The Facts: The Buccaneers on Thursday announced that former Falcons play-caller Dirk Koetter has been hired to lead Lovie Smith's offense. Koetter agreed to a two-year deal with a team option for a third. A source informed of the situation told Rapoport that Koetter was Tampa's top choice.

Diehards Line: According to NFL.com's Dan Hanzus, it's an intriguing hire for the Bucs, who land Koetter after he spent the past two seasons in Atlanta following five years as a play-caller for the Jaguars. The Bucs desperately needed to find a leader on offense after losing former coordinator Jeff Tedford, who took an indefinite leave from the Bucs in September following a coronary angioplasty prior to the season. In his absence, quarterbacks coach Marcus Arroyo served as Tampa's interim play-caller. Koetter was successful running a Falcons' offense that leaned on Matt Ryan throwing to Julio Jones, Roddy White, Harry Douglas and the retired Tony Gonzalez. Despite the lack of a reliable ground game, Koetter's downfield passing attack helped Atlanta finish eighth in offense this season.