The Buccaneers’ 23-19 loss to the Browns in Week 2 has only sharpened the spotlight on Todd Bowles, and the conversation around his future is already starting to build. Tampa Bay is sitting in a rough stretch that has stretched well beyond this season’s opening weeks, and if the slide continues into another year without a playoff trip, the organization could be looking for a new voice next offseason.
The Glazers have never fired a head coach during the season, so an in-year move would take things to an extreme. But if Bowles doesn’t steady the ship, the coaching search figures to begin in earnest once the year is over.
If that happens, a few names already stand out.
Grant Udinski is one of the more intriguing offensive options. The Jaguars’ offensive coordinator worked under Liam Coen in Jacksonville and previously spent three seasons on Kevin O’Connell’s staff with the Vikings.
He hasn’t called plays, but he has been in the room with two of the league’s sharper young offensive minds, and that has pushed him into the conversation. At 30, he’s young enough to raise questions about leadership and readiness, but that same age didn’t stop Sean McVay from getting the Rams job at 30.
Nate Scheelhaase is another fast-rising offensive candidate. He drew serious interest last offseason, interviewing with the Bills, Steelers, Browns, Ravens, and Raiders, and reportedly impressed teams during that process.
Now the Rams’ offensive coordinator, he’s also serving as Sean McVay’s play-drawer, a role that has become a launchpad for coaches such as Liam Coen, Kevin O’Connell, and Zac Taylor. At 35, Scheelhaase fits the profile of the next coach from that branch of the tree.
Declan Doyle brings a different path. He worked under Sean Payton with both the Saints and Broncos as an offensive assistant and tight ends coach, then moved to Ben Johnson’s staff as the Bears’ offensive coordinator.
After one season, he took the same title with the Ravens and added play-calling duties. At 30, he already has experience in two major offensive environments and a résumé that should put him on the short list next offseason.
If Tampa Bay wants to go back to the defensive side, Brian Flores would be the most aggressive fit. The Vikings’ coordinator has been blitzing at a ridiculous rate in 2025, and through two games Minnesota has been sending extra pressure on more than 70% of opponent dropbacks while nobody else has even reached 50%.
Flores’ defense has also been strong in the broader numbers, ranking top-10 in points allowed, touchdowns allowed, EPA per play, QB pressures, QB pressure percentage, and blitz percentage. Last season, Minnesota finished No. 3 in yards allowed, No. 2 against the pass, and No. 7 in points per game allowed.
His hard-edged, no-nonsense style would give the Bucs a familiar kind of defensive identity, only with better results.
Then there’s Mike Tomlin, the biggest name of the group. He spent 19 seasons with the Steelers and never had a losing year before stepping down after the 2025 season.
A return to the NFL is expected when the right situation comes along, and Tampa Bay has already shown it can pull a veteran coach out of retirement, as it did with Bruce Arians in 2019 on the way to a Super Bowl. Tomlin also has a direct tie to the franchise: his NFL coaching career started in Tampa Bay as the Buccaneers’ defensive backs coach from 2001-05, when he was on Jon Gruden’s staff for the team’s first Super Bowl title.
It would be a full-circle move if he eventually came back to Tampa with another championship chase in front of him.
In Other News...
Buccaneers Draw A Much Tougher Vikings QB Test Than Expected
The Buccaneers were preparing for one kind of challenge this week, but the Vikings have a different quarterback plan in place. Minnesota head coach Kevin OConnell confirmed that Kyler Murray has cleared concussion protocol and will start against Tampa Bay in Week 3, with Carson Wentz still available as the backup. For a Tampa Bay defense already trying to get ready for a road test, the change means the scouting report gets a little more complicated.
Minnesota enters the matchup favored, and Murrays presence adds a layer of urgency to a game that already carried weight in the early part of the schedule. The bigger question now is what comes after Sunday, because it is still unclear whether Murray will hold onto the starting job beyond Week 3. For the Buccaneers, though, the immediate concern is simpler: they have to deal with a quarterback who changes the way Minnesota can attack. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Already Have One Big Problem Fans Cant Ignore
The Buccaneers left Cleveland with more than just a 23-19 loss in Week 2. At 0-2, Tampa Bay is already staring at the kind of early-season hole that can make every problem feel bigger, and this one brought a few of them into focus at once. Baker Mayfield and Alex Anzalone had rough outings, while Bucky Irving and Chase McLaughlin were among the few players who managed to stand out on a disappointing afternoon.
What really jumps out, though, is how familiar some of the trouble looked. The offensive line had issues, the red zone offense never found a rhythm, and those are the kinds of problems that can flatten a team even when the defense gives it a chance to hang around. For the Buccaneers, the concern is no longer just about one bad result. It is about whether the issues that showed up in Week 2 are already becoming a pattern. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs' Ugly Start Is Putting A Bigger Problem In Focus
The Buccaneers 2-loss start has already turned an early-season stumble into something more uncomfortable. After the 23-19 defeat to the Browns, the frustration was obvious from the locker room to the sideline, with players and coaches alike talking openly about penalties, missed execution and a team that has not looked sharp on either side of the ball. For a roster built to expect more than this, the problem is no longer just a bad Sunday.
What makes the situation sting is how quickly it has shifted the conversation from correction to consequence. Tampa Bay still has time to clean it up, but the ugly beginning has put the offense, the defense and even the coaching staff under a bigger spotlight than anyone around the team wanted this early. A season can survive a rough patch, but the margin for error is already starting to shrink. [Read more 🡒]