TAMPA, Fla. While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers dismantled the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV, Byron Leftwich and Todd Bowles, the Bucs’ offensive and defensive coordinators, respectively, were in the spotlight all night.
Yes, Coach Bruce Arians got the most credit, and rightly so, as the Buccaneers’ surprise won 31-9, but the two men, both African-American, who gave Bruce Arians the power to defend and attack the Buccaneers. accompany. got many compliments. Make no mistake: Bowles and Leftwich were instrumental in the planning and execution of a party that lasted until the wee hours of Monday at the Raymond James Stadium.
That’s exactly what Arians hired them for.
“Our three boys had great game plans,” said Arians, whose special team coordinator Keith Armstrong is also African American. “Byron did a great job mixing the runs and passes and attacks (with the game in progress) when we needed it and Todd had a great plan to keep them (Chiefs receivers) in front of us and chase our frontends . to Mahomes. They walked him around all night. “
They sure did.
Before examining the X’s and O’s (the strategies), let’s briefly explain why what Leftwich and Bowles put in the video, and probably will, if NFL owners were blind to skin color, the African American assistant coaches of would benefit the NFL. Despite Commissioner Roger Goodell’s efforts to improve diversity and inclusion from the board to the field at the club level, the most recent recruiting cycle left several assistant coaches frustrated with the general lack of progress in coaching positions.
For the coordinators, Leftwich and Bowles gave virtuous performances in the Super Bowl that should be at the top of the signing list in the next cycle. Given the persistent aversion to embracing inclusive hiring in senior roles, it’s fair to wonder if owners will choose to ignore what they’ve accomplished. God knows this has happened before. Just ask Eric Bieniemy, the Chiefs’ Attack Coordinator.
At least Bowles said the Buccaneers’ overall performance on the top podium shows Arians hiring people who know what they’re doing and when it comes to assistants of color, that point can’t stand out enough.
“This shows that we are good at our job and that inspires young people, hopefully they see us as coaches and see that we can be one of those kind of people (head coaches) when we get mental. That anything is possible, ”Bowles said.
Objectively, his ability to train well is not in question.
By avenging a 27-24 loss in Tampa in Week 12 against AFC champions, the Buccaneers, the first NFL franchise to play and win the Super Bowl in their home stadium, they were right behind the lead of their offensive coordinators. And defensive. The results couldn’t have been better for an organization that won its second Vince Lombardi Trophy. Leftwich and Bowles pressed so many right buttons from start to finish that the Chiefs didn’t look like the Chiefs.
During the historic start to quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ career, NFL fans have become accustomed to the Chiefs putting in meters and points at a wild pace. Mahomes has the ability to create several spectacular plays in just one series, and the chief’s defense has done its part. That combination has made Kansas City the first franchise to play three consecutive AFC Championship Games.
To put it simply, the Chiefs, who tried to repeat as Super Bowl champions, are among the best the NFL has, but with Leftwich and Bowles doing their jobs while the world watched, they weren’t in the final game. of the season. 2020-21 NFL Season.
Leftwich and quarterback Tom Brady (we’ll talk more about the GOAT later) were clearly in sync. In the first half, Leftwich was on track to send the plays and Brady made him look fantastic by connecting with tight end Rob Gronkowski for two touchdown passes and adding receiver Antonio Brown. The 21-6 lead at half time and the way the Buccaneers’ defense suppressed Mahomes and wiped out his deep game options was the end of the game.
Bowles placed Tampa Bay’s protections superbly to provide coverage against impressively fast receivers such as Tyreek Hill and Mecole Hardman. Superstar tight end Travis Kelce couldn’t easily dodge short zone coverage, as he regularly does against most of the Chiefs’ rivals, and on the few occasions when Hill, Hardman or Kelce created a momentary separation, Mahomes didn’t have the required time to connect to make. with them.
Just as Bowles planned it, Arians said.
“Patrick wouldn’t beat our running,” Bowles said. “We keep it running all day. Just keep chasing him and see if we can do some plays. “
In addition to Bowles’ fantastic plan, the Chiefs clearly missed offensive linemen Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz. After sustaining an Achilles tendon injury in Kansas City’s victory in the AFC Championship Game over the Buffalo Bills, Fisher was out of the Super Bowl. Schwartz had been out of action due to a back injury. Bowles ‘combination of two weeks of preparation and the Chiefs’ shortcomings in the line of attack without Fisher and Schwartz proved too much for Kansas City.
The Buccaneers are one of the few teams able to consistently generate strong pressure without sending blitz packs by relying on their front lines, especially outside linebackers Jason Pierre-Paul and Shaquil Barrett. Bowles had exactly the pressure he needed and made the adjustments in the second half of the week 12 game, the game where Hill asked for and destroyed the Buccaneers’ perimeter multiple times to keep the Chiefs out of the end zone. Really, that’s a next-level achievement in itself.
Mahomes only completed 26 of the 49 passes. He finished 270 meters through the air (a poor average of 5.5 meters) and two interceptions. Tampa Bay has looted Mahomes three times, including once by Barrett.
Mahomes appeared to run back 10 to 15 yards with each passing game in vain attempts to extend actions that, unusually for the Chiefs, did not work well. Some Perspective on Mahomes: For the past three seasons, including the playoffs, Mahomes has ranked first among the NFL quarterbacks in wins, passing touchdowns, passing yards, games of 300 or more yards, yards per attempt, and QBR Total .
The second chance definitely went to Bowles.
“The important thing was to cancel the first reading,” Bowles said of the fight with Mahomes. “He can run and play with his feet, but we also didn’t want him to stay in the pocket and make short passes all day. The line of defense put pressure on him, made him run and made him uncomfortable, and that was key for us. “
Typically Mahomes’ signature actions happen from different arm angles. Against the Buccaneers, however, he had to use his entire repertoire to just throw the ball out of bounds to avoid getting caught. With Bowles on the attack from start to finish, it was a bad night for the player who is apparently Brady’s heir.
Now let’s go back to Brady. On his way to winning his fifth Pete Rozelle Trophy, awarded to the Super Bowl MVP, Brady completed 21 of 29 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns in the first half. Perhaps some will point out that Leftwich had an easy task sending the plays to the greatest quarterback in history (Brady set his total records to 10 Super Bowl appearances and seven wins). Brady has played 18 percent of all Super Bowls, so he sure knows how to behave at this point of the year. However, Leftwich and Brady are in their freshman year together after Brady spent 20 years building his Hall of Fame career with the New England Patriots. At the start of the current season, the Buccaneers had problems with the attack that needed to be resolved. They repaired them and of course everything went well. As Arians said, to his delight, Leftwich also relied on the hasty attack: Tampa Bay rushed for 145 yards (4.4 yards average). Leonard Fournette led with an 89-yard rush (5.6-yard average), including a 27-yard rushing touchdown that extended Tampa Bay’s lead to 28-9 midway through the third quarter. In video conferences with reporters after finishing their job, the Tampa Bay players one after another praised Leftwich and Bowles for their leadership as men and their ability to coach. Despite Tampa Bay being led by an incredible coach and the best player in history, Tampa Bay wouldn’t be at the top of the mountain without Leftwich and Bowles, they noted. “Coach Bowles put his players in the right position to win,” said cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting. Believe in them (as humans) and believe in their abilities. It does not go out of the script. “It just sticks to it and stays with you. It always motivates you, it always gives you really good information that you really come off the field and that you can use it to become a better man, ”he added. Leftwich and Bowles are coaches. They are teachers and leaders of men and after doing their part in helping the Buccaneers send the skilled Chiefs and end the NFL season, they are also Super Bowl champions. Are you paying attention, NFL owners?