Matt LaFleur doesn’t believe that firing DC is a good idea. It looks like Joe Barry is now the “best solution” for the team.
When the Buccaneers beat the Packers 34–20 on Sunday, they ran for 452 yards. This made fans of the team complain again about defensive coordinator Joe Barry.
LaFleur said on Monday that he thought Barry would like to receive some play calls back. He also stated that Barry would stay with the team until the end of the season and talked about why he didn’t make a change.
“We’d make that choice if I thought it was the best one right now,” LaFleur said through Rob Demovsky.
“But it’s so disappointing to me when basic communication breaks down and you’re supposed to be in some coverage or rotation and we’re not getting that communication. It was bad communication.”
It always starts with us. I’m the first one to do it, and everything else follows. So it was clear that the teaching wasn’t up to par, and our play on the field also proved that.”
It’s not looking good for the Packers’ defense. They let Baker Mayfield destroy them on Sunday and the Giants run for 209 yards in Week 14, so there are problems all over the unit that need to be fixed quickly if they want to make the playoffs.
“It just makes me sad that there wasn’t better communication,” LaFleur said. “It always starts with us.” People asked LaFleur why he was keeping Barry and what the big deal was with communication.
I’m the first one to do it, and everything else follows. It was clear that the teaching wasn’t up to par, and our play on the field demonstrated that as well.
The first three times Tampa Bay had the ball in the second half, they scored scores. Then, in the red zone, they took a knee to end the contest. They were only 8 of 12 on third- or fourth-down conversions.
LaFleur said, “Because I’ve seen us do this stuff before.” “So, it’s too bad that it happened in such a significant game at this time during the year.” But I’ve seen us do it earlier this year or in games before.
“I think there are some calls.” I’m the first to say that there were some plays that I would have liked to see again in that game. That’s football. We hope to learn from it and not do that again.
I know that Joe would like some of them back, especially the ones where we’re playing soft zone in which players can easily get a free catch on third-and-3-to-4-yard plays. I’d also like some of the red zone calls to come back.
The Packers (6-8) lost their last two games because they couldn’t stop New York Giants quarterbacks Tommy DeVito as well as Baker Mayfield. To make the playoffs, they will likely need to win their last three games and get a lot of help.
Whatever happens in the NFC South the rest of the way, it will be interesting to watch. Right now, it looks like the following teams could win the division, and those three teams might also want to change their coaches after the season is over.
The New Orleans Saints are currently playing their second season without Sean Payton as head coach. Dennis Allen has been an assistant coach for the Saints for a long time and was the head coach for the Oakland (now Las Vegas) Raiders.
Allen has clearly had a lot of success within the NFL because he has been named head coach of multiple teams.
If the Saints allow him go, I think he’d be in high demand as a defensive coordinator by many teams, and the Packers might be able to get better with him.
The New Orleans Saints and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are both in a tough spot right now. Both have 6-7 records and could still make the playoffs.
Todd Bowles is without a doubt one of the best defensive minds in football right now, which is why he’s served as a head coach so many times. Another option is that the Buccaneers might demote their head coach and implement a lot of changes in 2024.
Should Bowles be fired by the Buccaneers, he will have plenty of teams lining up to hire him as a defensive coordinator. Some teams may even offer him jobs as head coach.