After a few days of speculation, the Buccaneers have finally made the right decision to fire offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich.
The Buccaneers firing Byron Leftwich seemed to be more of a “when” situation rather than “if.”
While the Buccaneers struggled on offense for a variety of reasons in 2022 (injuries, regressions from key players, and a new head coach), one of the biggest issues always boiled down to Byron Leftwich and his hyper-conservative, predictable play-calling.
For this reason, Todd Bowles essentially had no choice other than the one that became official today.
The Bucs have fired offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich. The team is making sweeping changes to their coaching staff following an 8-9 regular season and wildcard loss to Dallas. As many as five offensive assistants and two on defense are expected to be let go.
— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) January 19, 2023
This was always the right decision for the Bucs. It might not ever be easy to move on from a guy that has been such an important piece of the team for as long as Byron has, but a bad offense in the modern NFL is inexcusable.
The first-down runs in neutral situations had to stop. The Bucs had to get away from getting to third down on nearly every drive. Tampa also desperately needed a coach that actually believes in and uses analytics to help drive their decision-making.
Most of that should be solved with Leftwich getting the boot.
The Buccaneers had no choice
This move marks the first official shakeup in what should prove to be a very eventful offseason in Tampa. Leftwich won’t be the only coach to go, and even a few returning players should be under the microscope as this team tries to prevent another losing season from happening.
As long as Tampa can find the right new hire to pair with Todd Bowles’ goals and the current weapons on offense, this should be a positive turn for the franchise.
Byron Leftwich leaves the Buccaneers as a Super Bowl champion and a two-time NFC South champ. What he has been able to accomplish in Tampa has been extremely impressive, but it seems like the magic has run its course for now.
Hopefully Leftwich is able to find a good fit that makes the most of his skillset as he hits the market as a coach with a very successful track record.
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