Bill Simmons isn’t buying Todd Bowles as a safe bet in Tampa Bay, and he made that clear while talking about the Buccaneers on The Mina Kimes Show.
Simmons said, “I would have him circled in the first-coach-fired rankings, because I thought he should have been fired after the season."
That kind of comment lands because it echoes a feeling plenty of Buccaneers fans already carry. Bowles may still have support from the Glazers, but the frustration around him hasn’t gone anywhere. The source of that frustration is simple: Tampa Bay had a chance to control its own fate last season and instead let the division and the playoffs slip away.
Simmons did not give Bowles a pass, but he also didn’t write off the roster. Even while calling Baker Mayfield a middle tier quarterback, he still picked the Buccaneers to win the NFC South in 2026. That says plenty about the talent Tampa Bay still has at wide receiver and on the offensive line, and it also says plenty about the state of the division.
The Panthers are the No. 2 enemy on the list for Tampa Bay next season after winning the NFC South last year, while the Falcons sit at No. 3 and are expected to be more dangerous with Kevin Stefanski in charge instead of Raheem Morris, who is described as a well known charlatan to Bucs fans.
But the biggest problem, at least from this view, remains the one in the mirror. Tampa Bay, not Carolina or Atlanta, is being framed as its own biggest obstacle. And until Bowles gives fans a reason to trust him, that feeling is not going away.
In Other News...
Buccaneers May Already Be Eyeing Life After Baker Mayfield
Baker Mayfields contract situation has already pushed the Buccaneers into an uncomfortable question about what comes next at quarterback. Even with Mayfield still in place for now, the team is in a spot where it has to keep one eye on the future, especially if his time in Tampa Bay does not extend beyond 2027.
That is where the 2027 NFL Draft starts to loom as a possible pivot point. Tampa Bay is being connected to a handful of college passers who could shape that conversation, including Drew Mestemaker, Darian Mensah, Jayden Maiava, LaNorris Sellers and Julian Sayin, a group that gives the Buccaneers options if they decide the eventual answer under center might not already be on the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Made One Draft Choice That Will Fuel Debate For Years
The Buccaneers latest behind-the-scenes draft video added a little more context to one of the most debated decisions of their 2026 class. During the war room footage, Tampa Bay showed it had a chance to move back from No. 15 in a deal with the Lions, a reminder that the front office was weighing not just a player, but the value of staying put versus stacking more picks.
In the end, the Bucs passed on the extra draft capital and stayed at 15 to take Rueben Bain Jr., a choice that makes sense when viewed through how highly they had him graded. The video only deepens the debate because it confirms Tampa Bay had real options on the table, and it also shows the franchise was willing to trust its board and chase a player it clearly believed was worth more than the trade-down package. [Read more 🡒]