Todd Bowles

Todd Bowles

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Position:	Head coach
Personal information
Born:	(1963-11-18) November 18, 1963 (age 60) Elizabeth, New Jersey, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:	203 lb (92 kg)
Career information
High school:	Elizabeth
College:	Temple (1982–1985)
Undrafted:	1986
Career history
As a player:
Washington Redskins (1986–1990) San Francisco 49ers (1991) Washington Redskins (1992–1993)
As a coach:
Morehouse (1997) Defensive coordinator & secondary coach Grambling State (1998–1999) Defensive coordinator & secondary coach New York Jets (2000) Secondary coach Cleveland Browns (2001–2003) Secondary–nickel package coach Cleveland Browns (2004) Secondary coach Dallas Cowboys (2005–2007) Secondary coach Miami Dolphins (2008–2011) Assistant head coach & secondary coach Miami Dolphins (2011) Interim head coach & secondary coach Philadelphia Eagles (2012) Secondary coach Philadelphia Eagles (2012) Interim defensive coordinator & secondary coach Arizona Cardinals (2013–2014) Defensive coordinator New York Jets (2015–2018) Head coach Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2019–2021) Defensive coordinator Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2022–present) Head coach
As an executive:
Green Bay Packers (1995–1996) Player personnel staff
Career highlights and awards
As a player Super Bowl champion (XXII) First-team All-East (1984) As an executive Super Bowl champion (XXXI) As an assistant coach Super Bowl champion (LV) AP NFL Assistant Coach of the Year (2014) PFWA NFL Assistant Coach of the Year (2014)
Career NFL statistics
Games played: 117 Games started: 68 Interceptions: 15 Fumble recoveries: 7
Head coaching record
Regular season:	45–58 (.437)
Postseason:	1–2 (.333)
Career:	46–60 (.434)
Player stats at PFR
Coaching stats at PFR

Todd Robert Bowles (born November 18, 1963) is an American professional football coach and former player who is the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as the head coach of the New York Jets from 2015 to 2018. Bowles has also served as the defensive coordinator of the Arizona Cardinals and Buccaneers and as the secondary coach for the Jets, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Miami Dolphins, and Philadelphia Eagles. He played eight seasons in the NFL as a safety, primarily with the Washington Redskins, and was a member of the team that won Super Bowl XXII.

Early life

Bowles attended Elizabeth High School in Elizabeth, New Jersey. ^[1] He played college football at Temple University (class of 1985), where Bowles was a four-year starting cornerback, his freshman year in 1982 was under Hall of Fame coach Wayne Hardin and his last three years were under coach Bruce Arians, for whom Bowles would be an assistant coach decades later when Arians was the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals and then the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL. ^[2] Bowles recorded seven interceptions in his four college seasons. ^[3] Bowles left Temple without graduating; in May 2023, he received a Bachelor of Science degree in youth and community development from Mount St. Mary's University. ^[4]

Playing career

Bowles was signed by the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent on May 7, 1986. ^[5] He chose the Redskins over six other NFL teams, and signed a contract that included a signing bonus between $8,000 and $10,000. Bowles competed in training camp with free safety Raphel Cherry, and beat Bowles out to earn a spot on the regular season roster. ^[6] In his second training camp in 1987, Bowles beat out Curtis Jordan for the starting free safety job when Jordan was released during final roster cuts on September 8, 1987. ^[7] Bowles intercepted a career high four passes and recovered a fumble during the season, and was the starting free safety in Super Bowl XXII, which the Redskins won in a blowout.

On February 1, 1989, after his contract expired, Bowles was left unprotected by the Redskins during "Plan B" free agency, despite being a regular starter at free safety the previous two seasons. ^[8] This was reportedly due to his poor catching abilities in 1988, as well as his lack of playmaking ability. Bowles negotiated contracts with the Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings, and New York Giants, ^[9] but ultimately re-signed with the Redskins. ^[10] In 1990, Bowles received a salary of $300,000, ^[11] and started 18 games (including playoffs). ^[12]

The San Francisco 49ers signed Bowles to start for the team in 1991 after he was left unprotected by the Redskins again. ^[13] Bowles played in all 16 games and started in 14 of them. He was waived during final roster cuts on September 1, 1992. ^[14] The next day, Bowles was claimed off waivers by the Redskins. ^[15] He was waived by the Redskins during final roster cuts on August 31, 1993. ^[16]

Coaching career

After retiring as a player, Bowles was a member of the Green Bay Packers' player personnel staff under Ron Wolf in 1995 and 1996. ^[17] Bowles was the defensive coordinator and secondary coach at Morehouse College in 1997, and the defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach at Grambling State from 1998 until 1999. He was the defensive backs coach for the New York Jets in 2000, Cleveland Browns in 2004, and Dallas Cowboys from 2005 to 2007. Bowles was the Browns' defensive nickel package coach from 2001 to 2003.

Miami Dolphins

Bowles was hired by the Miami Dolphins as the team's secondary coach and assistant head coach on January 23, 2008. After nearly four seasons as the secondary coach and assistant head coach, he was named the interim head coach on December 12, 2011, following the firing of head coach Tony Sparano. Bowles' first game as interim head coach of the Dolphins came in Week 15 against the Buffalo Bills, which the Dolphins won on the road 30–23. ^[18] The Dolphins finished with a 2–1 record under Bowles in 2011.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles hired Bowles as the team's secondary coach on January 30, 2012. The Eagles announced on October 16, 2012, that they dismissed defensive coordinator Juan Castillo from his duties and named Bowles as their new defensive coordinator. Under Bowles, the Eagles finished the season ninth in pass defense and 23rd in rushing defense. ^[19]

Arizona Cardinals

On January 18, 2013, Bowles was hired as defensive coordinator for the Arizona Cardinals. ^[20]

On January 31, 2015, Bowles was voted Associated Press (AP)'s Assistant Coach of the Year for his efforts in the 2014 season. ^[21] Bowles received 22 of the 50 media members' votes, winning the inaugural award. ^[22]

New York Jets

On January 14, 2015, the New York Jets named Bowles their new head coach and signed him to a four-year deal. ^[23]

On July 28, 2015, it was revealed that Bowles underwent a partial knee replacement surgery. ^[24] In the 2015 season, the Jets went 10–6 in Bowles' first year leading the team, barely missing the playoffs. The 2016 season saw the Jets finish near the bottom of the league in most offensive categories, but 11th in rushing yards. ^[25]

On December 29, 2017, the Jets announced that Bowles had been retained for the 2018 season and that he signed an extension through 2020. ^[26] However, Bowles was fired at the end of the 2018 season after the Jets finished the year with a 4–12 record. ^[27]

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

On January 8, 2019, Bowles was hired as the defensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, rejoining Bruce Arians as a member of his staff after Arians was hired as the team's head coach. ^{[28] [29]}

Bowles' defense received praise for its performance in the 2020–21 playoffs as it was key in the Buccaneers defeating the New Orleans Saints 30–20 on the road in the Divisional Round and the Green Bay Packers 31–26 on the road in the NFC Championship Game. ^[30] Bowles won his third Super Bowl (his first as a coach) when the Buccaneers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 31–9 during Super Bowl LV. Bowles was credited with a game plan that pressured Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes without resorting to blitzing by utilizing the two-deep safety look and pass-rushing, which prevented the Chiefs' prolific offense from scoring a touchdown while also intercepting Mahomes twice. ^[31]

On August 4, 2021, Bowles agreed to a three-year contract extension with the Buccaneers. ^[32]

On March 30, 2022, Bowles was named the head coach of the Buccaneers on a five-year deal after Bruce Arians shifted to a senior football consultant role. ^[33] In Bowles' first year as head coach, the Buccaneers finished atop the NFC South with an 8–9 record and lost to the Dallas Cowboys 31–14 in the Wild Card Round. ^{[34] [35]}

Following the 2022 season, starting quarterback Tom Brady announced his retirement and the Buccaneers signed Baker Mayfield as a result. ^{[36] [37]} The Buccaneers finished the 2023 season atop the NFC South for the third consecutive year with a 9–8 record. ^[38] They defeated the Philadelphia Eagles 32–9 in the Wild Card Round but lost to the Detroit Lions 31–23 on the road in the Divisional Round. ^{[39] [40]}

Head coaching record

Team	Year	Regular season					Postseason
		Won	Lost	Ties	Win %	Finish	Won	Lost	Win %	Result
MIA*	2011	2	1	0	.667	3rd in AFC East	—	—	—	—
MIA total		2	1	0	.667		0	0	.000
NYJ	2015	10	6	0	.625	2nd in AFC East	—	—	—	—
NYJ	2016	5	11	0	.313	4th in AFC East	—	—	—	—
NYJ	2017	5	11	0	.313	4th in AFC East	—	—	—	—
NYJ	2018	4	12	0	.250	4th in AFC East	—	—	—	—
NYJ total		24	40	0	.375		0	0	.000
TB	2022	8	9	0	.471	1st in NFC South	0	1	.000	Lost to Dallas Cowboys in NFC Wild Card Game
TB	2023	9	8	0	.529	1st in NFC South	1	1	.500	Lost to Detroit Lions in NFC Divisional Game
TB	2024	2	0	0	1.000	TBD in NFC South	—	—	—	—
TB total		19	17	0	.528		1	2	.333
Total [41]		45	58	0	.437		1	2	.333

* – Interim head coach

Coaching tree

Bowles has served under nine head coaches:

• Doug Williams, Morehouse (1997); Grambling State (1998–1999)
• Al Groh, New York Jets (2000)
• Butch Davis, Cleveland Browns (2001–2004)
• Terry Robiskie, Cleveland Browns (2004, interim)
• Bill Parcells, Dallas Cowboys (2005–2006)
• Wade Phillips, Dallas Cowboys (2007)
• Tony Sparano, Miami Dolphins (2008–2011)
• Andy Reid, Philadelphia Eagles (2012)
• Bruce Arians, Arizona Cardinals (2013–2014); Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2019–2021)

Four of Bowles' assistants have been hired as head coaches in the NFL or NCAA:

• Karl Dorrell, Colorado (2020–2022)
• Dan Campbell, Detroit Lions (2021–present)
• Brian Daboll, New York Giants (2022–present)
• Dave Canales, Carolina Panthers (2024–present)

Personal life

Bowles and his wife, Taneka, have three sons: Todd Jr., Troy, and Tyson. ^[42]

References

1. "Todd Bowles". Database Football. Archived from the original on September 29, 2007. Retrieved September 19, 2007.
2. "Hall of Fame - Todd Bowles". Owl Sports. Temple University.
3. "Todd Bowles College Stats, School, Draft, Gamelog, Splits". Sports Reference .
4. "Buccaneers Coach Todd Bowles Graduates From College in Maryland". NBC Washington . Associated Press. May 14, 2023. Retrieved May 14, 2023.
5. "Transactions". The New York Times . May 7, 1986. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
6. Brennan, Christine (September 4, 1986). "Undrafted but Not Unwanted, 5 Rookie Free Agents Are Redskins". The Washington Post . Retrieved August 7, 2017.
7. Brennan, Christine (September 8, 1987). "Redskins release former starters Jordan, Coffey". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
8. Friend, Tom and Michael Wilbon (February 1, 1989). "10 Redskins regulars are free agents". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
9. Friend, Tom (March 16, 1989). "Redskins sign ex-Bengals free safety Dillahunt". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
10. Justice, Richard (January 31, 1991). "Redskins risk some old hands". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
11. Freeman, Mike (December 11, 1990). "Redskins among best-paid". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
12. Justice, Richard (March 29, 1991). "Millen back on fence, but Manusky goes". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
13. Justice, Richard (April 5, 1991). "Retooled Redskins leave Bryant out of game plan". The Washington Post. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
14. "Now They Cut Them, Now They Don't". The Los Angeles Times . September 1, 1992. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
15. "Transactions". The New York Times. September 2, 1992. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
16. "Transactions". The New York Times. August 31, 1993. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
17. "Rumor: Todd Bowles Expected to Interview with Packers". The Power Sweep. December 31, 2018. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
18. "Miami Dolphins at Buffalo Bills - December 18th, 2011". Pro-Football-Reference.com. December 18, 2011. Retrieved December 24, 2011.
19. ^[ dead link ]
20. Verderame, Matt (January 20, 2013). "Todd Bowles named Cardinals DC". SBNation.com. Retrieved January 22, 2013.
21. Lange, Randy (February 1, 2015). "Todd Bowles, Ron Wolf Receive 'NFL Honors'". New York Jets. Archived from the original on February 2, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
22. Sessler, Marc (January 31, 2015). "Todd Bowles wins Assistant Coach of the Year award". National Football League. Retrieved February 2, 2015.
23. Lange, Randy (January 14, 2015). "Jets Name Todd Bowles Head Coach". New York Jets. Archived from the original on January 19, 2015. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
24. Slater, Darryl (July 28, 2015). "Jets coach Todd Bowles recently had partial knee replacement surgery". NJ.com. New Jersey News. Retrieved July 28, 2015.
25. "NFL Team Rushing Yards Per Game". TeamRankings.com. Retrieved February 16, 2019.
26. Popper, Daniel (December 29, 2017). "Jets extend contracts of coach Todd Bowles, GM Mike Maccagnan two years". Daily News. New York. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
27. Cimini, Rich (December 30, 2018). "Jets fire coach Todd Bowles after third straight losing season". ESPN.com. Retrieved December 30, 2018.
28. Smith, Michael David (January 8, 2019). "Bruce Arians getting the band back together, Bowles to be Bucs' defensive coordinator". Profootballtalk.com. NBC Sports. Retrieved January 8, 2019.
29. Smith, Scott (January 9, 2019). "Bruce Arians' First Hire: Defensive Coordinator Todd Bowles". www.buccaneers.com. Retrieved January 10, 2019.
30. Greenawalt, Tyler (February 9, 2021). "Todd Bowles' creativity played a huge part in Bucs' big win". USA Today. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
31. • Sherman, Rodger (February 8, 2021). "The Winners and Losers of Super Bowl LV". The Ringer. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
    • Clark, Kevin (February 8, 2021). "Super Bowl LV Was About QB Mythmaking, Just Not in the Way We Thought". The Ringer. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
    • Orr, Conor (February 8, 2021). "How Todd Bowles's Defense Controlled the Super Bowl From Start to Finish". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
    • Cannizzaro, Mark (February 8, 2021). "Super Bowl exposed major flaw in head coach hiring process". New York Post. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
    • Heifetz, Danny (February 8, 2021). "The Worst Game of Patrick Mahomes's Life and the End of the Chiefs' Inevitability". The Ringer. Retrieved March 3, 2021.
32. "Buccaneers, Todd Bowles Agree to Contract Extension". August 4, 2021.
33. Smith, Scott (March 31, 2022). "Bruce Arians Steps Into New Role, Todd Bowles Taking Over as Bucs' Head Coach". Tampa Bay Bucccaneers. Retrieved March 31, 2022.
34. "2022 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees, Injury Reports". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 24, 2023.
35. "Wild Card - Dallas Cowboys at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - January 16th, 2023". Pro-Football-Reference.com. January 16, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
36. Morgan, Emmanuel (February 1, 2023). "Tom Brady Says He's Retiring, for Good This Time". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved February 2, 2023.
37. "Jason Licht: Bucs Have Agreed to Terms with QB Baker Mayfield". www.buccaneers.com. March 16, 2023. Retrieved March 20, 2023.
38. "2023 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rosters, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees, Injury Reports". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
39. "Wild Card - Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay Buccaneers - January 15th, 2024". Pro-Football-Reference.com. January 15, 2024. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
40. "Divisional Round - Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Detroit Lions - January 21st, 2024". Pro-Football-Reference.com. January 21, 2024. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
41. "Todd Bowles". Pro Football Reference. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
42. "Todd Bowles". www.buccaneers.com. Retrieved May 31, 2024.

External links

• Tampa Bay Buccaneers bio