It was around this time last year that the Buccaneers decided to part ways with Lovie Smith and move Dirk Koetter from offensive coordinator to head coach.
Koetter remained the offensive play caller after the switch in job responsibilities and did well enough for the Bucs to go 9-7 in their first winning season since 2010. That record wasn’t enough to get the team into the playoffs, however, and Koetter said Monday that he’s looking at everything to see how the team can “get better in all areas.”
One consideration will be giving up the play calling in order to focus on a wider range of things.
“I love being the play caller. I think that’s one of the best things about the game,” Koetter said, via the Tampa Bay Times. “But, with being the head coach this year, I have more responsibilities. I have really enjoyed my interactions with players and I’ve really enjoyed to go in and do the team meetings every day, that takes time. I don’t just go up there and wing it from the hip like I do in [press conferences]. It actually takes preparation time. Everything I say in front of the team I take very seriously. I want to be able to back it up, and not just B.S. those guys. I ask myself, if I spent more time on it could I do a better job?”
Koetter’s far from the first coach to wrestle with this question and some have gone back to calling plays when things aren’t going well. Koetter said he’d like to avoid that, so we’ll see if he feels offensive coordinator Todd Monken is the right man for the job or if ceding the responsibility would take a new addition to the coaching staff.
