Todd Bowles’ language was about as colorful as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ “Creamsicle” jerseys.
The Buccaneers dropped their Week 15 “Thursday Night Football” matchup to the Atlanta Falcons 29-28, a walk-off loss after Tampa Bay held a 28-14 lead as the fourth quarter commenced.
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With time ticking down, emotions ran high on the sideline. Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Evans was visibly frustrated even before Zane Gonzalez lined up to take the game-winning kick. Those emotions followed Evans into the locker room, and onto the podium postgame, where Bowles let loose an expletive-laden tirade regarding the collapse.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 6: Washington Commanders wide receiver Chris Moore (19) celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the “Monday Night Football” game against the Chicago Bears at Northwest Stadium. The Commanders wore their all-black alternate uniforms for the game.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 6: Washington Commanders wide receiver Chris Moore (19) celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown during the “Monday Night Football” game against the Chicago Bears at Northwest Stadium. The Commanders wore their all-black alternate uniforms for the game.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 6: Atlanta Falcons running back Tyler Allgeier (25) carries the ball for a touchdown against the Buffalo Bills at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Falcons played the game while sporting throwback uniforms that harken back to the team’s inaugural season of 1966.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 6: Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen operates at the line of scrimmage before a play against the Atlanta Falcons during a “Monday Night Football” game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The Bills wore throwback uniforms reminiscent of the team’s look from 1962-1973 during the game.
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Week 6: Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young looks for a receiver against the Dallas Cowboys at Bank of America Stadium. The Panthers wore this uniform combination for the first time in the 30-27 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 5: Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray makes a throw during the third quarter against the Tennessee Titans at State Farm Stadium. The Cardinals wore their all-black uniforms, but were defeated 22-21.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 5: Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield awaits the snap against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Both teams wore throwback uniforms in the Buccaneers’ 38-35 win. The Buccaneers and Seahawks entered the NFL together as expansion teams in 1976.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 5: Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Tory Horton (15) is congratulated by teammate AJ Barner (88) after catching a touchdown pass against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half at Lumen Field. The Seahawks wore throwback uniforms harkening back to the team’s original look from 1976-2001.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 5: Los Angeles Chargers running back Omarion Hampton (8) runs against the Washington Commanders during the first quarter at SoFi Stadium. The Chargers wore monochrome powder blue uniform pants and jerseys for the first time.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 5: New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson (5) is tackled by the Dallas Cowboys’ Trevon Diggs (7) and Juanyeh Thomas (2) during the first half at MetLife Stadium. The Cowboys wore their “Arctic White” uniforms for the 37-22 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 5: New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields stands in the pocket against the Dallas Cowboys during the first half at MetLife Stadium. The Jets wore their all-black uniforms in the 37-22 loss.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 4: Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) hands the ball off to running back J.K. Dobbins during the “Monday Night Football” game against the Cincinnati Bengals at Empower Field at Mile High. The Broncos wore their “Midnight Navy” uniforms for the 28-3 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: Baltimore Ravens tight end Charlie Kolar (88) makes a catch during his team’s “Monday Night Football” game against the Detroit Lions at M&T Bank Stadium. The Ravens wore their all-black uniforms for the game dubbed, “Darkness Falls.” Despite the fancy marketing moniker, the Ravens were defeated, 38-30.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: New Orleans Saints running back Kendre Miller (5) stiff arms Seattle Seahawks linebacker Tyrice Knight (48) during the second quarter at Lumen Field. The Saints wore their all-white uniform and helmet combo for the first time in the 44-13 loss.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: San Francisco 49ers running back Christian McCaffrey carries the ball against the Arizona Cardinals during the first half at Levi’s Stadium. The 49ers wore throwback jerseys – an homage to the team’s 1950s look, as well as its 1994 Super Bowl-winning season – in the 16-15 win against the Cardinals.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: New England Patriots tight end Hunter Henry (85) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Gillette Stadium. New England brought out its iconic “Pat Patriot” throwback in the 21-14 defeat.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Rachaad White (1) runs with the ball as New York Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner attempts to make the tackle during the second quarter at Raymond James Stadium. The Buccaneers wore their famous “Creamsicle” throwback uniforms in the 29-27 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: Cleveland Browns running back Quinshon Judkins celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Green Bay Packers during the fourth quarter at Huntington Bank Field. The Browns debuted their “Alpha Dawg” alternate uniform for the 13-10 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Jourdan Lewis (2) celebrates after making an interception in the fourth quarter against the Houston Texans at EverBank Stadium. The Jaguars wore their “Prowler Throwbacks” – an homage to the team’s late-1990s heyday – for the 17-10 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 3: Carolina Panthers tight end JaTavion Saunders runs with the ball against the Atlanta Falcons at Bank of America Stadium. The Panthers wore their special black helmets in the 30-0 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 2: Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) runs the ball against the Atlanta Falcons at U.S. Bank Stadium. Sporting “The Vikings Classic” throwback uniform inspired by the team’s look during the 1960s and ’70s, Minnesota was defeated, 22-6.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 2: The Green Bay Packers’ Micah Parsons (1) reacts during a “Thursday Night Football” game against the Washington Commanders at Lambeau Field. The Packers wore their “Winter Warning” uniforms for the 27-18 win.
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Can’t-miss alternate and throwback uniforms of the 2025 NFL season
Week 1: New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara scores a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals at Caesars Superdome. The Saints wore their reimagined “Gameday Gold” uniforms for their season opener, marking the first time the team wore gold jerseys since the 2002 season. The Cardinals defeated the Saints, 20-13.
“It’s inexcusable, you don’t make excuses,” Bowles said when asked what his message to the team was after the loss. “You gotta (expletive) care enough, where this (expletive) hurts. You gotta (expletive) care enough where this (expletive) hurts.
“It’s gotta (expletive) mean something. It’s more than a job, it’s your (expletive) livelihood. How well do you know your job? How well can you do your job? You can’t sugarcoat that (expletive). It was in-(expletive)-excusable. There was no (expletive) answer for it. There’s no excuse for it. That’s what you tell them in the locker room. Look in the (expletive) mirror.”
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Bowles’ F-bomb count stopped at seven total, which now mirrors the amount of wins and losses the Buccaneers have on the season.
On Friday, Bowles said that the rant came at the heat of the moment, and wasn’t pre-planned.
“It definitely wasn’t by design. That was how I felt at the time. That was honest, raw and right off the top. Usually my son’s watching, I don’t cuss as much, but I was still pissed off from the time I came in,” he told reporters during his Friday media availability.
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With a 7-7 record, Tampa Bay has given up control of the NFC South to the Carolina Panthers. The two squads play each other twice over the final three weeks of the season. Should the Panthers sweep, they’ll take the division.
The Falcons climb to 5-9 on the season, but were eliminated from NFL playoff contention in Week 14.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Todd Bowles drops 7 F-bombs in postgame rant after Buccaneers TNF loss