The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had one of the NFL’s worst special teams units in 2025. Over the first four games alone, the team allowed two blocked punts and a blocked field goal.
Chase McLaughlin also had kicks blocked in back-to-back weeks to close the season. One of those blocks proved especially costly, as the Buccaneers lost to the Miami Dolphins in Week 17 by three points in a game where a successful field goal could have changed the outcome and potentially changed Tampa Bay’s playoff fate.
Despite allowing five blocked kicks throughout the season, which was the most in the NFL, the Buccaneers failed to block a single kick of their own all year.
Their kickoff coverage was also a nightmare, consistently giving opposing teams favorable field position. Late in the season, Todd Bowles made the executive decision to just kick through the back of the end zone for touchbacks, waving the white flag on kickoff coverage.
Tampa Bay also owns the NFL’s longest active drought without both a kickoff return touchdown and a punt return touchdown. Special teams has quietly been one of the team’s biggest weaknesses for years, but that could finally change in 2026.
Buccaneers hiring Danny Smith could end Tampa Bay’s special teams disaster
The Buccaneers hoped to address that problem by moving on from former special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey and hiring longtime Steelers special teams coordinator Danny Smith.
Smith is one of the league’s most respected special teams coaches. The 72-year-old is coming off a 13-year run in Pittsburgh, where he consistently oversaw some of the NFL’s best special teams units.
The @steelers love their special teams coordinator Danny Smith ❤️ pic.twitter.com/QmhwK5tw6C
— NFL (@NFL) October 21, 2024
He’s known for bringing the energy and intensity to the field. Smith has long been beloved by his players, and that passion already appears to be making an impact in Tampa Bay, where he’s quickly become one of the loudest voices at practice.
New Bucs ST coordinator Danny Smith is the loudest one out here by a significant margin. ENERGY! pic.twitter.com/RYMwajzf41
— PewterReport 🏴☠️ (@PewterReport) May 8, 2026
From 2017 through 2025, the Steelers blocked 17 kicks, tied for the most in the NFL during that span.
Pittsburgh also consistently ranked among the league’s best in kick coverage, finishing inside the top 10 in average kick return yards allowed, while the Buccaneers ranked near the bottom of the league in that category last season.
In key areas like kick coverage and protection on punts and field goals, Smith could help dramatically improve Tampa Bay’s results in 2026.
The Buccaneers lost six one-possession games last season, and poor special teams played a major role in several of those losses. Cleaning up that phase of the game could quietly be one of the biggest reasons Tampa Bay wins more games this year.
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