Possible Candidates For Bucs Offensive Coordinator Role

A day after agreeing to stay in Tampa Bay and become the league’s highest-paid offensive coordinator, Liam Coen left the Bucs late Thursday night to become the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Aside from a massive raise that comes with making head coach money, Coen will also get to help Jaguars owner Shad Khan pick a new general manager, and he will get to work with quarterback Trevor Lawrence, wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. and the running back tandem of Tank Bigsby and Travis Etienne Jr.

Meanwhile, Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and general manager Jason Licht will be looking for the team’s fourth offensive coordinator in four years. Bowles fired Byron Leftwich after the 2022 season and hired Dave Canales to replace him. When Canales was hired by Carolina to become the Panthers head coach last January, the Bucs hired Coen to replace him.

So who will the Bucs turn to now to fill the play-caller vacancy created by Coen’s departure? Last year the Bucs interviewed 13 known candidates, including Coen, before Canales was replaced. Those candidates were as follows:

Bucs’ In-House Candidates

Thad Lewis – Bucs quarterbacks coach
John Van Dam – Bucs pass game assistant in 2024 / Bucs tight ends coach in 2023

External Candidates

Alex Van Pelt – Former Patriots offensive coordinator in 2024 / Browns offensive coordinator in 2023
Ken Dorsey – Former Browns offensive coordinator in 2024 / Bills offensive coordinator in 2023
Brian Johnson – Commanders assistant head coach/offensive pass game coordinator in 2024 / Eagles offensive coordinator in 2023
Jerrod Johnson – Texans quarterbacks coach
Kellen Moore – Eagles offensive coordinator in 2024 / Chargers offensive coordinator in 2023
Zac Robinson – Falcons offensive coordinator in 2024 / Rams quarterback coach/pass game coordinator in 2023
Jake Peetz – Seattle Seahawks pass game coordinator in 2024 / Rams pass game specialist in 2023
Antwaan Randle El – Lions wide receivers coach
Klint Kubiak – Former Saints offensive coordinator in 2024 / 49ers pass game coordinator in 2023
Tanner Engstrand – Lions passing game coordinator

Of that group, Brian Johnson, Moore and Robinson are current offensive coordinators and cannot make a lateral move.

There is a chance that the Bucs could revisit some of these candidates or explore some new ones. One of those could be from within the organization with Bucs pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard, who could keep the current coaching staff in place as well as the offensive system that was so successful last year.

Other new external candidates could possibly include Ohio State offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, Minnesota tight ends/passing game coordinator Brian Angelichio, who coached tight ends in Tampa Bay under Greg Schiano from 2012-13, Syracuse offensive coordinator Jeff Nixon, Baltimore quarterbacks coach Tee Martin, Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley, Miami offensive coordinator (non-play-caller) Frank Smith and Minnesota assistant offensive coordinator Grant Udinski.

Josh Grizzard Could Be Bucs’ Top In-House Offensive Coordinator Candidate

As I wrote about in last week’s SR’s Fab 5 column, the Bucs have an intriguing in-house candidate to replace Liam Coen as offensive coordinator in pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard. He is super bright and widely regarded inside the halls of One Buccaneer Place.

Grizzard was hired last year to work with Coen as his right-hand man in the passing game. If Coen doesn’t take him to Jacksonville to be his offensive coordinator (in title only), Grizzard could be an option to be the Bucs’ play-caller in 2025.

Grizzard might want to be an actual play-calling offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay rather than just be Coen’s game plan collaborator in Jacksonville.

Prior to coming to the Bucs, Grizzard spent five seasons with the Dolphins, working for both head coaches Brian Flores (2019-21) and Mike McDaniel (2022-23). After serving as a quality control coach in 2019, Grizzard became Miami’s wide receivers coach from 2020-21. Grizzard helped develop Jaylen Waddle, who broke the NFL’s then-rookie-receptions record in 2021 with 104. Waddle also set a current Dolphins rookie record of 1,015 receiving yards.

When McDaniel replaced Flores, Grizzard was moved back to the role of quality control coach in 2022-23 before being hired by Coen in Tampa Bay in 2024. The 34-year old Yale graduate began his coaching career at his alma mater in 2012 a grad assistant before moving on to Duke as a grad assistant/quality control coach from 2013-16.

Although Grizzard has never had any play-calling experience at any level, that didn’t stop Dave Canales from being successful in his first year as offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay in 2023. Coen had never called plays at the NFL level outside of a few games in Los Angeles in 2022 and two seasons at Kentucky in 2021 and 2023 as the Wildcats offensive coordinator.

Coen praised Grizzard a few weeks ago during one of his press conferences.

“I think, first of all, shoutout to Josh and really the staff in general have done a phenomenal job throughout the whole year,” Coen said when discussing the team’s success on third down, which ranked third in the NFL at 48.3% at the time. “The guys in charge of those areas – Thad Lewis is in charge of the red zone, ‘B-Mac’ (Bryan McClendon) is in charge of two-minute, and ‘Grizz’ happens to be in charge of third downs. Their ideas, plays, and thoughts and schemes is what does come to life as what you see on Sunday.”

Grizzard certainly knew what he was doing on third downs this year. Tampa Bay led the league with a 51.1% third down conversion percentage. In Sunday’s playoff loss to the Washington Commanders, the Bucs converted 5-of-9 (55.6%) on third downs. Grizzard is one to watch in the future – possibly the near future.

Jake Peetz Could Be Lead External Offensive Coordinator Candidate

If the Bucs decide to look outside the organization for Liam Coen’s replacement well, the offensive coordinator job is a lot more attractive than it used to be.

Whoever would be hired to replace Coen would inherit a franchise quarterback in Baker Mayfield and some talented weapons in running backs Bucky Irving, Rachaad White, wide receivers Mike Evans, Jalen McMillan and Chris Godwin, who is scheduled for free agency but will be back (trust me). Not to mention some capable, young tight ends, and one of the best and youngest offensive lines in the league.

One external name on the short list could be Jake Peetz. The 41-year old Peetz interviewed for the offensive coordinator vacancy last year before the team hired Coen.

Peetz spent the 2024 season as the Seahawks pass game coordinator working with Ryan Grubb, who was fired after Seattle missed the playoffs. With the Seahawks looking for a new offensive coordinator, Peetz’s status with the team could be in limbo.

Like Coen, Peetz spent time with Sean McVay and the Rams. He was an offensive assistant in 2022 and then replaced Coen as L.A.’s pass game specialist in 2023 when Coen went to Kentucky to be the Wildcats’ offensive coordinator.

Peetz has one year of play-calling experience in 2021 at LSU under former head coach Ed Orgeron where he was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. That year quarterback Max Johnson, the son of former Bucs quarterback Brad Johnson, threw 27 touchdown passes, which ranks fourth in LSU history in a single season. Running back Ty Davis-Price set the single game LSU rushing record in a victory versus Florida with 287 yards and three touchdowns.

Peetz has mostly worked on the offensive side of the ball in his coaching career, which began in 2006 at Santa Barbara City College. After a one-year stint as a defensive assistant at UCLA, Peetz went to work for Jack Del Rio in Jacksonville as an assistant QBs coach in 2012. He then worked for Jay Gruden with the Washington Redskins in 2014 as an offensive quality control coach.

Peetz spent three years with Del Rio again, this time in Oakland from 2015-17 where he was a senior offensive assistant, an assistant QBs coach, and a quarterbacks coach for Derek Carr. After that, he spent one year in 2018 with Nick Saban at Alabama as an offensive analyst, which was a role he also had for one season in 2013 with the Crimson Tide.

Peetz was back in the NFL in Carolina in 2019 and 2020 as a running backs coach working with All-Pro Christian McCaffrey and a quarterbacks coach in those two seasons. He also spent four years in Jacksonville’s personnel department as a scout from 2008-11.

Peetz is viewed as a young, up-and-comer just waiting for his opportunity to call plays at the NFL level. Kind of like Josh Grizzard, but also kind of like Dave Canales and Coen.