The Buccaneers fired Lovie Smith on Wednesday night in a move that surprised just about everybody -- including the players.
Defensive tackle Gerald McCoy said, "I honestly have no idea what's going on," while linebacker Lavonted David ripped the Bucs' "stupid" decision to send Smith packing.
On one hand, we get the bewilderment; Smith's dismissal seemed to come out of nowhere. On the other hand, Smith went 2-14 and 6-10; coaches have gotten canned after having better seasons -- and that includes Tampa Bay.
Lovie Smith (8-24) did worse in Tampa than Greg Schiano (11-21) and Raheem Morris (17-31) https://t.co/nZ6YgMEaTH
— Michael David Smith (@MichaelDavSmith) January 7, 2016
Of course, the latest move does nothing for the continuity players want -- and all good teams have -- but sitting around for another season apparently wasn't an option for general manager Jason Licht.
Bucs GM Jason Licht asked about patience: "when you have 8 wins in 2 years and 3 home wins in 2 years, you've been patient enough."
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) January 7, 2016
And so Smith spoke with Licht by phone on Wednesday night about a Thursday face-to-face meeting. But that meeting never happened. According to several reports, Smith sensed something was wrong and said the meeting wasn't necessary.
Next up: finding a new coach. And while several candidates will be interviewed, the frontrunner appears to be Bucs offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter.
Nothing from Jason Licht's press conference would deter from the prospect that Dirk Koetter is well positioned for Bucs head coaching job
— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) January 7, 2016
