The Tampa Bay Buccaneers face some difficult decisions this offseason after a disappointing season in which they went 8-9 in the regular season and lost in the NFC Wild Card game to the Dallas Cowboys.
The Bucs’ offseason has begun, and the first shoe dropped when the team decided to fire offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich early Thursday morning. With Leftwich out, the Buccaneers will be looking for a new offensive coordinator for the 2023-24 NFL season.
Todd Monken, former Buccaneers offensive coordinator and current National Champion offensive coordinator for the Georgia Bulldogs, has been a hot name among teams looking for an offensive coordinator, and the Buccaneers appear to want to bring him back to Tampa Bay, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
Monken previously worked as the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator under Dirk Koetter from 2016 until the latter was fired as head coach in 2018 and Bruce Arians took over. Following his time with the Buccaneers, Monken was hired as the offensive coordinator of the Cleveland Browns in 2019 before returning to the college ranks to join Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs as their OC.
Since taking over at Georgia, the Bulldogs’ best offensive output has come this season, when they averaged 41 points per game, 205.3 rushing yards per game, 295.8 passing yards per game, and 501.1 total yards per game.
Since former head coach Bruce Arians’ retirement in 2022, the Buccaneers offense has seen a significant decline. There was no player cohesion, and the offense lacked creativity and consistency throughout the season. The running game struggled to get going without Leonard Fournette and Rachaad White, and the connection between Tom Brady and his wide receivers was inconsistent.

Insert Monken here.

With Monken’s return to Tampa Bay, Bucs fans will welcome a familiar face back with open arms after former OC Byron Leftwich struggled in his former role. Monken has demonstrated that he is more than capable of calling his own offensive game and has had NFL-caliber players during his time at UGA. Bringing in a veteran play caller like Monken would undoubtedly give Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles confidence heading into his second season in charge.