Todd Bowles’ tenure as Jets head coach got off to a roaring start in 2015, but things quickly went south. After four seasons — three of which resulted in losing records — he was out of a job.
Fast forward two years and there are no longer any questions surrounding Bowles’ coaching chops. Reunited with mentor Bruce Arians in Tampa Bay two years ago, he has played a major role in the Buccaneers’ road to Super Bowl LV. With Bowles leading the way, Tampa Bay’s defense stepped up and played a large part in defeating Drew Brees and Aaron Rodgers on its way to a date with Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs this weekend.
Bowles has every right to turn around and say “I told you so” to his biggest critics with his defense ready to take the field on the NFL’s biggest stage, but that is not the way the 57-year-old operates. He offered no excuses for his failures with the Jets during Super Bowl media day and made it known that he harbors no hard feelings against the organization that gave him a chance to be a head coach.
“I had four years,” Bowles said, per ESPN’s Rich Cimini. “When you get four years to make some things happen, you don’t make excuses. As a head coach, the buck stops there.”
Bowles failed to make much happen with the Jets, going 24-40 from 2015-18. That has been far from the case in Tampa Bay, though, as he has overseen a Buccaneers defense that finished 2020 ranked first against the run, sixth in yards allowed and eighth in scoring. Tampa Bay’s young secondary had its share of struggles during the regular season, but Bowles has the group playing its best football of the year at the right time, as it proved key in slowing down dynamic Saints and Packers offenses.
Bowles’ career revival has not gone unnoticed. He received multiple head-coaching interviews this offseason and has drawn praise from many across the NFL, including former Jets wide receiver Robby Anderson. Many would call Bowles’ journey from down and out to the pinnacle of football a redemption story, but that is not the way he would describe things.
For him, it has been just another day at the office navigating the rocky road of life in football.
“I don’t feel any redemption,” Bowles said, per the New York Post’s Brian Costello. “I’m harder on myself than anybody. When you don’t win games, you get the criticism. In this sport, there’s going to be ups and downs. You’ve got to stay the course and stay who you are. You trust your coaching and the people that taught you. I stuck with that, and everything has worked out for me.”