Vita Vea sets the record straight with Todd Bowles and the Buccaneers and he totally hit the nail on the head
Vita Vea spoke to the media after signing his new deal and he wanted to make something explicitly clear regarding Todd Bowles.
Vita Vea spoke with reporters after Thursday’s practice and there was plenty of ground covered in terms of topics.
One topic was crystal clear: People need to chill out on the Todd Bowles hate, as last year’s struggles, and the current state of the team, is more because of the players and not because of Bowles.
“I kind of want to set the record straight. I feel like there’s a lot of stuff going on about Bowles,” said Vea. “I feel like none of it is Bowles’ fault, and I feel like we all love Bowles. You can ask every player in the locker room, so that’s one thing I want to set the record straight. We all love Bowles. It’s not what he’s doing. You know, he’s telling us what to do. He’s giving us all the answers to the test, and it’s on us players to be able to go out there and execute what he’s telling us to do.
“He’s always putting us in the best position to play. That’s one of the main things, just being able to take coaching in that light. So if anything, blame us players for not executing. Bowles always puts us in the best position to to win games.
“I even told Bowles that the day he retires is the day I retire.”
Vea is right. Bowles has been catching a lot of unnecessary flak that has nothing to do with him.
It all started with Mike Evans’ departure. The popular theory is Evans didn’t want to ply under Bowles, when really, Evans just wanted a change of scenery and he also wanted to play in a consistent offense instead of the fifth different offense in as many years.
And two of those previous offensive coordinators didn’t leave – they were given head coaching jobs. The other two were let go because they couldn’t get the job done. Bowles didn’t select Byron Leftwich, so he’s currently 2-for-3 when it comes to finding a successful OC.
People then started blaming him for Tristan Wirfs’ hamstring injury, which he has zero control over. Bowles doesn’t run the strength and conditioning program, nor is it his job to make sure every single player is working out and doing the right things over the offseason.
Then, there was Vita Vea’s contract standoff, which many believed was due to Todd Bowles. Why in the world would Vea want an extension if he didn’t want to play for Bowles? That never made sense, yet it still gained a ton of momentum.
Bowles wasn’t the one out there missing assignments and tackles. He wasn’t the one blowing coverages or over-pursuing run angles. Those elements are on the players and like Vea said, they have to get it right.
Now, this isn’t to say Bowles is completely blameless, but he also shouldn’t be receiving the amount –and type– of scrutiny he’s received during the offseason.
And it’s great to hear a player of Vea’s ilk stand up for the veteran head coach.
