The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost their single-season franchise sack leader this offseason in Shaquil Barrett. For many franchises, a fact such as that would be a detriment to a defense. But in Tampa’s case, their defense's overall pash-rush hadn’t been as effective as head coach Todd Bowles would’ve liked in 2023.
With the Bucs’ 2024 53-man roster being officially set, all eyes are on the team’s young and inexperienced edge rushers with questions being raised. Will last season’s sack leader Yaya Diaby and former top pick Joe Tryon-Shoyinka be able to lead this group to a successful season?
Diaby is slated to lead this Buccaneer pash-rush again in his second season as a pro, but after an ankle injury kept him out most of training camp, he already is a step behind of other players who have conditioned themselves this August. Although a week-to-week injury wasn’t the worse case for Yaya, the timing of it was unfortunate and his play to start the season should be monitored.
The starter opposite to the Bucs’ top edge rusher is former 32nd-overall pick, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, their draft pick following the 2020 Super Bowl victory. JTS hasn’t exactly lived up to his expectations, but his numbers don’t show the full story. Lack of sacks and tackles for loss are glaring when looking over Tryon-Shoyinka’s numbers, but he has continued to improve his pass-rush ability throughout his career. If the Bucs’ former first-rounder can finish after he wins the line of scrimmage battle, I can see his numbers jump in 2024.
The biggest potential splash this season has got to be second-round rookie Chris Braswell out of Alabama. He showed tremendous upside with his time on the Crimson Tide defense and although a huge breakout isn’t what fans should be looking for, improvement throughout the season and looking comfortable within the trenches at the NFL-level would be a win for the rookie.
Back-up pash-rushers such as Anthony Nelson and Markees Watts are returning from last season’s defense and have proven to be solid depth pieces on this Tampa Bay defensive front. Nelson was drafted by Tampa in the 2019 draft and continues to fill a role head coach Todd Bowles feels the team needs, as Watts was an undrafted free-agent who ended up making the team in 2023.
Jose Ramirez seemingly won the final roster spot on this defensive line with his play in the preseason. After the 2023 sixth-round pick fro Eastern Michigan spent the entirety of his rookie year on the practice squad, a strong 2024 preseason and exciting three-sack outing in the preseason game in Jacksonville pushed his name above the rest. He should see time on the field if any injuries occur, as well as substitution time throughout the year.
The inexperience and lack of success from this core of guys have many fans wondering if this team will improve their pass-rushing numbers from a season ago, but a Todd Bowles defense is a unit and not reliant on one group. With the team trading star cornerback Carlton Davis to Detroit, there is even more of an emphasis on this edge-rushing group to create pressure on the QB and help the defensive backs.
I believe the defensive coaching staff understand this and will execute specialty blitz-packages early and often. We will see how leader Yaya Diaby and his pass-rushing group respond to being one with some of the least expectations on this team.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost their single-season franchise sack leader this offseason in Shaquil Barrett. For many franchises, a fact such as that would be a detriment to a defense. But in Tampa’s case, their defense's overall pash-rush hadn’t been as effective as head coach Todd Bowles would’ve liked in 2023.
With the Bucs’ 2024 53-man roster being officially set, all eyes are on the team’s young and inexperienced edge rushers with questions being raised. Will last season’s sack leader Yaya Diaby and former top pick Joe Tryon-Shoyinka be able to lead this group to a successful season?
Diaby is slated to lead this Buccaneer pash-rush again in his second season as a pro, but after an ankle injury kept him out most of training camp, he already is a step behind of other players who have conditioned themselves this August. Although a week-to-week injury wasn’t the worse case for Yaya, the timing of it was unfortunate and his play to start the season should be monitored.
The starter opposite to the Bucs’ top edge rusher is former 32nd-overall pick, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, their draft pick following the 2020 Super Bowl victory. JTS hasn’t exactly lived up to his expectations, but his numbers don’t show the full story. Lack of sacks and tackles for loss are glaring when looking over Tryon-Shoyinka’s numbers, but he has continued to improve his pass-rush ability throughout his career. If the Bucs’ former first-rounder can finish after he wins the line of scrimmage battle, I can see his numbers jump in 2024.
The biggest potential splash this season has got to be second-round rookie Chris Braswell out of Alabama. He showed tremendous upside with his time on the Crimson Tide defense and although a huge breakout isn’t what fans should be looking for, improvement throughout the season and looking comfortable within the trenches at the NFL-level would be a win for the rookie.
Back-up pash-rushers such as Anthony Nelson and Markees Watts are returning from last season’s defense and have proven to be solid depth pieces on this Tampa Bay defensive front. Nelson was drafted by Tampa in the 2019 draft and continues to fill a role head coach Todd Bowles feels the team needs, as Watts was an undrafted free-agent who ended up making the team in 2023.
Jose Ramirez seemingly won the final roster spot on this defensive line with his play in the preseason. After the 2023 sixth-round pick fro Eastern Michigan spent the entirety of his rookie year on the practice squad, a strong 2024 preseason and exciting three-sack outing in the preseason game in Jacksonville pushed his name above the rest. He should see time on the field if any injuries occur, as well as substitution time throughout the year.
The inexperience and lack of success from this core of guys have many fans wondering if this team will improve their pass-rushing numbers from a season ago, but a Todd Bowles defense is a unit and not reliant on one group. With the team trading star cornerback Carlton Davis to Detroit, there is even more of an emphasis on this edge-rushing group to create pressure on the QB and help the defensive backs.
I believe the defensive coaching staff understand this and will execute specialty blitz-packages early and often. We will see how leader Yaya Diaby and his pass-rushing group respond to being one with some of the least expectations on this team.
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