Koetter Wants To Change Buccaneers’ Culture Starting With Him

Dirk Koetter dove into a lot of the things that went wrong in the Buccaneers’ 37-32 loss to the Rams and says things have to change, starting with him.

Another week, another loss, another list of questions Buccaneers fans and media have for first year head coach Dirk Koetter. A lot of people like Koetter because he doesn’t give you “coach speak”, he shoots straight and tells it like it is.

Including when he talks about himself.

When he spoke with the media Monday, he talked about a lot of the problems he sees regarding the culture of this team, which has been a poor one for nearly a decade;

"“I’m talking about the culture of our football team, I’m not talking about our organization, I’m not talking about ownership, I’m not talking about this building, I’m not talking about our fans, I’m talking about the 53 players, the 10 practice squad guys and however many coaches we have. The guys that are coming up with the game plan, putting the game plan together and trying to execute the game plan.More from Bucs NewsDevin White posts cryptic message to Lavonte David on TwitterUpdated Buccaneers depth chart after signing two players from rookie minicampTodd Bowles sends clear message about Baker Mayfield’s role with BucsThe Athletic is wrong about Bucs one ‘must-watch’ game in 2023Todd Bowles admits he only looks at three things on Bucs scheduleThe best teams that I’ve been on beat with one heart and they count on the guy next to them to do their job every time and they win and lose together. And maybe our fans have cheered for a team like that at one point, hopefully all of our players have played on a team [like that]. I know when I’ve been on teams like that, you can feel it and man, you want to grab it and hold onto its tail because it’s elusive. When you don’t have it, you can also feel it. We’re just missing something.I feel like – and as my title suggests, it’s my job to speak up. I feel like sometimes we find too many ways to lose a game instead of creating ways to win a game. Now, when I say that, I put myself right at the top. I’m number one on that list, so I’m not calling out any player or any coach above myself, but that’s just how I feel. And until we change that, we’re going to have nights like last night.”"

There are a lot of things that need to change with this Buccaneers team and culture is certainly high on that list. There’s too much talent here to play the way they do. No, this team isn’t talented at every position as there are still a few glaring holes, but overall this is one of, if not the most talented team this city has had since Jon Gruden was fired.

Next: Where Exactly Is That New And Improved Defense?

This coaching staff has improved, the roster has improved, the direction of this team was supposed to improve too. Unfortunately, it’s taken longer to put it all together than many of us anticipated.