Todd Bowles Blames Players for Bucs’ Meltdown Loss in Profane Rant

Tampa Bay blew a 14-point lead late in massive missed opportunity.

Bucs coach Todd Bowles was beyond frustrated after his team squandered a fourth-quarter lead. / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers worked very hard to squander what should have been a crucial victory against the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night, allowing Kirk Cousins to author a 14-point fourth quarter comeback and set the Carolina Panthers up atop the NFC South. After building a 28-14 lead, Todd Bowles's team wasted opportunity after opportunity with physical and mental mistakes en route to a stunning defeat sealed when Zane Gonzalez snuck a field goal through the uprights as time expired.

Bowles metered out blame for a meltdown that could very well leave Tampa Bay watching the playoffs from home during his postgame commentary. And let's just say that he had a clear and expletive-filled message about what needs to change.

THIS IS AN ALL-TIME GREAT RANT BY A #NFL HEAD COACH.

TODD BOWLES WENT BEZERK ON HIS TEAM.

😳😳😳
pic.twitter.com/KPSw6kYCBj

— MLFootball (@MLFootball) December 12, 2025

"It's inexcusable," Bowles said. "You don't make excuses. You've got to f---ing care enough where this s--- hurts. You've got to f---ing care enough where this s--- hurts. It's got to f---ing mean something to you. It's more than a job, it's your f---ing livelihood.

"How well do you know your job, how well can you do your job? Well you can't sugarcoat that s---. It was in-f---ing-excusable and there's no f---ing answer for it. No excuse for it. That's what you tell them in the locker room. Look in the f---ing mirror."

Bowles's Bucs are now 7-7 and a half-game behind the Panthers, who play the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. The two top teams in the division have two head-to-head contests over the season's final three weeks that will go a long way in deciding who secures a home playoff date.

The coach's frustration was clearly evident after his team failed to make the Falcons pay for amassing a ridiculous 19 penalties, the inability to recover a late fumble where several Bucs players were closer than a single Atlanta player and allowing Kirk Cousins to complete a do-or-die fourth-and-14 (that came after a third-and-28).

"At this point you've seen everything in the season," Bowles said. "The coaches have done everything they can do. This is a player-driven team in the last four or five weeks. You've got to execute, and they've got to hold each other accountable. As a coach, you can sit there until you're blue in the face. Until they start holding each other accountable and doing the little things right -- and that's not everybody, you know, we're talking about a small, select few. But the small, select few is what's getting us beat. And until that happens, it's not going to get right."

The bad news for Tampa Bay is that there's no way to spin anything positive about fumbling what should have been the biggest win of their season. The good news is that their remaining schedule is going to provide them with all the agency they need to bounce back from this and squeak out the division.

---

More NFL on Sports Illustrated

feed

SI BTN Newsletter. Start off your day with SI:CYMI. dark. FREE NEWSLETTER