Raiders Rumors: Bucs DC Todd Bowles Requested to Interview for Head Coach Job

The Las Vegas Raiders reportedly requested an interview with Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles for their head coaching vacancy.

Adam Schefter of ESPN reported the Raiders contacted the Bucs for permission Tuesday, two days after Tampa Bay was eliminated from the NFL playoffs.

Bowles, 58, has been the Bucs defensive coordinator for the last three seasons. He came to Tampa after being fired by the New York Jets following a four-year run as head coach. The Jets went 24-40 during his tenure and never made the playoffs.

The Raiders are searching for a full-time replacement for Jon Gruden, who resigned in October after racist, sexist and anti-gay emails he sent while he was at ESPN were leaked to the media. Special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia took over as interim coach and led the Raiders to a wild-card berth.

Bisaccia has gotten the support of the locker room and is a candidate for the full-time job, but the Raiders are going through a full hiring process. The team has been linked to Jim Harbaugh, but it does not appear as if the two sides have met to discuss a potential NFL return for the Michigan head coach. 

The Buccaneers defense has ranked among the NFL's best over the course of Bowles' three seasons at the helm. They were fifth in scoring defense and ninth overall in Football Outsiders' DVOA (defense-adjusted value over average) metric during the 2021 regular season.