Not that long ago, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were at the epicenter of the NFL news cycle following a dramatic sequence of events involving one of their former coaches. Once again, the Bucs were “left at the altar” by a coach the organization valued.
Liam Coen quickly emerged as a hot name in the Jacksonville Jaguars head coaching search. Despite his lack of NFL and head coaching experience, that interest made sense given his outstanding work in just one season with the Bucs offense.
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By mid-January, it seemed that Jacksonville had settled on their guy. However, Coen decided to turn down the position and return to his offensive coordinator role with the Bucs.
But the next day, following the Jaguars’ dismissal of general manager Trent Baalke, Coen was back in Jacksonville and cut off all communication with the Bucs. Of course, the announcement soon followed that he changed his mind and accepted the job.
Immediately following that choice, the Bucs expressed some internal frustrations, and understandably so. Weeks removed, it appears Tampa Bay general manager Jason Licht is ready to move on.
“We have a lot of respect for Liam, he’s a great coach,” he told reporters Tuesday at the NFL Combine. “Happy for him and his family, it’s a great opportunity for him.
When asked about any potential impacts on training camp or preseason activities between the two squads, he shut those down, noting that “time heals.”
The Bucs have since turned the page at the offensive coordinator spot, promoting Josh Grizzard to that position. Tampa Bay will hope to maintain some consistency for that piece on the staff, having made replacements each of the last three offseasons now.
There is a sense of familiarity with Grizzard having spent some time with quarterback Baker Mayfield, but it will be a challenge for him to progress on what Coen built in one year. Not only did the Bucs maintain an elite passing game, but they also established a top-five rushing attack behind rookie Bucky Irving and a revamped offensive line.
As for Coen, Licht and the Bucs, situations like these sort themselves out over time. Right now, it would be remiss to say the Bucs have completely healed their wounds from the coaching carousel dramatics.
