Despite late-season collapse, Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles says he 'earned the chance' to return in 2026

Downtrodden Tampa Bay fans can cling to a few sources of optimism as Bowles likely enters his fifth year at the helm

Calls for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to make a coaching change were amplified when the team squandered a clear path to the playoffs and finished the 2025 season with seven losses in nine games. With the campaign now complete, coach Todd Bowles said he has not yet met with team ownership and made a public case as to why he should retain his job.

Four teams canned their coaches in the first 24 hours following the end of the regular season. Bowles said his track record speaks for itself as to why he should not join that group.

"All I can do is coach and be myself," Bowles said on Monday. "I've earned the chance. I've won three straight division titles, so that says a lot, as far as I'm concerned. But I don't really have a message for fans other than true fans are true fans. We're going to try and do our best to go out there and win for them. They're going to feel how they feel. That's not the coach's problem. The coach's problem is to make the team better. That's all I'm looking forward to."

The second half of the season eliminated some of the goodwill Bowles built with the Buccaneers fanbase throughout the prolific three-year run to start his tenure. Tampa Bay opened at 6-2 but finished the campaign below .500 after rattling off two separate losing streaks of at least three games. It won just twice since October.

According to CBS Sports' NFL insider Jonathan Jones, the losing season is unlikely to spell the end of the Bowles era in Tampa. The Buccaneers awarded Bowles a three-year contract extension last offseason. Changes to the assistant coaching staff, however, could be in store for a franchise that seeks to get back to the postseason as quickly as next year.

"I understand their frustrations, and I understand our own frustrations, as well," Bowles said. "It's well warranted and well warranted within the building, as well."

Reasons for optimism as Bowles enters Year 5

Barring an ouster in the coming days, Bowles will gear up for his fifth year at the helm in search of a bounce-back run to the NFC South title. The division's shortcomings should be a source of optimism for Buccaneers fans, who just watched their team rattle off three consecutive NFC South titles. The Carolina Panthers won the division this season with a losing record, and neither them nor the Atlanta Falcons or New Orleans Saints project as powerhouses in the immediate future.

Bowles has taken Tampa Bay to the playoffs more often than not, and with his current roster construction, he should be squarely in the mix to do so again in 2026.

The offense has all of the tools it needs to run the division with a young and talented supporting cast around Baker Mayfield. Wide receivers Emeka Egbuka, Tez Johnson and Jalen McMillan give the Buccaneers a youthful trio, and if Mike Evans re-signs and Chris Godwin stays healthy next year, they should round out one of the NFL's top receiving units. Standout running back Bucky Irving will also be back.