After dismissing Lovie Smith in January, the Buccaneers promoted Offensive Coordinator Dirk Koetter to head coach, believing he would continue the development of promising young quarterback Jameis Winston. Koetter brought in Mike Smith, a former colleague in Atlanta and previously head coach of the Falcons, to serve as defensive coordinator. The season started with an emotional win at Atlanta, but the defense then surrendered 104 points in a three-game losing streak. Sitting at 3-5 at midseason, the Buccaneers reeled off their first five-game winning streak since 2002 to move into the thick of the playoff race. However, tight losses at Dallas and New Orleans left the Bucs needing help in the final weekend of the regular season. The Bucs took care of their own business, beating Carolina, 17-16, but ended up in a tie with Detroit for the final NFC playoff spot. The Lions won that on a common-opponents tiebreaker but at 9-7 the Bucs did post their first winning record since 2010. Injuries to running backs Doug Martin and Charles Smith plus receiver Vincent Jackson hampered the offense, though Winston threw for 4,090 yards and 28 touchdowns, 12 to Mike Evans. Gerald McCoy, Robert Ayers, Noah Spence and Lavonte David all had between five and seven sacks for the NFL's 23rd-ranked defense.
