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Bucs Offensive Coach Seems Confident In Bucs Defense

May 23rd, 2025

Bucs QB coach Thad Lewis.

A lot of Bucs fans are still angry over the Bucs defense.

They don’t like the corners, especially the guy who wears No. 35. The same fans are leery of the Bucs safeties — yes, even fans worry that Antoine Winfield won’t return to be his All-Pro self — and Bucs fans certainly do not like the inside linebackers not named “Lavonte David.”

Shoot, the night before, Joe fielded a question about Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht from a commenter on this here corner of the interwebs railing how Licht has failed the Bucs and the Tampa Bay community as a whole for not cutting Jamel Dean and overhauling the second- and third-levels of the defense.

Since the combine, Bucs types (suits, football administrators, Todd Bowles and his assistants) have been consistent in their message that the defense, including inside linebacker, will be fine this year.

Bucs quarterback coach Thad Lewis reiterated that this week at One Buc Palace.

Lewis was talking about how Baker Mayfield needs to better protect himself from absorbing so many hits now that he’s on the wrong side of his 30th birthday. Lewis said Mayfield could help himself by letting others wearing Bucs uniforms help win games, including the defense.

“I would prefer him to throw it away or get down,” Lewis said when a completion isn’t evident or possible. “Let’s play team ball. We’ve got a good defense, you know? Let’s flip the field.”

This, Joe believes, is truly the mindset of the Bucs. They really do feel confident about the Bucs defense, even though they couldn’t force a punt in the one-score playoff loss to the Commandos, even though the Bucs have had the fifth-worst pass defense in the league two years running.

The Bucs either honestly believe this or they have the messaging down pat. That same consistent messaging was obviously lacking when it came to the proposed Tush Push ban.