Well, I didn't see this one coming.

The Buccaneers Friday said that they have fired head coach Jon Gruden and general manager Bruce Allen.

"We will be forever grateful to Jon for bringing us the Super Bowl title, and we thank Bruce for his contributions to our franchise," Buccaneers Co-Chairman Joel Glazer said in a statement. "However after careful consideration, we feel that this decision is in the best interest of our organization moving forward."

Tampa's collapse at the end of the season did Gruden in, IMO. Wonder if he'll interview for the Jets job?

uPtoWnNY said:

It still kinda came outta nowhere. I think there will be at least 10-12 coaching changes.

I'm a huge Bucs fan and this literally came out of nowhere. But, like they did when they fired Dungy in '02, the Glazers can see mediocrity a mile away and are generally proactive. Gruden was never the offensive guru in Tampa that he was hailed as being in Oakland. The team was inconsistent and he failed to develop young talent.

It was time.

But I am grateful for the Lombardi.

I'd take him back to run the Raiders...

violator said:

Are you calling Dungy mediocre?
Ten straight consecutive playoff appearances, a record, is now just mediocre?
The first two years were in Tampa . . .

As a Saints fan, all I can say is....



fuck chucky....couldn't have happened to a nicer guy!!! To me, its karmic justice for him getting all the credit for winning the Super Bowl with Tony Dungy's team.....

That loss to his/my Raiders sure didn't help, I'm sure.

There've been many collapses this season(Jets, Broncos), and coaches have paid for it.

In other coaching news, my Giants lost their defensive wizard Spags to the Rams. Sad day....

SUPRMAN said:

Actually, the first three were in Tampa.

I'm saying the Bucs were a mediocre team at the time of Tony Dungy's firing. Yes. Two consecutive 9-7 seasons capped by embarrassing playoff defeats. Offenses that consistently finished in the bottom third of the league. Suspect OC hirings and a stubborn loyalty to non-productive offensive players.

Tony Dungy deserves all the credit in the world for taking the Bucs from laughingstock to respectability. But it was clear that the team had gone as far as they were going to go under his stewardship.
[Edited 1/18/09 0:48am]

Herm Edwards should get fired, he's done nothing for KC.

kpowers said:

Herm has been less than inspiring.

RenHoek said:

Chucky may look crazy but he ain't THAT crazy.

It all comes down to "what have you done for me lately".....2 or 3 losses at the wrong time and you can cancel Christmas !

violator said:

Mediocrity? Really? You're a huge Bucs fan, right? Huge Bucs fans I know have long memories.

Surely you remember how moribund they were before Dungy got there. Surely you realize Dungy did one of the best coaching jobs in modern history molding that team into a consistent winner.

Gruden was too type-A, too temperamental, and too finicky with QBs to succeed beyond motivating the talent there to a Super Bowl title. His style has a short shelf life on the pro level. He did what he was paid highly to do: secure a title.

But IMO, Dungy was the better coach.

violator said:

Now this is better stated. I could quibble with it, but that was the basis of their decision. That being said, the fact that Dungy didn't stay on the street long enough to buy a hot dog speaks volumes about his ability as a coach.

I believe Dungy could have eventually gotten it done in Tampa. But sometimes even a great coach is the wrong fit at a certain point. Long-term, the decision paid off for everyone. Both coaches and both the Colts and the Bucs collected a Lombardi.

namepeace said:

That's why I said, in my later post, that Dungy "deserves all the credit in the world for taking the Bucs from laughingstock to respectability". And when it comes to general stability and growth, I do believe Tony Dungy is the better coach. But make no mistake, when Dungy left, the Bucs were an average performing team with championship caliber talent. He made baffling offensive coordinator hires like Les Steckel and Clyde Christensen when more respected, accomplished guys like Norv Turner and Chan Gailey were publicly lobbying to work with him. He remained stubbornly loyal to failed wideouts Jacquez Green and Reidel Anthony who were the Bucs #2 and #3 receivers, respectively, at the time of Dungy's firing. Both were out of football the next season. Tony held the defense to a standard that he didn't hold the offense to and it led to some wasted seasons. In Dungy's last three post-season games as Bucs coach, Tampa failed to score a single offensive touchdown.

As loved as Dungy is in Tampa, there's a fair contingency of folks who are bitter towards him for not making the changes necessary on the offensive side of the ball to get over the hump. No bitterness here, but I do believe he could have won at least one championship, maybe two in Tampa had he been more flexible.

Gruden was, as I said, the right person at the right time. The Bucs window of opportunity was closing under Dungy and ownership saw it. Certainly, they underestimated what kind of coach Gruden would be for the long haul, but the firing of Dungy was the right call and worth it because Gruden delivered the Lombardi the very next season.

violator said:

Yup, you're a true fan. I think Dungy was trying to mold a Titan-esque offense, especially having hired Steckel. That was undeniably his problem (perhaps his reticence to hire respected coaches with head coaching experience spoke to his insecurity in that job, perhaps not.) Fortunately for him, when he went to Indy, he didn't have to change a thing on the offensive side of the ball.

As I said in response to your later post, perhaps Dungy wasn't the right fit for the team after a certain time. Gruden was for a little while.

Well said.

When I saw the news this morning on ESPN News my jaw was on the floor.