Todd Bowles, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach, confirmed on Wednesday, Jan. 7, that he will stay with the franchise for the 2026 NFL season. However, the next day, the Buccaneers decided to make major changes to the coaching staff. Let’s dive in to know what decision Bowles made on Thursday.
Buccaneers Shake Up Offensive Coaching Staff Under Todd Bowles
On Thursday, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported surprising coaching news about the Bucs. The insider wrote on X, “A significant change for #Bucs coach Todd Bowles: He’s firing OC Josh Grizzard, per The Insiders.”
After handling pass-game duties in 2024, Grizzard was given a bigger role the following year, stepping into the offensive coordinator position once Liam Coen left Tampa Bay to lead the Jaguars.
The transition initially looked successful, with the offense functioning well early in the 2025 season. But production tailed off down the stretch. That late-season drop ultimately led Bowles to decide that a change was necessary.
And after firing the offensive coordinator Grizzard, the HC of the franchise also fired the quarterbacks coach. Per NFL insider Jeremy Fowler’s initial report, “The Bucs also are moving on from quarterbacks coach Thad Lewis, per source.”
The Bucs also are moving on from quarterbacks coach Thad Lewis, per source. Tampa Bay will let the new offensive coordinator replacing Josh Grizzard pick his QB coach.
Lewis was with Baker Mayfield for all three of his seasons in Tampa Bay.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) January 8, 2026
The franchise QB, Baker Mayfield, has been playing under the coaching of Lewis for the past three years. Since joining the organization in 2020 as an intern, Lewis climbed the ladder from an intern to assistant wide receivers coach in 2021. Then, in 2023, he was promoted to quarterbacks coach and began working with Mayfield as his assistant.
And these two announcements hit the Bucs, NFL analyst Rick Stroud reported another news. He said, “The Bucs senior offensive consultant Tom Moore has decided to retire after 62 years of coaching and more than 46 seasons in the NFL.”
Bucs senior offensive consultant Tom Moore has decided to retire after 62 years of coaching and more than 46 seasons in the NFL. He’s 87.
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) January 8, 2026
That’s a huge blow to the organization, as the 87-year-old Moore will not be there in the 2026 season. The four-time Super Bowl champion (XIII, XIV, XLI, LV) had been serving as the Bucs’ offensive consultant since the 2019 NFL season.
But why did the Bucs remove offensive coaches from the most important positions in just one day? There is a significant reason for it, and it is related to the struggles of the offense in the 2025 NFL season.
The Struggles of the Buccaneers’ Offense in the Second Half of the 2025 Season
The Buccaneers’ offense declined sharply from 2024 to 2025. In 2024, Tampa Bay ranked fourth in scoring and in the top five in total offense. But in 2025, that dropped to 380 total points (22.4 PPG, 18th in the NFL) and roughly 21st in yards per game. The Bucs ranked 21st in PFSN’s NFL Offense Impact Metric.
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The Buccaneers started 5-1, then lost six of their final eight games to finish with an 8-9 record. That’s a stark split, right? Offensive line instability and missed time from key skill players coincided with reduced efficiency. Statistically, Tampa Bay’s offense fell from elite to league-average in 2025, mirroring its late-season collapse.
And with that, the Buccaneers lost three personnel from only the offensive side. Now, the search begins for Mayfield’s offense.
Tampa Bay Fired More Coaches on Thursday
The Buccaneers also made several changes on the defensive side as they parted ways with cornerbacks’ coach Kevin Ross, defensive line coach Charlie Strong, and safeties Coach Nick Rapon.
Bowles also fired special teams coach Thomas McGaughey, as the franchise did a complete overhaul to prepare for the next season.
“While seven assistants from the 2025 Bucs staff are gone, Todd Bowles will have the choice to continue calling the defense in 2026 and is not expected to have a defensive coordinator on his new staff,” wrote Fox Sports’ Greg Auman on X.
