Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Bruce Arians has always been about helping his coordinators rise up into the coaching ranks and he thinks offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich is a rising star in the profession.
Arians is letting Leftwich take almost total control of the offense, Just three years ago Leftwich was an intern with Arians and now he is calling the shots for the offense, and Arians thinks this is only the beginning.
“I've been training guys for this job. I always said I would never give up [playcalling] and look over anybody's shoulder until I found one I knew could do it,” Arians said when he was first hired by the Bucs via ESPN.
“I think he's a rising star in this business.”
Leftwich actually tried to get away from the game of football after playing in the league for ten years but that isn't something Arians would let him do. Arians had a special relationship with Leftwich when they were both in Pittsburgh, and Arians knew after he retired he needed him on his staff.
Back in 2018 he was the interim offensive coordinator for the Cardinals but didn't have enough time to make changes and had to work off of Mike McCoy's offense. That really impressed Arians and it's when he knew that Leftwich was ready for the next step in the NFL.
“What he did with the interim title out there [in Arizona in 2018] — it wasn't even his offense, it was Mike McCoy's offense — and he did a heck of a job with some rookies. He's more than ready,” Arians said.
There is a lot of pressure on Leftwich to help Jameis Winston take another step forward in the league, and if he can do that, he will probably get a shot as a head coach in the league.
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