Following a late-season collapse and the loss of franchise icons, Todd Bowles faces a make-or-break year as analysts rank him among the NFL's most pressured coaches.
A lot of people agree that if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers don’t turn it around in 2026, coach Todd Bowles could be fired.
Among those who feel this way is CBS Sports’ Jordan Dajani, who listed Bowles at No. 2 among the five NFL coaches “under the most pressure.”
Bowles is ahead of only Aaron Glenn of the New York Jets, who went 3-14 in his first season.
The full list is:
- No. 5: Dan Quinn (Went 5-12 with Washington Commanders in 2025)
- No. 4: Zac Taylor (Three straight playoff misses with Cincinnati Bengals)
- No. 3: Shane Steichen (Three straight playoff misses with Indianapolis Colts)
- No. 2: Bowles
- No. 1: Glenn
As Dajani pointed out, the Bucs have had plenty of success under Bowles, having won the NFC South in each of his first three seasons.
But last season turned into a disaster.
The Bucs looked like Super Bowl contenders for half the year, starting out 6-2, but ended up crashing and burning so badly (2-7 in the last nine games) that they failed to win the NFC South, in which no team had a winning record. Dajani said that the Bucs’ season was “similar to the Colts,” who started 8-2 and then lost their last seven games. What Dajani didn’t mention in the Bucs blurb (he did when discussing Steichen) was that the Colts had the excuse of their quarterback, Daniel Jones, missing the last five games due to injury and the team having to resort to coaxing 44-year-old Phillip Rivers out of retirement.
Although Tampa’s QB, Baker Mayfield, was playing hurt, he was still playing, and now, he’s waiting on a new contract.
As Dajani pointed out, Bowles’ contract runs through 2028, and this year will look different from his first four due to the absence of franchise legends Mike Evans (free agency) and Lavonte David (retirement).
It’s hard to argue against that.
Of the four teams in the NFC South, none finished with a better record than Tampa Bay in 2025 (the Carolina Panthers won the division due to a tiebreaker), and none looked like Super Bowl contenders the way the Bucs did for nine games. Health was a big reason the last half of the season turned out the way it did.
Along with Mayfield playing through multiple injuries, running back Bucky Irving missed seven games and, as a result, wasn’t able to recapture his 2024 form in which he finished with more than 1,100 yards. Receiver Jalen McMillan missed almost the whole season with a neck injury and thus wasn’t able to blossom in Year 2, and defensive tackle Calijah Kancey also missed almost the whole year.
Join our ROUNDTABLE community! It's free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!
