Dirk Koetter talks scoring points, importance of good assistants

Dirk Koetter wants to score more points. Every coach does, of course, but it’s fairly pressing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: they ranked fifth in total offensive yardage last year, but 20th in points scored. That’s an absurd gap, and Koetter emphasized that as a major issue in an interview with the Talk of Fame Network.

"We did do a good job of gaining yards. Unfortunately, we didn’t do a good enough job of scoring points," Koetter said.

The Bucs have focused on improving their red zone offense this year, and reducing Jameis Winston’s turnovers. Those two factors are the major reasons the Bucs didn’t score as many points as they could have — that, and missed field goals, which they addressed with a second-round pick.

Koetter also talked about the stuff he put on Jameis Winston’s plate and his growth on the field, but didn’t really say anything new. One interesting thing he talked about was adjusting to being a head coach, instead of an offensive coordinator, and how he’d stay involved on his side of the ball.

"The number one thing you have to do is hire assistant coaches that you believe in, and then turn them loose to coach. As you guys all know we were very very fortunate to get Mike Smith, who I worked with at both Jacksonville and Atlanta. We have a really experienced staff on defense — Jay Hayes, Mark Duffner, Jon Hoke, Brett Maxie — backing Mike Smith up. The fact that we’ve got experienced guys on defense, that is the most important thing I could do to help me stay involved on offense."

You can listen to the full podcast below. Dirk Koetter shows up around the 25 minute mark.