In a uncharacteristic move by the usually collected Todd Bowles, he delivered a message to the Bucs that he hopes they received loud and clear. Hopefully, for as soon as tomorrow’s game against the Carolina Panthers.
During his midweek press conference, Bowles addressed the comments he made postgame after the loss to the Falcons. “Accountability could be doing little things right, it could be teammates talking to each other, you’re talking to yourself, coaches talking to each other,” Bowles said. “We understood the message after the ballgame. We met on it, we talked about it, we got it out of our system. Everybody is hard at work and trying to do the right things to win the ballgame.” These comments come after the Bucs have lost five of their last six games.
They had already blown a 14 point lead in that game as well. However, Bowles feels like his comments may have awakened something in this team.
“They got the message,” he said. “It’s football, guys. I don’t know. There have probably been a billion stories written when coaches have lost that got pissed off and said something to their guys. It’s not an issue. We’re fine.”
Bowles’ Message and the Line Between Urgency and Panic
While it isn’t necessarily paramount the Bucs win this weekend, a win would help boost their morale in the playoff race. They would secure the division title however, with two wins over the rival Panthers in the final three weeks of the season. What Bowles should not want though is finger pointing. After the game, several players were disgusted by the inability to close out the game.
“The finger pointing (is) only happening if you have bad culture in the building,” quarterback Baker Mayfield said of the situation. “That’s not a problem we have to deal with. We met on Monday with the offense, and I told them what I said in the postgame press conference. I said it’s on me, it’s on this group, I expect us to be able to score more than 28 (points) in a situation like that and put the game out of reach. You just nip it in the bud in the beginning.”
Players Respond as Season Hangs in the Balance
Still, what with their whole destiny in front of them, perhaps the harsh reality of Bowles’ comment was necessary. After all, head coach and quarterback are two different kinds of emotional leaders. Sometimes, one needs to deliver the tough news, while the other has to remain level headed and focused.
Mainly, it’s the reaction of the players that will decide the trajectory of the Bucs’ season. A guy like Sterling Shepard, who is a rotational piece, delivered his thoughts: “It’s just going to come down to the small details and being on top of everything. That’s what guys are focusing on now is, just not shooting ourselves in the foot, whether it comes to small penalties and the mental part of the game, I think that’s huge for us.””
Emotions are starting to run high for the Bucs. Fans have to hope they’re the right ones.
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