Rachaad White calls out Todd Bowles for one major mistake he's making with Buccaneers

Rachaad White has made himself the subject of discussion lately, as the impending free agent has all but confirmed he is leaving the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this offseason. He has been vocal about his displeasure on social media and has let it be known that he is looking for new suitors.

On his way out the door, White is now pouring gas on a hot fire by offering his thoughts on head coach Todd Bowles, who is already facing massive scrutiny after how the Buccaneers’ season unraveled.

Rachaad White thinks Todd Bowles should stop calling plays for the Buccaneers defense

In an appearance on the Loose Cannons Podcast, White said that in his opinion, Bowles would be better served adopting more of a CEO-style leadership role and delegating defensive play-calling duties to someone else.

“I do think he should let somebody else call defense and he’ll just be a head coach,” said White. “I do feel like he’d probably be better off by doing that so he can focus on really just the head coach job and just trust that he’s got the right defensive staff.”

White was respectful in how he presented his opinion, but it is still an extremely unorthodox situation. It is rare to hear a player, especially one still technically on the roster, publicly offer unsolicited advice about how his head coach should be doing his job.

Bowles has found himself firmly on the hot seat after the Buccaneers collapsed from 6-2 to 8-9 and missed the playoffs in one of the most disappointing finishes in franchise history. Many fans and analysts are calling for his job, and it is far from ideal for one of his own players to publicly add to that pressure.

Still, White might have a point.

The Buccaneers’ defense struggled mightily down the stretch, finishing 19th in total yards allowed, 20th in points per game allowed, and 27th in passing defense. By almost any measure, it was a bottom-half unit that failed to live up to expectations.

Perhaps stepping out of his comfort zone and allowing someone else to take over defensive play-calling duties would benefit Bowles and the team as a whole.

After all, his predecessor Bruce Arians, despite being billed as an offensive guru, was willing to hand over play-calling duties to then-offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich. That approach worked out just fine, as the Buccaneers won Super Bowl LV under that system.

Whether White is right or wrong is not really the point. What is striking is just how unusual this is — a player on his way out publicly critiquing his head coach’s approach in the middle of an already volatile offseason.

That alone speaks volumes about where things stand in Tampa Bay right now.