Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette has been the man wherever he's played. But, Bruce Arians simply didn't care. He treated him like any other player.

The Buccaneers head coach recently appeared on the Pewter Report Podcast and revealed the savage conversation he had with Fournette after he benched him in Week 14.

“[I]t was going into the end of the season, and he was unsure of what his role was, or unhappy with what his role was,” Arians said. “We had a walk-through and he was a little bit disinterested. And we had a nice conversation. I said, ‘Look, when you come back on this field, you have 30 seconds to come back here and tell me that you’re all in, or you’re going to ask me to release you. Go inside, call whoever. But you’re not going to sit over there away from everybody. You have a tough decision.”

The Buccaneers RB ultimately decided to nut up and play his role, but Arians understood why it was such a difficult position for the former LSU star.

Article Continues Below
More Tampa Bay Buccaneers News
Mystery player in the middle, Baker Mayfield and Antoine Winfield Jr around him, Buccaneers logo in the background
1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie who stood out most in 2025 minicampEnzo Flojo ·
Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving (7) celebrates after a 54-yard run in the second half against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium.
Buccaneers’ Bucky Irving surpasses Vita Vea, Mike Evans for impressive honorJaren Kawada ·
Tampa Bay Buccaneers receiver Mike Evans (13) catches the ball during NFC Practice for the Pro Bowl Games at Camping World Stadium.
Buccaneers rumors: Why insider is wondering about a Mike Evans tradeJackson Stone ·
Haason Reddick in the middle, Baker Mayfield and Coach Todd Bowles around him, Stormy skies in the background
Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ riskiest move in 2025 NFL offseasonEnzo Flojo ·
Featured image Desmond Watson
Buccaneers’ Todd Bowles breaks down Desmond Watson’s impact vs. Tush PushDylan Fine ·
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) hands off to running back Rachaad White (29) in the fourth quarter at Raymond James Stadium.
Exclusive: Why Tom Brady’s former Buccaneers teammate calls him a ‘ghost’DJ Siddiqi ·

“I mean, he had been the guy everywhere he’d ever been his whole life,” Arians said. “And he wasn’t the guy and it was hard for him. And I respected that, but he had to make a decision then and there. Because we weren’t going to have anyone who was pouting going down the stretch. We couldn’t afford it. He came back in 30 minutes and said, ‘Coach, I’m all in’. I said, ‘Great, because we are going to need you’. Then [Ronald Jones] got hurt and Lenny came right to the front and led us all the way.”

Fournette responded in loud fashion in Week 15 against the Falcons, rushing for two TDs and 65 yards from scrimmage. The next week? almost carbon-copy numbers and another touchdown.

Fournette played a key part in the Buccaneers Super Bowl-winning team. He went off in the playoffs, rushing for 300 yards in four appearances, including 135 against the Chiefs in the title game.

Clearly, that tough conversation paid off between Fournette and Arians. They'll both be looking to run it back in 2021 after he signed a one-year extension in March.