“Way Too Many Big Plays”
February 24th, 2026
In charge.
The Bucs defense stunk last year. And we don’t need to remind Bucs coach Todd Bowles.
In a sidebar session with Tampa Bay media types at the NFL beehive known as the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis today, Bowles was asked point-blank why he is confident the defense will improve from last year.
Basically, Bowles said, the issue was simple fundamentals. By tweaking some things on the defense, Bowles believes, the defense will be better this fall.
“I think it has been inconsistent at different times,” Bowles said. “Obviously, different things happen at different times. At times, we just weren’t good enough. Either the defense wasn’t or the offense wasn’t or the special teams wasn’t.
“Defensively, there were way too many big plays given up. That stops with me. So we had to make some changes [on defense]. And we will see what kind of players we can bring in.”
One change that won’t happen is that Bowles said he will remain in charge of the defense. He will still call the defensive plays. So no new defensive coordinator for the Bucs.