Tom Brady calls shots in Tampa as Bruce Arians retires

By Judy J. Beasley Last updated Jul 19, 2022

Pushed out of New England by a coach infamous for getting rid of a player a year early instead of a year too late, Tom Brady appears to have pulled a page from Bill Belichick’s book and orchestrated his former coach at Tampa Bay. resign as head coach of the Buccaneers.

In an ad Wednesday night, which probably surprised everyone but high-ranking members of the front office in Tampa and Brady, Bruce Arians informed his coaching staff and players that he was stepping down as head coach. of the Buccaneers. Arians, who coached the team to a Super Bowl win over the Chiefs just 14 months ago, will take on a new role for the team as a senior football consultant. In a corresponding move, the Buccaneers promote defensive coordinator Todd Bowles to head coach.

“With the organization probably in the best shape ever with Brady back, I would rather see Todd in a position to succeed and not have to take it [crappy] work,” Arians told NBC’s Peter King. “I’m probably going to retire next year anyway, in February. So, I control the narrative right now. I don’t control it next February because [if] Brady gets injured, we’re 10-7, and it’s an open interview for the job. I’m 31 [coaches and their] families who depend on me. My wife doesn’t want to let all these families down.

After the news broke, Brady praised the man who coached him for two years.

Brady can say what he wants publicly, but the Arians’ resignation only adds further weight to a number of reports that the behind-the-scenes relationship between the two had become strained to the point that it could have led the 44-year-old QB’s announcement that he is retiring from professional football.

Apparently, while Arians rehabilitated the Achilles early in the morning, offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich and Brady were working on the game plan for the week. The Arians would come later and take the red pen for the work they had done. The QB and the OC felt undermined, there was tension.

— Rich Ohrnberger (@ohrnberger) February 18, 2022

As many had predicted, Brady’s “retirement” was short-lived, possibly because he received assurances that if he returned to the Bucs, the Arians wouldn’t. Although the Buccaneers insist the Arians’ departure was unrelated to Brady’s decision, Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Weather reports the quarterback knew his coach of two years would be out the door before he agreed to return.

#Bucs QB Tom Brady was told that Bruce Arians planned to step down and that Todd Bowles would succeed him as head coach either on the same day or a day after the QB announced he was ending his retirement, the @TB_Times has learned. The team insists it was unrelated to Brady’s decision.

— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) March 31, 2022

It should also be noted that Brady likely endorsed Bowles – who was the head coach of the New York Jets and was fired despite doing a decent job – taking over for the Arians. Maybe Brady knew it would help bring new players to Tampa Bay and bring back important free agents like Ndamukong Suh and Rob Gronkowski.

Kudos to Todd Bowles on becoming the head coach of a great team who still feels like a light man on talent 👀

— Ndamukong Suh (@NdamukongSuh) March 31, 2022

Brady lost his power struggle in New England, ended up in Tampa with the Arians, then won the Super Bowl. This time, Brady won the power struggle and apparently kicked out the Arians. With Belichick struggling in New England and the Arians now gone, Brady – who has essentially become the LeBron James of the NFL – is winning again. It’s cold but also extremely competitive, and if he wins another Super Bowl, no one in Tampa will care.

One of the NFL’s oldest coaches at age 69, Arians has a career coaching record of 89-51-1, two Coach of the Year awards and a Super Bowl title. . If Brady had let him, he might have been able to complete this recovery a bit more with a few more wins and maybe another title to give himself an even better shot at the Hall of Fame.