WATCH: Bucs Give Game Balls That Go Beyond The Game

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles capped off an emotional week and an emotional game with a post-game speech that went beyond football.

The Bucs were on cloud nine in the locker room following their 51-27 drubbing of the New Orleans Saints. So many players had standout performances that led to the victory.

Almost the entire offense was running on all cylinders and several players on defense had highlight-reel performances. But Bowles took the time to recognize and celebrate members of the organization who put those players in a position to succeed.

“Adversity stood us in the face. As a family, we stood up… There are a lot of people involved in that from a game balls perspective.” 🗣️

🏈 Tim Jarocki, Senior Director of Team Operations
🏈 Glazer Family
🏈 City of Tampa pic.twitter.com/WdU8BoHSMa

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) October 14, 2024

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: USA Today

Said Bowles when delivering the powerful comments to the team: “Hey, that was a hell of a job all week, okay? Not just today, all week. Adversity stood us in the face. As a family we stood up. we went through it. We came out today, we played a hell of a ball game. And there’s a lot of people involved in that from a game ball standpoint. [Senior director of team operations] Tim Jarocki, where you at? Tim has got a game ball coming.”

Bowles continued: “The next game ball came to the people who got you and your families out safe. Took care of you the whole weekend. They do everything with humility. They do it with the city. They do it with the team. The entire Glazer family gets a game ball.”

Last but not least! Last but not least, we will have a special game ball for the city of Tampa when we get back.”

Bowles finished his speech with, “I will see you guys on Tuesday!” That brought on additional cheers from the players looking forward to a well-deserved Monday off.

The Tampa Bay area and a good deal of the entire state of Florida was rocked the week prior by Hurricane Milton, which made landfall south of Tampa as a category four storm leaving a path of devastation and destruction as it moved across the state. As of 6:30pm there are still nearly a quarter of a million people in the Tampa area without power with people numbering in the thousands who cannot stay in their own homes due to Milton.

Bucs Match The Resiliency Of The Area They Represent

The Bucs spoke all week about the added significance of playing a game where they and their families were displaced due to the hurricane while representing an area that was still reeling in the aftermath of the storm.

Quarterback Baker Mayfield talked about it on Tuesday saying, “Obviously, first things first, [we] wanted to make sure everybody was safe and everybody’s taking the right precautions and doing what they need to do to get things done. With the support of the Glazer family, we were able to relocate here, which is huge. Obviously, they provided travel for the team and family members and pets, as well, so that’s big time, just to be able to shift the focus there – safety first – and then go on. So yeah, short memory when it comes to the Atlanta game. Obviously, [we] had to watch the tape Monday, correct the things we needed to and move forward.”

Bucs GM Jason Licht and the Glazers – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Head coach Todd Bowles spoke about the preparations that day as well.

“We get to practice at Tulane, and it started coming about [on] Friday and Saturday when it was really [looking like it could] hit us… a lot of phone calls, a lot of work,” Bowles said. “We were torn between New Orleans and Houston, but rather than get on another plane at the end of the week and go from Houston to New Orleans, it was easier for us to get here to New Orleans. We practice at Tulane, and we have our meetings – [we’re] trying to keep everything like a normal Wednesday as possible, other than the bus ride.

“The meeting times, the practice and everything else has been the same. We’re trying to keep that kind of structure, and we know [that] when they go back to the room, a lot of people go back to the room with families in it and it’s a little smaller and they won’t have the concentration part, so we’re trying to get as much done as possible while in the meeting rooms.”

Most of that preparation would fall on the shoulders of Jarocki, who is tasked with the bulk of logisitics for the Bucs, with the help and support of the Glazer family. Bowles wanted to make sure he called out how much those efforts led to the Bucs success on Sunday. Judging by the veracity of the cheers from the players hearing Jarocki and the Glazers’ shouted out, it was apparent the team agreed wholeheartedly with their coach.

Bowles also wanted to shout out the Tampa area as a mirror of the resiliency the team showed after letting a 17-0 lead slip through their hands. To the team’s credit they didn’t let the adversity get the best of them, continuing to push forward until the final whistle blew and they stood victorious.

Knowing the people of Tampa and the character and strength they have; Bowles has no doubt they will face adversity in a similar fashion. And I couldn’t agree with him more.