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An Overview of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defense
The Buccaneers' defense had a mostly mediocre 2024. The run defense allowed the fourth fewest yards only because they faced the third fewest rushes. Likewise, the pass defense allowed the third most yards because they faced the second most attempts. Tampa Bay ranked sixth with 46 sacks, 26th with seven interceptions, and middle of the pack in total turnovers. And, of course, their 385 points allowed was 16th.
Last year's performance was a step down from 2023 when the defense was far more stingy in virtually every important category. Much of the slide can be attributed to the loss of four starters from the prior season. Another major contributor was a rash of minor injuries that were just enough to be disruptive, particularly in the secondary, where the Buccaneers were shuffling the lineup nearly every week.
There was not a sharp focus on defense over the offseason, but the organization landed some players who could have an impact. In free agency, they picked up edge rusher Haason Reddick, who should be an upgrade, though there is more to his story, and Anthony Walker could end up starting at inside linebacker.
After spending most of the season patching together a secondary week after week, Tampa Bay used second and third-round picks on corners Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish. Their third and fourth-round picks bolstered the edge position with David Walker and Elijah Roberts. The bottom line here is that if they can get healthy and stay that way, this unit should be better and deeper.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Linemen
The 46 sacks this unit produced last year were a true team effort. Fifteen players got to the quarterback at least once, while Calijah Kancey led the team with seven and a half. The overall production looks good on paper, but there must have been concerns within the organization that the edge position contributed just twelve combined. Yaya Diaby shoulders some of the disappointment, but the team has not lost confidence in him at all, and for good reason.
Diaby started his career in 2023 as a backup. He was on the field for about 35% of the snaps over the first eleven weeks before turning heads with a four-tackle, two-sack performance on 35 snaps in week eleven. Diaby never played less than half the snaps in a game the rest of the way. He was red hot down the stretch, going 20-9-7.5 over the final nine games. It was a small sample, but it was enough to create excitement for the Buccaneers and IDP managers.
Diaby opened 2024 in the lead role. Logging 841 snaps on the season, he put up decent tackle totals with 39 solos and 15 assists but underwhelmed with 4 sacks. The story not told in that stat line is that his quarterback pressures more than doubled to 70 in year two, ranking among the top ten in the league. He also had an impressive 17.4% win rate on pass rushes.
History tells us that players who consistently put pressure on quarterbacks in one season often turn many of them into sacks the following year. Diaby is a difference-maker on the field. It's only a matter of time before he puts it all together in the box scores. I feel good about his sack numbers going forward. It would sure be nice if he could find a few more tackles along the way as well.
The organization held out hope that someone would step up opposite Diaby last year. It never happened, so they entered the off-season in search of a bookend. Providing he performs up to his usual standards, free-agent pickup Haason Reddick will be a great one.
The 2024 season was a washout for Reddick. He was supposed to play for the Jets. It's a safe bet that he never unpacked his bags in New York. Instead, he held out for seven games over a contract dispute. When he finally showed up, Reddick went through the motions for nine games, cashed the check, and got on a plane out of town.
When Reddick skipped the Buccaneers' voluntary mini-camp, red flags went up. When he spoke about it, everyone seemed to relax. He is not planning to hold out and will be in the building when mandatory work starts.
When he is motivated, Reddick is hard to handle. He had 50 sacks over four seasons between 2020 and 2023. He forced 14 fumbles and recovered 4 over those seasons as well. Double-digit sacks and four or five turnovers are reasonable expectations for Reddick in 2025. The concern I have with him is in the tackle columns. He turned in 51 solos and 27 assists in 2018. His solo stops have gone down each season since. His totals fell to 29-9 in 2023.
If we get the Reddick who was a stud from 2020 to 2022, the Buccaneers will be in business, and IDP managers will be happy. If we get the one from his other five seasons, the Buccaneers will be stuck, while we will be filling his roster spot with the flavor of the week off the wire.
The organization is confident that they will get the good Reddick. They are prepared just in case they don't. Anthony Nelson is a dependable veteran with starting experience. He is average as a pass rusher and solid versus the run, but he has never been an IDP factor.
Fourth-round pick David Walker is an interesting player. Scouts have good things to say about his talent and work ethic. His box scores tell us the rest. Walker played at Central Arkansas, so consider the competition. Even with that consideration, the numbers are impressive. As a senior last year, he put up 68 stops with 10.5 sacks. In three years as a starter, Walker totaled 191 tackles and 31 sacks. He'll compete with Nelson for leftovers in 2025 but could eventually land a starting job.
The Buccaneers have arguably the league's premier 3-4 nose tackle in Vita Vea. At six feet four and 347 pounds, Vea is a space-eating road grader and a nearly immovable object at the center of the run defense. His bull rush can collapse the pocket on passing downs, and he has enough quickness, power, and athleticism to make plays despite being double-teamed on virtually every snap.
We rarely see a player of that size become a factor as a pass rusher. Vea is an exception. He has 29 career sacks over seven seasons, including 18 in the last three. Mediocre tackle production creates inconsistency, leaving him shy of DT1 status. Vea has never reached 30 solo stops in a season. He's come close in each of the last two years, though. In 2023, Vea totaled 28-15-5 with 2 forced fumbles. Last season was nearly identical. He had one less solo tackle and traded the forced fumbles for two more sacks.
With seven seasons under his belt, we know who Vea is as an IDP prospect. He ranked just inside the top twenty in two straight seasons, making him a solid play as a second starter.
Vea is the muscle at Tampa Bay's tackle position; Calijah Kancey is the speed and athleticism. Kancey entered the league a bit undersized for the role of three-down tackle and with lingering concerns about his ability to hold up against the run. It is not the strength of his game, but Kancey has put those questions to rest. At six feet one and 281 pounds, his low center of gravity helps to win the leverage battle, while quickness and determination make him a challenge for pass blockers, especially in one-on-one situations.
Kancey had a quiet rookie season. A week one injury kept him out until week six. He returned to a big role, finishing 19-7-4 on the year. A calf injury sidelined him at the start of 2024. Once again, he returned to action in week six. This time, the numbers were a little better at 22-6-7.5 with 2 turnovers. If you are looking for Kancey in last year's final rankings, he is down around 28th. His average points per game, however, were up around twelfth. He fell a little short of the breakout I thought might happen in 2024. Maybe I was just a year off.
Logan Hall rounds out the starting lineup. The first pick in the second round in 2022, he had a disappointing rookie season. As a rotational backup, Hall produced twelve combined stops and a pair of sacks. Year two was not much better. He saw more action and made a few more tackles but failed to get to the quarterback. Hall began showing signs of life in 2024, moving into a starting role and going 17-11-5 with a turnover. Working with such a talented cast helps to ensure a lot of single blocking, so his production could continue to increase, making him watch-list worthy.
Greg Gaines and C.J. Brewer are the top backups at the tackle positions. Both are solid veteran contributors who can hold down the fort if called upon, but neither offers IDP value.
- Edge Yaya Diaby – Pick him up as depth with upside
- Edge Haason Reddick – Target as a low-end second starter
- Edge Anthony Nelson – Marginal impact expected
- Edge Chris Braswell – No impact
- Edge David Walker – Dynasty prospect
- Edge Elijah Roberts – Developmental rookie
- DT Calijah Kancey – Target as a mid-DT2 with top ten possibilities
- DT Vita Vea – Inconsistent DT2 with big-play upside
- DT Logan Hall – Watchlist worthy
- DT C.J. Brewer – No impact
- DT Greg Gaines – Marginal impact