"We're good, but not great" - New Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles isn't optimistic about winning the Super Bowl with the current roster
Todd Bowles was officially introduced as the new head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during a press conference on Thursday afternoon, March 31st. The Buccaneers announced that Bowles would be taking over the job for Bruce Arians, who announced his retirement the night before and will be moving into a front-office position.
Several media members were present at the press conference to question Bowles about the direction of the Buccaneers and his plans moving forward. He was asked about where he thinks the team stands heading into the 2022 NFL season and their pursuit of winning another Super Bowl, as they did in the 2020 season.
Here's what Bowles had to say:
"We're not changing the program, we're trying to add on, because when you don't win the Super Bowl, despite the record, we're good, but not great. And we got to tweak some things and do better as ourselves as coaches, which we'll go on to do, as well as try to teach that to the players so we can go on and do that."
Bowles explained that while the Buccaneers have a good team and high expectations moving forward, they still have many improvements to make. He mentioned that the Buccaneers had a solid record last season, but because they fell short of their ultimate goal of winning the Super Bowl, they aren't exactly where they want to be yet for the upcoming season.
The Buccaneers finished the 2021 NFL regular season with a 13-4 record while winning the NFC South division title. They advanced to the NFL Playoffs, where they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card round before being eliminated by the Los Angeles Rams in the Divisional Round.
Todd Bowles' head-coaching career
Todd Bowles received his first taste of head coaching with the Miami Dolphins during the 2011 NFL season. Head coach Tony Sparano was fired with just three games remaining in the regular season, and Bowles was named the interim head coach. He coached to a 2-1 record in those three games but could not secure the job permanently.
Bowles then spent three years as the defensive coordinator for the Philadelphia Eagles and Arizona Cardinals before being hired by the New York Jets as their head coach for the 2015 NFL season. He lasted four years with the Jets and recorded a disappointing 24-40 overall record.
The Buccaneers hired him as the defensive coordinator for the 2019 season, where he remained until being promoted to head coach for the 2022 NFL season.