The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have named former Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith as their next defensive coordinator, according to the Buccaneers' team Twitter account. The Buccaneers have already named offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter as their next head coach and will look to address the defensive side of the ball by hiring Smith.
It came as a surprise to many when Tampa Bay decided to fire head coach Lovie Smith, as they had clearly improved in his first two seasons with the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay finished in last place in the NFC South with a 6-10 record but clearly showed improvement with divisional wins over the Saints and a sweep of the Atlanta Falcons.
The Buccaneers front office undoubtedly wanted to keep some continuity going into quarterback Jameis Winston's second season in Tampa Bay, and after finishing the season ranked fifth in the league in terms of yards per game, Koetter seemed like a strong candidate.
While Tampa Bay has plenty of talent on the offensive side of the ball, their defense finished the season ranked 26th, giving up more than 26 points per game. Koetter has a strong relationship with Smith, as he worked under him when he was a head coach in Atlanta. The NFC South has some high-scoring offenses, and both Koetter and Smith will look to turn it around in Tampa Bay, as the franchise has not made the postseason since 2007.
