Buccaneers' Todd Bowles was 'head coach in waiting' under Bruce Arians?

Todd Bowles served as head coach of the New York Jets from 2015 through the 2018 NFL season and accumulated an overall record of 24-40 before he was shown the figurative door. Bowles' career continued when he was hired to serve as Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator under head coach Bruce Arians, who previously had Bowles as his coordinator when both were with the Arizona Cardinals. 

Fast-forward to this week, when Arians shocked many outsiders by announcing he was stepping away from coaching to accept a front-office job within the Buccaneers and allow Bowles to take over as head coach. It appears, however, that some within the organization weren't surprised by this latest development. 

Defensive tackle Steve McLendon first joined the Buccaneers via a trade from the Jets during the 2020 campaign and remained with the club through at least last season. According to Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk, McLendon explained during an appearance on "The Zach Gelb Show" on CBS Sports Radio that Bowles had been viewed as Arians' successor for some time by those in the Tampa Bay locker room. 

"Not really surprised because everybody knows Todd Bowles is a head coach and was the head coach in waiting," McLendon said. "And everybody understands BA has been doing it a long time. It wasn’t a shock." 

As Mike Florio noted for PFT on Thursday, the Buccaneers didn't have to interview Bowles or any outside minority candidates as mandated by the Rooney Rule because Arians stepped away after March 1, when that rule no longer applies because an overwhelming majority of coaching staffs have already been settled by that portion of the league calendar. Florio said the NFL "is considering closing" that particular loophole, presumably as quickly as this offseason.