The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a few questions on defense heading into the 2025 offseason. But now, they might be ready to roll for a serious run.
Tampa Bay’s defense was riddled with injuries last year and depth was scarce to come by, but the Bucs went a long way to try and fix that this offseason. They added pass rusher Haason Reddick to the squad, and they drafted two defensive backs in Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish, an edge rusher in David Walker and a defensive lineman Elijah Roberts.
Meanwhile, the offense retains every player from the 2024 campaign, plus two new receivers in Emeka Egbuka and Tez Johnson, who the Bucs drafted this offseason. That only adds to the team’s offensive depth, and with that in mind, NFL writer Eric Edholm had the Bucs as one of the league’s most complete rosters in the NFL in a recent article.
The Bucs came in at No. 7 on the 10-team list — here’s a little of what Edholm had to say about Tampa Bay:
“The Bucs might lack true blue-chip talent at several positions, and not everyone might be convinced that [quarterback Baker] Mayfield is a true difference-maker and winner. But the pieces are there for another division-title run — and perhaps more. If the explosive offense hits peak performance, this might be one of the higher-scoring attacks in the league.”
There’s a lot that will hinge on the Bucs being as good as they could be. Their defensive pieces need to be hits, new offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard has to prove he can run the offense like former Bucs OC Liam Coen and the Bucs have to be healthy, among other things. But if all that comes together, the Buccaneers could contend for the conference — and maybe even beyond.