Leonard Fournette isn’t buying much more runway for Todd Bowles.
The former Buccaneers running back said on his 4th and South podcast, which he co-hosts with Jarvis Landry, that it may be time for Tampa Bay’s head coach to move on. After a 0-2 start, the pressure around Bowles has only intensified, and Fournette didn’t dance around where he stands.
"To me, I just feel like maybe the time is up. Maybe it's time for Coach Bowles to wrap it up."
That kind of sentiment lands harder when the Bucs are already staring at a tough Week 3 matchup with the 2-0 Minnesota Vikings. Tampa Bay has looked shaky through two games, Baker Mayfield has turned the ball over four times, and the offensive line has allowed seven sacks. Now the Bucs have to deal with Brian Flores’ blitz-heavy defense, the same unit that held the Chicago Bears to three points last Sunday after putting up 59 in Week 1.
If Tampa Bay can’t straighten things out, an 0-3 start becomes very real. The Houston Texans made the playoffs after starting 0-3 last season, becoming only the seventh team since 1980 to do it, but the source here makes clear that no one is expecting Tampa Bay to feel optimistic about that kind of path.
Bowles has not been described as facing an immediate firing after another loss, but another defeat would make the message impossible to ignore. The sense is that the wall is closing in, and the Bucs’ next step could decide how loud the conversation gets.
Fournette’s comments carry extra weight because he won a Super Bowl with Bowles in Tampa, when Bowles was the defensive coordinator. In Super Bowl LV, Bowles’ defense smothered Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in a 31-9 win, a performance that built Bowles’ reputation as a defensive mastermind.
That history bought Bowles a long leash. Fournette’s point is that the leash may be running out now.
And with Brian Flores carrying the kind of defensive buzz Bowles once had, Sunday could make things even more uncomfortable in Tampa if Flores’ group clearly outplays Bowles’ defense. If that happens, the calls for change won’t just linger - they’ll get louder.
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