Buccaneers Promote Josh Grizzard To OC

The Buccaneers are set to go internal for their Liam Coen replacement. Josh Grizzard is being promoted to the role of offensive coordinator, Mike Garafolo, Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network report. The move is now official, per a team announcement.

This news does not come as much of a surprise. Grizzard, Tampa Bay’s pass-game coordinator, was recently mentioned as one of the top candidates for the OC gig in the event the team elected to promote from within to replace Coen. He interviewed on Wednesday, and in short order that meeting has now produced an agreement.

Grizzard’s coaching career dates back to Yale, when he worked as an assistant at his alma mater. The 34-year-old also spent time at Duke before beginning his tenure at the pro level. He first joined the Dolphins’ staff in 2019, remaining there until 2023 and occupying several roles along the way. Grizzard joined Todd Bowles last offseason, a move which has now produced his first career coordinator opportunity at any level.

Coen had a strong first season with the Bucs, overseeing a unit which ranked top-four in both passing and rushing yards. That made him a strong head coaching target for the Jaguars in particular, although he appeared to be on track to remain in Tampa Bay for the 2025 season. A new OC deal had been agreed to, on the condition Coen stopped looking into his HC options. He ultimately took part in a secret second interview with the Jags, though, and – after the firing of general manager Trent Baalke – accepted Jacksonville’s offer to lead the team.

That left the Buccaneers in the coordinator market for the second offseason in a row. Dave Canales‘ success during his first (and only) campaign in Tampa Bay earned him the Panthers’ head coaching gig, something which added to the value of Coen being on track to remain in place for more than one year. Instead, the team will now rely on Grizzard to replicate the offense’s balanced production from 2024.

Much of Tampa Bay’s key offensive players are on the books for next season, so expectations will remain high for another NFC South title moving forward. Grizzard’s stock will continue to rise if the Bucs can have success on offense in 2025, although the team will of course wish to avoid needing to replace its OC for three straight years. In any case, it will be interesting to see how Grizzard fares while leading an offense he is already familiar with.

Bowles faced questions about how willing outside OC candidates (of which there were five in this case) would be to take on the position in the wake of the Coen departure. Bowles’ own job security has been a talking point in recent years, but he will remain in the fold for at least 2025. He will hope to enjoy as much success next year with Grizzard as he did with his previous coordinator pick.