think it’s ridiculous, but it is reasonable to assert that a major midseason swoon in play after a very strong season start is a hallmark of a Todd Bowles coached team.
There are no coincidences in the NFL, Joe believes, and this current Bucs situation, a 6-5 record after a 5-1 start, is more more than a one-off. It’s familar territory.
With Tom Brady in 2022, the Bucs started 2-0, found their way to 3-5, and clinched the NFC South title with an 8-8 record before tanking the Week 18 game of that season.
In 2023, the Bucs were again 2-0 and fell to 4-7 before making the playoffs with a 9-8 record. Last year, the Bucs were 3-1, then 4-6 and 10-7 when the regular season ended.
The common thread is not the offensive coordinator or the quarterback, it’s the head coach.
Bowles teams hit “a wall.” That’s how Bucs backup QB Teddy Bridgewater described it after tonight’s national embarrassment against the Rams. Bridgewater only arrived in Tampa in August, but he referenced the Bucs’ past midseason slumps and believes fans will see a very different team next week.
History says Bridgewater is on the money. It also helps that the next opponent is the three-win Cardinals and their backup quarterback.
The Joe typing here picked the Bucs to win 10 games season. And while tonight’s quit-like effort against the Rams was inexcusable and disturbing, the big picture is probably exactly what every fan should have expected to this point.