Buccaneers fire coach Lovie Smith after 2 seasons

Former Chicago Bears head coach Lovie Smith was surprisingly fired after only two seasons in Tampa- will he get another shot as a head coach?

Smith went 6-10 this season and 8-24 over two years in charge of the team.

Scruggs tweet provides a bit more clarity as to exactly why Smith was sacked after only his second season in TB. In some case, such as the San Francisco 49ers situation with Jim Tomsula, an early release is acceptable; but I have a hard time believing that a well-established head coach like Lovie Smith “duped” the Buccaneers organization in any way.

Going forward, Licht said he will lead the effort to find the 11 coach in Buccaneers history.

Licht said that the decision was not influenced by outside interest in hiring offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter, who he called one of the many quality football coaches that the team will consider as their next head coach.

Prior to taking over the Buccaneers, Smith had been the head coach of the Chicago Bears before being fired after the 2013 season.

Check back for the latest on this developing story. At one point in ’15, Tampa was 6-6 and had a shot at the playoffs, only to lose its final four games. Their next coach will be the fourth in six seasons, allowing very little chance to build continuity with the team.

Licht said he talked with the Glazer family Wednesday night, and that they had made the decision to fire Smith and expressed a desire to meet him in person Thursday.

Jameis Winston had a strong rookie season, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers tripled their victory total from the previous year.

Changing coaches is nothing new for the Bucs. His record was certainly poor in his first two seasons in Tampa Bay, and the defense, which is his specialty, was pretty bad.

Winston improved immensely as the season went on under Koetter, and Licht had high praise for the 56-year-old coordinator.

If Smith were still the head coach in Tampa Bay, there would have been be no way for the front office to prevent Koetter from taking the Miami job.

“I think the Glazers were right to get rid of him”, Bobier said.