Todd Bowles: 'I've earned the chance' to keep my job
Jan 05, 2026
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers locker room was filled with the sound of players packing up their lockers on Monday.Today is always a tough day, left tackle Tristan Wirfs said. You see all the bags, guys cleaning out their lockers. The
re is nothing set in stone right now. You know its coming. Its going to be a different room next year.Watch report from Kyle Burger Todd Bowles: 'I've earned the chance' to keep my jobIts sad. Its definitely a low vibe, wide receiver Jalen McMillan added. We appreciate all our relationships with each other. At the end of the day, its not going to be the same locker room. Its a little heavy.Even though Tampa Bay beat the Panthers 16-14 in Week 18, Carolina won the division based on a three-way tiebreaker when the Falcons beat the Saints on Sunday.It was sh***y, McMillan said. It wasnt a good feeling. Definitely something I dont want to experience again.Its tough leaving it in someone elses hands, but we did our job, Wirfs said. We got the win. Coming in here after something like that felt better than if we just lost straight up. I guess you cant leave it up to the Saints.Very disappointing, head coach Todd Bowles said. First time in five years you get used to it. We did it to ourselves. We have to take a deep evaluation starting with myself.The Bucs four-season reign as NFC South champions is over, something that seemed hard to believe two months ago when the Bucs were 6-2.Then came the historic collapse, with seven of their last nine games lost, raising questions about Bowles's job security.All I can do is coach and be myself, Bowles said. Ive earned the chance. Ive won three straight division titles. That says a lot as far as Im concerned.I love Coach Bowles, Wirfs added. I see all the talk on Twitter. I dont care about it, people sitting at home talking about it. We know what we have in this building. If something happens, something happens. If something doesnt, something doesnt. The season is coming regardless. Well all be ready.Bowles plans to meet with the Glazer family ownership group later this week.
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