Todd Bowles wasn’t happy with Liam Coen’s plan for Mike Evans in loss to Broncos

Let's spare hyperbole: nothing went right for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

After an emotional win last week against the Detroit Lions, the Bucs came out and laid about as big of a dud a team possibly can as a chaser. Tampa Bay was already down two scores just three defensive drives into the game, and that ended up being a hole too deep for the team to climb out of.

It's a frustrating way to follow-up such a hot start to the season, but Baker Mayfield summed it up best when it said it's better to have this happen now so that team can learn. It's also worth mentioning that the Bucs were down four key players as Antoine Winfield Jr., Calijah Kancey, Luke Geodeke, and Vita Vea were all out.

That's not an excuse, though, as there was still plenty that went wrong. Notably, Mike Evans finished the game with just two catches for 17 yards, something head coach Todd Bowles wasn't pleased with after the game.

Todd Bowles calls out lack of Mike Evans in Buccaneers' offensive gameplan

Evans was a total non-factor on Sunday, something that is being explained away due to the fact that the Broncos had All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain II draped all over him. That's not a satisfying excuse for Bowles, though, who called out offensive coordinator Liam Coen's gameplan for not properly preparing.

“[Surtain] is a good player, but there’s good corners every week,” Bowles said when asked about the coverage on Evans. “We’ve got to get [Mike Evans] the ball early. We’ve got to have a better plan for him and get him the ball.”

This isn't a trouble-in-paradise situation, so don't read it that. Instead, it's Bowles taking control of his coaching staff before things get out of hand. Coen had the offense humming the first week of the season, but there have been some pretty massive holes in his strategy in the weeks since.

For starters, not having a good plan for how to replace Luke Goedeke has been a fatal error. Justin Skule has been eaten alive in back-to-back weeks, and Coen's inability to figure out how to better patch that hole on the line has been a bit disapointing.

Not finding a way to get Evans involved, or to scheme him open, is an unforgivable sin. It's what Bucs fans had to endure all last season when Dave Canales couldn't figure it out either, and it's even more of a frustration knowing how well Coen did the first week in getting the ball to Evans.

Having Surtain, one of the best cornerbacks in the league, covering Evans makes things hard but he's also one of the best wide receivers in the game. Bowles has a point in calling out the offensive gameplan, mostly because something needs to change as the Bucs prepare to play a gauntlet of games against teams that will be as unforgiving on Evans as Surtain was on Sunday.

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