Dirk Koetter Will Return As Buccaneers Coach In 2018

TAMPA, FL - Head coach Dirk Koetter will be back for a third season as head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to multiple reports.

ESPN and the Tampa Bay Times were the first media outlets to report that Koetter would be retained as coach for another season. The Bucs finished 9-7 in Koetter's first year and missed the playoffs by one game. The Bucs have been disappointing in Koetter's second year with a 4-11 record heading into Sunday's finale against the New Orleans Saints.

Former Bucs coach Jon Gruden, an ESPN analyst, had been rumored to be interested in returning as Bucs coach, but those rumors were never confirmed by Gruden or Bucs ownership.

There also were reports of a rift between quarterback Jameis Winston and Koetter, which Winston has denied.

"I think he has taught me a lot, especially just me playing quarterback," Winston said Thursday. "You just don't understand that relationship in that quarterback room."

Image via Hillsborough County, Florida Government Facebook page