Over the past couple seasons, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ fanbase has not grown tired of slandering head coach Todd Bowles. With how former Tampa offensive coordinators Dave Canales and Liam Coen are looking in their new head coaching roles, perhaps the harsh words are justified?

Canales, who made the move to become the head coach of a then-awful Carolina Panthers franchise ahead of the 2024 season, just coached his squad to take out arguably the best team in the NFL in the Los Angeles Rams. The Panthers now sit at 7-6 entering their bye—breathing down the 7-5 Bucs’ necks in the NFC South.

Coen’s Jacksonville Jaguars did not take out a top team on Sunday, but they did trounce the Tennessee Titans by a score of 25-3 to move to 8-4 and take command of the AFC South.

And what were the Bucs doing while their past two OCs were making statements with their new teams? Oh yeah. Tampa was hardly squeaking past the three-win Cardinals at home to snap a three-game losing streak.

In the grand scheme of things, Bowles is not a terrible coach. The team is in position to claim its fifth consecutive NFC South division title, which would stretch the franchise record. It is very difficult to gripe about making the playoffs every year. However, seeing Canales and Coen flourish with less talented rosters while the Bucs are on pace for their same slightly-above-average season is enough to frustrate fans—and it’s enough to warm Bowles’ seat, too.

Today’s Hottest Take: The Bucs Would Be Better Off With Either Coen or Canales

In the modern NFL, smart, young, offensive-minded coaches have become increasingly attractive for head coaching positions. Both Canales and Coen fit all three of those categories. Respectfully, when it comes to Bowles, he fits either zero or one of them, depending on how you view his intellect.

Of Bowles’ seven complete seasons as a head coach in the NFL, fewer than half of them have ended with a winning record. Granted, the last two (2023 and 2024) were two of them, but those were while he was partnered with Canales (2023) and then Coen (2024). During that two-season span, the Bucs were in the bottom half of the league in total defense—the portion of the team’s success Bowles is supposed to be responsible for.

This season, Josh Grizzard took over offensive play-calling. Though he had a great start, he isn’t Canales or Coen, and the offense has cooled off substantially over the past few weeks. And guess what? It still ranks higher than the defense in terms of both yardage and scoring. If it weren’t for the defense’s ability to force turnovers, opposing teams would often not struggle to score. Bowles cannot scheme pressure without blitzing, and the secondary has been a consistent problem, no matter what coverage is being played.

Canales and Coen both took over teams that were terrible when they made the transition. The Panthers hired Canales after a 2-15 season, and the Jags took Coen after last year’s 4-13 debacle. This year, with new coordinators, both teams have defenses that have allowed fewer yards per game than the Bucs. Both teams have as many or more wins than the Bucs. And they’re doing it with less talent.

What You Need to Know: Todd Bowles Is Good For One Thing, And It’s Stability

Bowles can be called a lot of things, and bad at his job is certainly one that has made a repeated appearance. But nobody can say his time with Tampa has been anything other than steady.

He is perfectly mediocre. No matter how much talent is put in front of him, he has found a way to squeak past the other teams in the NFC South to a playoff spot with a record around .500. He began in 2022 with an 8-9 record, ramped it up to 9-8 in 2023 and got to a personal-best 10-7 with the team in 2024. During that time, his squad has been able to win just one playoff game—a 32-9 rout of the Philadelphia Eagles in the 2023 Wild Card round, when the Eagles were already falling apart.

If stability is what the Bucs’ fanbase wants, keeping him around is the perfect route. Recently, the pulse of the fans has said otherwise.

Before You Go: Liam Coen Or Dave Canales Might Have Been Able To Take This Team To The Top

For Canales and Coen to be able to reach the same level Bowles has in fewer years is troubling. Tampa watched both coaches walk to other teams, keeping Bowles around and promoting another guy from within, thinking the Tampa OC position just produced boy geniuses. But with the offense sputtering now, it’s becoming evident that the position is not magical. Canales and Coen were just really good coaches.

Bowles will most likely never get fired as long as the Bucs are making the playoffs. And with how weak the NFC South has been, unless the Panthers take the next step, they will probably have a spot every year. But this should not be a hot take: Bowles is not a good enough coach to win a Super Bowl—probably not even an NFC Championship.

Tampa will probably allow Bowles to prove he’s bad before parting ways with him—they have not made him prove he is good. With aging superstars on the roster, whatever window the Bucs have might be closed by then.