What Went Wrong in Tampa Bay? Breaking Down the Bucs’ Late-Season Collapse
Lavonte David didn’t sugarcoat it. On a recent episode of the Caps Off podcast, the longtime Buccaneers linebacker summed up Tampa Bay’s 2025 season in blunt, unfiltered fashion:
“We sh*t the bed.”
Hard to argue with him.
The Bucs dropped seven of their final nine games, unraveling in a way that’s hard to forget - and even harder to explain away. In a year when the NFC South was wide open, Tampa only needed to go 3-6 down the stretch to clinch the division.
They couldn’t do it. They even had a four-game stretch without facing a single team above .500 - and lost all four.
NFL upsets happen. But four straight losses to sub-.500 teams? That’s not just a bad stretch - that’s systemic failure.
So what went wrong? Let’s break down the three major areas that fueled one of the season’s most stunning collapses: leadership, execution, and a glaring lack of killer instinct.
1. Leadership Breakdown - On the Sidelines and Under Center
When a team falls apart like Tampa Bay did, the spotlight naturally turns to leadership - and in this case, it’s not hard to see why.
Head coach Todd Bowles enters 2026 firmly on the hot seat. While the Bucs’ record speaks for itself, it’s the how that raises eyebrows.
After a crushing loss to the Falcons on December 11, Bowles delivered a postgame rant that went viral - not because it was insightful, but because it lacked accountability. He pointed fingers everywhere but inward.
That kind of deflection doesn’t sit well in NFL locker rooms - or front offices.
Then there’s the defensive side of the ball, which Bowles still oversees directly. He’s the only head coach in the league who also functions as his team’s defensive coordinator.
That dual role would be easier to justify if the defense was elite. It wasn’t.
Tampa finished 20th in scoring defense, and insiders have pointed to Bowles’ complex schemes and reliance on walkthroughs over full-speed practices as contributing factors.
At quarterback, Baker Mayfield’s season was a tale of two halves. Through nine games, he looked like a stabilizing force - 16 touchdowns, just two picks, and a command of the offense that gave Tampa fans hope.
But down the stretch, the wheels came off. Over the final seven games, Mayfield threw nine interceptions, many of them in high-leverage moments.
The most painful came in that same December game against Atlanta - a fourth-quarter pick to Dee Ford that flipped the momentum and helped the Falcons steal a 29-28 win. That loss ultimately kept Tampa out of the playoffs.
Between Bowles’ sideline missteps and Mayfield’s late-season regression, the Bucs were left without a steady hand when they needed it most.
2. No Killer Instinct - Especially in the Red Zone
Football games are often decided in the red zone - and that’s where the Bucs consistently came up short.
Offensively, Tampa ranked 24th in red-zone efficiency. That’s not just a stat - it’s a reflection of a team that couldn’t finish drives. They moved the ball well enough at times, but when it came to punching it in for six, the execution just wasn’t there.
Defensively, things were even worse. Tampa finished dead last in red-zone defense. That means when opponents got inside the 20, they almost always walked away with touchdowns - not field goals.
The Falcons, again, were a prime example. In that pivotal December matchup, Atlanta went 5-for-5 in the red zone, scoring four touchdowns.
That one-point loss - a 29-28 heartbreaker - could’ve been a season-saver had Tampa made even one red-zone stop. Instead, it became a snapshot of everything that went wrong.
Championship-caliber teams close out drives. They make goal-line stands. The 2025 Buccaneers did neither.
3. Offensive Coordinator Carousel - And Another Miss
Mayfield’s struggles weren’t all on him. The Bucs’ offensive coordinator situation was a revolving door - and the latest hire didn’t pan out.
After Liam Coen turned down a record-setting offer to stay in Tampa (he took the Jaguars’ head coaching job instead and led them to a 13-5 season), the Bucs promoted 35-year-old Josh Grizzard, hoping he’d follow in the footsteps of Coen and Dave Canales before him.
He didn’t.
Grizzard lasted just one season before being let go. Tampa’s offense lacked rhythm, creativity, and consistency - especially late in games. And while Mayfield’s play dipped, the system around him didn’t do him many favors.
Now, the Bucs are turning to Zac Robinson, a hire reportedly made with Mayfield’s approval. Robinson brings fresh ideas and familiarity with the quarterback, but he’ll have to hit the ground running. There’s no margin for error in 2026.
What’s Next?
The Bucs didn’t just fall short of expectations - they collapsed under the weight of them. From shaky leadership to red-zone failures to coaching turnover, this was a team that couldn’t get out of its own way.
The pieces are still there for a rebound - a veteran quarterback, a core of talented defenders, and a front office willing to make bold moves. But if Tampa wants to avoid another late-season freefall, the fixes need to be real, and they need to happen fast.
Otherwise, 2026 might not just be a make-or-break year for Bowles and Mayfield - it could be the start of a full-scale rebuild.