The Buccaneers are parting ways with another one of Todd Bowles’ coordinators.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that the Buccaneers have fired special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey. They have also fired offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard and quarterbacks coach Thad Lewis on Thursday while offensive consultant Tom Moore announced his retirement. Other changes could be coming after the Bucs missed the playoffs for the first time since the 2019 season.
McGaughey spent the last two seasons in Tampa. The Buccaneers had three field goals and two punts blocked during the 2025 season while ranking 30th in the league by allowing 28.2 yards per kickoff return.
McGaughey previously ran the special teams for the Giants, Panthers, 49ers, and Jets.
Tom Moore will not return to the Bucs as an offensive consultant in 2026 and he doesn’t plan on moving to another team to continue his long run as an NFL assistant coach.
Moore told Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times that he is retiring. Moore joined the Bucs in his current role in 2019 and he told Stroud that he is stepping away to help care for his wife after she suffered a recent stroke.
“It’s time for me to go home and take care of my wife,” Moore said. “For 62 years, she made a lot of sacrifices so I could live a dream and it’s always been about Tom but now it’s about Willie. “It’s time. I’ve been fortunate to land in a lot of great places. This is a great place. The Glazers are fantastic owners. It doesn’t get any better than Jason Licht as general manager. Todd [Bowles] is great . . . it’s a tough business. I’ve been blessed.”
Moore entered the NFL as the Steelers’ wide receivers coach in 1977 and he moved to their offensive coordinator role in 1983. He left the Steelers after the 1989 season and worked for the Vikings, Lions and Saints before becoming the Colts’ offensive coordinator in 1998. Moore became known for working closely with Peyton Manning during his time with the Colts and he remained in Indianapolis through 2010. He worked for the Jets, Titans and Cardinals before joining Tampa’s staff.
Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles says he’s staying in Tampa Bay for 2026. But he’s firing his key offensive assistants.
Josh Grizzard is out after one year as the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator, according to multiple reports. Also out is quarterbacks coach Thad Lewis, according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.
Grizzard had been the Buccaneers’ pass game coordinator in 2024 and was promoted to offensive coordinator in 2025, replacing Liam Coen, who left to become head coach of the Jaguars. Early in the 2025 season everything appeared to be operating smoothly, but the Bucs’ offense declined as the season went on, and Bowles has decided to make a change.
Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield is heading into the final season of his contract, and if Bowles can’t turn things around it could be his final year in Tampa Bay as well. Bowles finding a play caller who can get the most out of Mayfield is his top priority right now.
It doesn’t look like the Buccaneers will be stepping into the hunt for John Harbaugh.
Todd Bowles told Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times that he will be back as the head coach in Tampa for the 2026 season. The message came after Bowles met with team ownership on Tuesday and he had meetings scheduled with the team’s assistant coaches on Wednesday.
Bowles won division titles in his first three seasons as the Bucs’ head coach while going 27-24, but the team missed the playoffs with an 8-9 record and lost seven of their final nine games this season.
Bowles said that he expects to make changes to his coaching staff, but he did not share any details of those plans.
With six vacancies (other than the Ravens) and seven teams calling former Ravens coach John Harbaugh after his dismissal on Tuesday, at least one team without a vacancy made the call.
So which team(s) called? (It’s possible that more than one team without an opening called, if at least one of the teams currently looking for a coach did not.)
Here’s a look at the possibilities. And don’t blame us for doing it; Harbaugh’s agent lit the fuse by disclosing that seven teams called.
Jets: By all appearances, first-year coach Aaron Glenn lost the locker room. The final five games, with a minus-137 point differential (27.4 per game), was arguably the worst stretch ever for a franchise with plenty of rough spots. Still, owner Woody Johnson has shown no inclination to fire Glenn — and to owe him more than $40 million to not coach the team.
Dolphins: Michigan man Stephen Ross once pursued Michigan man Jim Harbaugh while the Dolphins still had a coach under contract. Why wouldn’t Ross make the call about Harbaugh’s brother, given the currently tenuous status of Mike McDaniel?
Bills: What if the Bills lose this weekend? Is it crazy to think the Bills would consider making a change? That said, swapping out one coach who failed to get to the Super Bowl during the prime years of a generational talent for another coach who failed to get to the Super Bowl during the prime years of a generational talent seems odd.
Steelers: If the team thinks Mike Tomlin, who seems to have a TV offer in his back pocket, could be leaving after the playoff run ends, it needs to be thinking about the next coach. Why not Harbaugh?
Bengals: There’s no way Mike Brown will finance Zac Taylor’s buyout and pay whatever it would take to get Harbaugh.
Colts: Owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon has said Shane Steichen will be back. Could she view Harbaugh as an upgrade who may not be available if a change is made in 2027?
Chiefs: Andy Reid will be back for 2026. The phone call (if it happened) may have been as simple as, “Keep us in mind if you’re thinking about taking a year off and returning in 2027.”
Cowboys: See the Chiefs.
Commanders: Dan Quinn’s team badly regressed in 2025. Why wouldn’t owner Josh Harris at least consider the possibility of an upgrade to Harbaugh?
Packers: New team president Ed Policy made it clear in June that it’s an up-or-out year for coach Matt LaFleur and G.M. Brian Gutekunst. Could Policy have wanted to let Harlan (the son of former Packers CEO Bob Harlan) know that there may be a reason to let the wild-card round play out before making any decisions?
Buccaneers: There’s a vague sense still lingering that ownership could make a coaching change. Harbaugh’s availability could be the thing that pushes the Bucs off the fence.
At least one of those teams made the call. Maybe more than one. And if one of those teams fires its head coach in the coming days, it could be the first step toward hiring John Harbaugh.
