Rob Gronkowski isn’t sugarcoating what he sees in Tampa Bay.
The former Buccaneers star and four-time Super Bowl champion said the 0-3 start has exposed a bigger issue than just a rough opening stretch, pointing to the losses of Mike Evans and Lavonte David as a major reason the locker room feels different now than it did during the team’s championship run.
Gronkowski, who won his last Super Bowl with the Buccaneers in 2020 alongside Tom Brady, made the comments Wednesday during an appearance on the "Up & Adams" show. He said the departures of those two veterans have left a void in the team’s culture.
"You have got to think about it," said Gronkowski. "They lost Mike Evans, their longest tenured player, along with Lavonte David.
Those were culture guys, they brought the team together. There are plays to be made.
Like that Chris Godwin touchdown, then they got a penalty. They are making too many mistakes.
Like I said, they are talented. They can win games.
Even though they are 0-3, they can still beat the best team in the NFL on any given Sunday."
He didn’t stop there. Gronkowski said some kind of change has to come in Tampa Bay, and he believes head coach Todd Bowles could be part of that conversation.
"I mean, it's definitely going to be an option that is on the table," said Gronkowski, referring to the Buccaneers potentially parting ways with Todd Bowles. "There is no doubt about it.
You have got to change up something. You have got to change up something when things aren't going right.
Last year... It's a continuation from there.
They should have went to the playoffs, they lost. Something needs to change, something needs to flip.
That is definitely going to be a conversation leading up to the future. That will be on the table for sure."
The Buccaneers’ offseason only added to the churn. Evans signed with the San Francisco 49ers, and David retired after a 14-year NFL career, stripping away two of the most important voices from that Super Bowl-era group.
Now Tampa Bay is staring at an even tougher road. Undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniel is set to start for the foreseeable future after Baker Mayfield suffered a thumb injury in a Week 3 loss. With Mayfield sidelined and the team already winless, Gronkowski’s warning about things getting worse before they get better doesn’t sound far-fetched.
For now, Tampa Bay is left trying to stop the slide. But if the losses keep piling up, Gronkowski made it clear he thinks a bigger shake-up could be coming.
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McCoys criticism landed because it came against the backdrop of another sluggish start, with the offense also drawing his concern as the Bucs slipped to 0-3. For a fan base already looking for answers, hearing a longtime franchise figure voice those same frustrations only sharpened the conversation around how much of this is about personnel and how much is about the way the team is being used. [Read more 🡒]