A day after agreeing to stay in Tampa Bay and become the league’s highest-paid offensive coordinator, Liam Cohen left the Bucs late Thursday night to become the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Aside from the massive raise that comes with making head coach money, Cohen also helped Jaguars owner Shad Khan select a new general manager, including quarterback Trevor Lawrence and wide receiver Brian Thomas. -Junior, the tandem of Tank Bigsby and Travis Etienne Jr. who can work with running backs
Meanwhile, BUCS head coach Todd Bowles and general manager Jason Richt are looking for the team’s fourth offensive coordinator in four years. Bowles fired Byron Leftwich after the 2022 season and hired Dave Canales to replace him. When Canales was hired by Carolina to become the Panthers’ head coach last January, the Bucs hired Cohen to replace him.
So who are the Bucs turning to so far to fill the playing field vacancy created by Coen’s departure? Last year, BUCS interviewed 13 known candidates, including Cohen, before Canales was replaced. Those candidates were:
Bucs internal candidates
Thad Lewis – Bucs Quarterbacks Coach
John Van Dam – 2024 Bucs Pass Game Assistant / 2023 Bucs Tight Ends Coach
external candidate
Alex Van Pelt – Former Patriots offensive coordinator in 2024 / Browns offensive coordinator in 2023
Ken Dorsey – Former Browns Offensive Coordinator in 2024 / Offensive Coordinator in 2023
Brian Johnson – 2024 Commander Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Pass Game Coordinator/Eagles Offensive Coordinator in 2023
Jerrod Johnson – Texans Quarterbacks Coach
Kellen Moore – Eagles Offensive Coordinator in 2024 / Chargers Offensive Coordinator in 2023
Zach Robinson – Falcons Offensive Coordinator 2024 / Rams Quarterbacks Coach / Pass Game Coordinator 2023
Jake Peets – Seattle Seahawks Pass Game Coordinator in 2024 / Rams Pass Game Specialist in 2023
Antwaan Randle El – Lions Wide Receivers Coach
Klint Kubiak – 2024/49ers former Saints offensive coordinator passes game coordinator in 2023
Tanner Engstrand – Lions Passing Game Coordinator
Bucs GM Jason Licht and head coach Todd Bowles – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
Of that group, Brian Johnson, Moore and Robinson are the current offensive coordinators and cannot make any lateral moves.
It’s possible the Bucs revisit some of these candidates or explore new candidates. One of those could be from within the organization with Bucs Pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard. Josh Grizzard can keep his current coaching staff and the offensive system that was so successful last year.
Other new outside candidates could include Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly and Minnesota tight end/passing game coordinator Brian Angelioio. , Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley, Miami offensive coordinator (non-playing character) Frank Smith and Minnesota assistant offensive coordinator Gran Wudynski.
Todd Bowles is looking for his fourth OC in four years.
But Bowles is dealing from a position of strength. He was a kingmaker and his last two OCs became head coaches.#bucs OC vacancies are widely sought after, especially Mayfield, Evans, Irving, and WIRFS.
-PewterReport January 24, 2025
Josh Grizzard could be Bucs’ top in-house offensive coordinator candidate
As I wrote in last week’s SR’s Fab 5 column, the Bucs have an interesting internal candidate to replace Liam Coen as offensive coordinator. Game Coordinator Josh Grizzard. He is very bright and widely seen within the halls of one buccaneer place.
Bucs passing game coordinator Josh Grizzard and running backs coach Skip Peete – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
Grizzard was hired last year to work with Cohen as the right-hand man in the passing game. Grizzard could be an option to be the Bucs’ play-caller in 2025 if Cohen doesn’t take him to Jacksonville to be the offensive coordinator (title only).
Grizzard may want to be the actual play-calling offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay instead of being Cohen’s game plan collaborator in Jacksonville.
Before coming to the Bucs, Grizzard spent five seasons with the Dolphins, working for both head coaches Brian Flores (2019-21) and Mike McDaniel (2022-23). After serving as the quality control coach in 2019, Grizzard became Miami’s wide receivers coach in 2020-21. Grizzard helped develop Jaylen Waddle, who broke the NFL’s then-Rookie-Receptions Record with 104 in 2021. Waddle also set the current Dolphins rookie record with 1,015 yards.
When McDaniel replaced Flores, Grizzard returned to the quality control coach role in 2022-23 before being hired by Cohen in Tampa Bay in 2022-23. The 34-year-old Yale graduate began his coaching career at his alma mater in 2012. Assistant before moving to Duke as grade assistant/quality control coach from 2013-16.
Bucs passing game coordinator Josh Grizzard and OC Liam Coen – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
Grizzard has no play-calling experience at any level, but that didn’t stop Dave Canales from succeeding as offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay in 2023. game in Los Angeles in 2022 and two seasons at Kentucky in 2021 and 2023 as the Wildcats’ offensive coordinator.
Cohen praised Grizzard in one of his press conferences a few weeks ago.
“First of all, I think Josh and really the staff in general did a phenomenal job all year long,” Cohen said when discussing the team’s success on third down, which ranks third in the NFL. It was ranked 3rd with 48.3%. time. “The guys that cover those areas are Thad Lewis who handles the red zone, ‘B-Mac’ (Bryan McClendon) who handles the two minutes, and ‘Grizz’ who handles the third downs. Their ideas, plays, thoughts and plans are what you see come to life on Sunday. ”
Grizzard certainly knew what he was doing on third down this year. Tampa Bay led the league with a third down conversion rate of 51.1%. In Sunday’s playoff loss to Washington’s Commander-in-Chief, the Bucs converted 5-for-9 (55.6%) on third downs. Grizzard is something to watch in the future. Probably in the near future.
Jake Peets could lead outside offensive coordinator candidates
If the Bucs decide to look outside the organization for a replacement for Liam Coen, the offensive coordinator job will be more attractive than before.
Seahawks passing game coordinator Jake Peets – Photo: USA TODAY
Whoever is hired to replace Cohen will inherit a franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield and a talented weapon running back Bucky Irving, Rathard White, wide receivers Mike Evans, Jalen McMillan, and Chris Godwin. Masu. believe me). Not to mention some talented, young tight ends, and one of the best and youngest offensive lines in the league.
One of the external names on the short list is Jake Peetz. Peets, 41, interviewed for the offensive coordinator vacancy last year before the team hired Cohen.
Peets spent the 2024 season as the Seahawks passing game coordinator, working with Ryan Grubb, who was fired after Seattle missed the playoffs. Peets’ status with the team could be in limbo as the Seahawks search for a new offensive coordinator.
Like Cohen, Peets spent time with Sean McVay and the Rams. He was an offensive assistant in 2022, and when he replaced Coen as the passing game specialist in 2023, Coen went to Kentucky to become the Wildcats’ offensive coordinator.
Peetz had one year of play-calling experience at LSU under former head coach Ed Orgeron in 2021, where he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. That year’s quarterback Max Johnson, the son of former Bucs quarterback Brad Johnson, threw 27 touchdown passes. Running back Ty Davis-Price set a single-game LSU rushing record in the win against Florida with 287 yards and three touchdowns.
Rams head coach Sean McVay and Jake Peets – Photo: USA Today
Peets has primarily worked on the offensive side of the ball in his coaching career, which began in 2006 at Santa Barbara City College. After a one-year stint as a defensive assistant at UCLA, Peetz worked as an assistant QBS coach for Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville in 2012. He then worked with the Washington Redskins and Jay Gruden as an offensive quality control coach in 2014.
Peets again spent three years with Del Rio. This time he was an offensive assistant, assistant QBS coach and quarterbacks coach for Derek Carr in Oakland from 2015-17. He then spent one year in 2018 as an offensive analyst for Nick Saban at Alabama.
Peetz returned to the NFL for Carolina in 2019 and 2020, working with All-Pro Christian McCaffrey and quarterbacks coach for two seasons as running backs coach. He also spent four years as a scout in Jacksonville’s personnel department from 2008-11.
Peets is considered a young up-and-comer just waiting for an opportunity to call plays at the NFL level. It’s like Josh Grizzard, but it’s like Dave Canales and Cohen.
