(Almost) Complete
May 30th, 2025
Roster analysis.
To win a Super Bowl a roster pretty much has to be loaded or complete. So how do the Bucs measure up this fall?
Eric Edholm of NFL.com took a look at the best rosters in the league. The usual, predictable suspects are at the top of the list.
The Bucs made his top-10 but not that high at No. 7.
Edholm seems to really like the Bucs’ offense, though he’s a bit lukewarm on Baker Mayfield (he points out Mayfield led the league in picks but strangely failed to mention Mayfield was second in the league in touchdown passes, trailing only St. Lamar by two — why?).
However, as much as Edholm likes the offense, he’s skittish about the defensive roster.
Defensively, they’re less established, but the potential is there. If injuries don’t bite the secondary again, that should be a quality group overall with the addition of Day 2 draft picks Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish. The ageless Lavonte David returns as the heartbeat of the defense, and there are quality pieces up front in Vita Vea and Yaya Diaby. But finding more pass-rush sources and front-seven depth will be the keys to making an average defense a bit more impactful.
The Bucs might lack true blue-chip talent at several positions, and not everyone might be convinced that 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.
Joe will give Edholm some support when it comes to the Bucs’ defense. Joe just is not comfortable with SirVocea Dennis. Yes, he’s talented.
The question with Dennis isn’t ability, it’s availability. Dude has missed 17 games in his first two years. The Bucs swear he is past his injuries but Joe wants to peek into that same crystal ball to get lottery numbers.
Until a guy has done something, he hasn’t. And Dennis has yet to play a full season. So the Bucs are banking on Dennis to accomplish something he has yet to do. #Gulp
If Dennis can stay on the field for, say, 15 games, that could lead to a scary good defense.
May 30th, 2025 at 10:35 am
Antione and Tykee at safety
LVD and SVD manning the middle
Reddick, Vita, Calijah Kancey and YaYa up front with solid rotational guys
And I believe with B-Mo and Perrish, along with Bryce Hall coming back could really round out our secondary and solidify it
I give us a Solid 8/10 defense this year, with the ability to go even higher
NFC Championship playing the eagles for a chance at the SB or bust
May 30th, 2025 at 10:39 am
I also think Sir Dennis is very talented and could help this defense out greatly if he can play a full season. If he goes out again for any length of time his career as a Buc will be short.
May 30th, 2025 at 10:40 am
I like Dennis but I don’t see him being able to play 17 games. The safety postion needs depth too. Please sign a vet or 2! In the nfl, it comes down to injuries and qb play. Injuries are unpredictable but I think we have the qb play!
May 30th, 2025 at 10:41 am
AWJ and Tykee manning the back end
LVD and SVD in the middle
Reddick, Vita, Kancey, and YaYa up front with solid rotation
Dean and Zyon both playing for contracts, with B-Mo, Perrish and Bryce Hall
I give us a solid 8/10 with room to go even higher
I see us playing the Eagle in the NFC championship, We could win too
May 30th, 2025 at 10:42 am
This team is better now than they were at the end of last year. The putrid pass defense is this team‘s Achilles’ heel. If that is no longer an issue, and we actually get a consistent pass rush and get off the field on third downs. This team is a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Our offense is top shelf from every category you wanna consider. Go Bucs!
May 30th, 2025 at 10:44 am
Trey Hendrickson is coming in a trade
May 30th, 2025 at 10:46 am
^^^^^^ What he said ^^^^^^^^
And Trade Dean for Ramsey
May 30th, 2025 at 10:51 am
Re: Dennis
The Bucs look at this shoulder now, post-surgery, and see it repaired. It’s in better shape than when he was drafted. At some point, you gotta put the guy out there and take your chances. They’ve cut their risk with veteran depth in Anthony Walker and re-signing Deion Jones, who they apparently feel pretty good about. They’ll need to look at drafting Lavonte’s replacement next year. For this year, they’re in much better shape than where they started last year.
I’m not convinced Dennis is injury prone the way, for instance, Jamel Dean is. He’s had one significant injury that came with him from college.
May 30th, 2025 at 10:53 am
Add a solid vet to the D Line then we will all feel a bit better. Behind Vita and Kancey is not much to cheer about, and those two miss a lot of snaps.
May 30th, 2025 at 10:55 am
Too many ifs going on these days about the defense.
Wishing upon a star will not bring success.
You have to go out and take what you seek to attain.
After what we witnessed last season on that side of the ball, how could anyone feel confident things will change.
“If” the scheme doesn’t change and “if” the conservative tendency doesn’t change, history will repeat itself.
May 30th, 2025 at 10:59 am
SB~LV Says:
May 30th, 2025 at 10:44 am
This again?
NOT.GONNA.HAPPEN.
He’s now over 30, wants his giant payday with lots of guaranteed money, and the Bengals want a premium pick. And you think this is a good idea? When guys pass 30, their production can take a nosedive at any time. Meanwhile, you’ve now tied up cap space as your looking at trying to re-sign Goedeke, Otton, Mike Evans!!!, and Baker coming up the next year.
#dumb
May 30th, 2025 at 11:01 am
Lewi Says:
May 30th, 2025 at 10:46 am
And this again? Ramsey and his fat salary and questionable ‘tude?
NOT.GONNA.HAPPEN.
May 30th, 2025 at 11:03 am
The primary obstacle is believing that one overhyped defensive “genius” can do two demanding jobs better than two excellent and qualified coaches can.
May 30th, 2025 at 11:15 am
haha edholm on baker – Exculpatory evidence is evidence favorable to the defendant in a criminal trial that exonerates or tends to exonerate the defendant of guilt
May 30th, 2025 at 11:16 am
i’d settle for 12 games
May 30th, 2025 at 11:17 am
the pass rush is a huge question mark…Baker can’t lead the league in picks again either…turnovers are a killer…look at the stats regarding the TO battle
May 30th, 2025 at 11:21 am
Eric Edholm … ‘But finding more pass-rush sources and front-seven depth will be the keys to making an average defense a bit more impactful.’
I like the way Edholm thinks … better Front-7 depth. We’re too light upfront once you take Vea out. I like Gaines, but his speciallty is playing the run, not pass rushing (in his 2 years here, he has a total of 2 sacks, 9 QB hits & 2 TFLs … in 32 games. No way any DC can guarantee that a NT that plays a tad over 40% of the def snaps will ONLY face running plays. Bucs need another beastly DT to rotate in for Vea; someone who can provide some real pass rush.
And in that ‘better Front-7 depth’ Bucs should include grabbing an experienced MLB. Like Joe, I’m ‘not comfortable with SirVocea Dennis’. I’ll take it a step further though; Anthony Walker will start Game 1 at MLB. SVD is OK size (6′ & 230 lbs) but in 2 years he has a TOTAL of 1 sack, 1 QB Hit, 1 PD, 1 TFL, 35 tackles (25 solo) and an 82.4% Pass Completion Rate Allowed based on 17 targets, 14 completions & an 11.2 Yards/ Completion Allowed.
Compare those stats to Anthony Walker’s 8-year career … 5.5 sacks, 9 QB hits, 21 PD, 26 TFLs, 581 tackles (362 solo), and a 74.9% Pass Completion Rate Allowed based on 271 targets, 203 completions & a 8.5 Yards/Completion Allowed. And of the 99 games that he played in, he started 83 of them. SVD will get plenty of opportunity to make plays this year, but I’ll put my money on Walker to at least start the season. Experience will win out.
May 30th, 2025 at 11:28 am
Reddick is the key. I’ll trust Joe that Reddick will really improve the pass rush although I’m concerned we’ll get the Jet’s Reddick.
May 30th, 2025 at 11:36 am
Filthy Animal
you have your panties in a wad over the details of the trade agreement you imagined.
I trust JL to make a FAIR trade
Trey is a proven player and still has a few years left.
You get what you pay for and he would be a immediate upgrade
May 30th, 2025 at 11:44 am
We may have a championship roster but it appears we are fighting fate!
Wildly interesting pattern was brought to my attention this morning on the interwebs…
2002 – Ohio States wins Natty
– JLo files for divorce
– Panthers have losing record
– 2003 Panthers open season vs Jags and go to SB
2014 – Ohio State wins Natty
– JLo files for divorce
– Panthers have a losing record
-2015 Panthers open season vs Jags and go to SB
2024 – I think you see where this is headed…
May 30th, 2025 at 11:50 am
Aqualung for the win!
Well played sir!
May 30th, 2025 at 12:00 pm
Bowles isnt a Super Bowl winning head coach, hes a 10 or less wins a season type coach, Im not jumping on Todd, its just facts, also, hoping for so many “ifs” is a losing strategy
May 30th, 2025 at 12:14 pm
That’s a really weird pattern, Sask. I don’t think Carolina has the roster for a SB run though…
May 30th, 2025 at 12:17 pm
all we need to complete the sb team is a new HC
May 30th, 2025 at 12:46 pm
@ Joe
I agree.
ILB is the big question mark. LVD is still solid but 35 and SVD has had injury issues since day one.
Our edge rusher and CB depth has improved but Winfield has also had injury issues and T. Smith will be transitioning to a new position this season at Safety.
May 30th, 2025 at 12:52 pm
I guess Trask must be doing good in ota’s because we haven’t heard anything since the last time.
May 30th, 2025 at 1:36 pm
Wouldn’t mind bringing back Khalil Davis for some DL depth. Cheap, athletic, knows the system, and has shown on the Texans he can be a useful player
May 30th, 2025 at 1:39 pm
SB~LV Says:
May 30th, 2025 at 11:36 am
Well, the Bengals aren’t gonna give him away for a 5th round pick. I wouldn’t even trade a 3rd for the guy. I’d give up Dean and a 5th… but that would not happen. More importantly, I’m not willing to guarantee a bunch of money to an over 30 pass rusher when we have important extensions coming up for key players on our roster. My guess is that Licht may feel the same, which is why I’ll say again… NOT.GONNA.HAPPEN.
May 30th, 2025 at 1:44 pm
2024 – I think you see where this is headed…
Now that is digging deep for material Saskbucs.
History certainly does repeat itself.
In 1972 a QB in his late 30’s came in for the injured starter in Week 5 and reeled of 11 straight victories on the way to a Perfect Season and Super Bowl Victory.
In 2001 one of the highest paid QB’s that was on the roster as a back up came in when the QB was injured during the AFC Championship Game. Led the team to a Victory. That team won it’s first Super Bowl.
Any teams have a high paid QB currently in a back up roll and have not won a Superbowl yet?
May 30th, 2025 at 1:48 pm
The D line needs more depth and the Bucs need another vet edge and ILB. If they can avoid injuries think the Bucs have the safeties and CBs.
As far as coaching that is the wild card. No idea how Grizzard will perform and no idea what kind of mistakes Bowles will make this year in big games. Sorry, I simply do not trust Bowles in big games. Should be an interesting season, but don’t think the Bucs have done enough on defense..
May 30th, 2025 at 1:58 pm
StPeteMatt… I agree with you. I imagine similar things were said in 2003 with Delhomme (?) at QB and in 2015 although Cam was in his prime.
I’ve said it before and I will say it again, Panthers worry me as much or more than Falcons. They invested a lot in that offense, if Young keeps playing well, he has a lot of weapons.
I also liked their D picks this year.
May 30th, 2025 at 2:11 pm
IT’S ABOUT COMPLIMENTARY FOOTBALL
Yes, the Bucs got deeper at DB and added more pass rushers, but …
The Bucs were #1 … #1 in 3rd down conversions in 2024. The OL is better and the run game is better. Long sustained drives and getting an early lead will also make the defense better.
May 30th, 2025 at 2:27 pm
@presidentbowles (previously too many IDs to mention)..
What “scheme” do we run? Specifics please and how would you change it?
@aqualung
How many hours does Todd work? How much time does he spend on each aspect of his job? Does he delegate responsibilities?
May 30th, 2025 at 3:04 pm
@guzzie – every coach is not a Superbowl winning coach until they win one. What a dumb statement lol
May 30th, 2025 at 3:42 pm
Last year from 10/03 – 11/10 record was 1-5.
32nd in scoring defense (31.3 points/game)
32nd in total defense (425.3 yards/game)
31st in pass defense (304.3 ppg, only Ravens worse)
31st in opp. passer rating (118.6, only Cowboys worse)
We’re not a contender until we cut the mid-season deep dives.
And these stats ain’t on Baker.
Bowles may be a great guy and a good head coach.
What he hasn’t been is a Good Head Coach and a Good Defensive Coordinator.
If we’re weak on defense at various positions – who’s the dang talent evaluator?
May 30th, 2025 at 3:59 pm
GoneGator Says:
“What “scheme” do we run? Specifics please and how would you change it?”
Instead of the soft as butter melted Swiss cheese 15 yards off the ball on 3rd and 5 zone scheme? Is that your question?
How about some tight man coverages? Perhaps stick to four lineman rushes and flood the zone on passing downs? Stop having Vea drop back in coverage?
I could go on for days. But I’m not a defensive guru. That’s Bowles job.
May 30th, 2025 at 4:15 pm
Yeah.
168 total hours in a week. Bowles would have to work 180 hours a week to compete with properly resourced coaching staffs.
Delegating is fine but teams properly resourced in coaching practice delegation also.
Maths and vocabulary are shortcomings for some.
May 30th, 2025 at 4:25 pm
I don’t know, 7th overall seems like a pretty good rating considering most people are convinced the Bucs have nothing but trash at defense.
Also, it is really difficult to go higher than that when you don’t really know for certain who is starting alongside David and at safety. Yes, we think Smith will start at safety, which hurts your corner depth – and yes, we think Dennis should start as well, until he gets injured in the 2nd week of training camp. But those are two huge holes on the roster at the moment – but both could be non-issues if Smith is as good as we hope at safety, and Dennis can simply stay healthy.
For Dennis, lets keep in mind that Gerald McCoy missed 13 games in his first 2 years, then his injury issues faded. Hopefully Dennis can follow that same track, since when he’s on the field, he looks like a very good player.
May 30th, 2025 at 4:29 pm
Soft as butter is the play call? So the mic LB gets the call and tells everyone – soft as butter/Swiss cheese?
I gave you a layup question….you could have googled it but you
Do you know what happens to tight man coverage if the pass rush isn’t effective? No corner can cover reciever/s for 5-6 or more seconds – especially if safeties aren’t much help over the top. Tight man is only effective when you have sticky corners, good safety play, and a pass rush that applies pressure quickly.
Do you know who else drops linemen into coverage at times? A lot of teams. Name a play that hurt us because Vita dropped out?
And yes, you could go on for days but not about actual football. You’re just repeating the same, boring, negative keywords, based on the same shallow and simpleminded, bigoted view. Swiss cheese blah blah blah. And then you change your name again 🤡
May 30th, 2025 at 4:53 pm
GoneGator Says:
“Soft as butter is the play call? So the mic LB gets the call and tells everyone – soft as butter/Swiss cheese?”
LOL. That one actually did give me a chuckle. Well played sir.
I mean, they might as well say that because anything they are calling simply isn’t working.
You could call any play that you want to but if the fundamentals aren’t coached correctly then it’s bound to be a disaster. The players seem very confused on the field at times.
All we hear every game is that the communication is breaking down.
Sounds like a job for the DC to handle. But we don’t have one of those.
May 30th, 2025 at 5:30 pm
Half of two = Zero of either
May 30th, 2025 at 6:39 pm
Have a lot of solid players.
50 is really good
We just don’t have a proven pass rusher
May 30th, 2025 at 6:44 pm
Pass rush is still weak. We signed a burnout, Strike one. Now, Haason “headcase” Reddick might be strike two. I hope not
I dont see Reddick being of much help this year.
After final cuts are made- we need to find an inexpensive MLB. Just in case.
But it all comes down to Mayfield. As long as he is our starting QB- I like our chances. If he goes down for any length of time- its over.
May 30th, 2025 at 7:06 pm
@presidentbowles
I won’t argue that the defense, or certain players, didn’t seem confused last year at times.
And I understand being frustrated by our team and i have shared that frustration.
I just don’t see it as simply as you….. It’s not an electric football game from 1968. There are a lot of factors that go into fielding a dominant defense or team. There are a lot of factors that went into our defense struggling at times last year….and our offense.
The more I look at Todd (mainly thx to you and your park bench bud) the more I’ve come to realize that coach Bowles has done a pretty amazing job with the cards he’s been dealt. 👍🏼
But no amount of evidence is going to cause you to see things from a perspective that’s not narrow or prejudiced to fit a conclusion you’ve already made…..and repeated a thousand times before.
Peace be with you. 🙏🏼
May 30th, 2025 at 8:36 pm
Capt.Tim Says:
May 30th, 2025 at 6:44 pm
Remains to be seen.
Can we project a rebound season for Reddick?
Can we project Diaby to turn more of those pressures into sacks?
Can we project a step forward from Braswell?
Is the hype on David Walker legit?
Is Larry Foote an upgrade to coaching the OLBs?
Is SirVocea Dennis a good blitzer, and can he remain healthy?
Did they upgrade passrush from the front 3 by adding Elijah Roberts?
Is Kancey ready for a huge breakout?
I believe the answer to most of those questions will turn out to be YES. If that’s true, then we should see a vastly improved pass rush, almost guaranteed. So, I think they’re pretty well set up.
Others may decide the answer to most of those questions is NO. I expect they will be pleasantly surprised by what happens.
May 30th, 2025 at 9:46 pm
The Bucs could roll out Prime Time, Revis Island, Ronnie Lott and John Lynch but as long as Bowles is the coach I would not have confidence they could stop anybody in the passing game. More talent might luck us into more interceptions, but the defense will stink as long as Bowles is coach.
May 30th, 2025 at 10:28 pm
One could argue that most people when named head coach would understand the importance of having a full staff to properly implement scheme, gameplan, and coach up the flaws. If you want to say Todd has done well for having one arm tied to a leg while trying to run a sprint, sure. Have a cookie.
The object is to win more games than everyone else in your division and then all of them in the playoffs. My money would be on guys with two legs to win a race before I bet on the guy with one leg to win that race.
May 30th, 2025 at 11:54 pm
To win a superbowl you need a good defense and this bucs team doesn’t have one i also don’t think we have a passrush even with the new additions but we will see how it plays out once games start im hoping they can hit qbs hard make tyem feel it
May 31st, 2025 at 7:01 am
Aqualung Says:
“The object is to win more games than everyone else in your division and then all of them in the playoffs. My money would be on guys with two legs to win a race before I bet on the guy with one leg to win that race.”
Outside of his first year as head coach, haven’t the Bucs out-won division oponents in every year for Bowles?
Your dislike for Bowles is evident, but unreasonable and with blinders on
Still, I suppose that’s your right.
@Lokog
I have to ask, how do you know this?
May 31st, 2025 at 7:21 am
The Bucs were not among the worst defenses in 2024. That’s a myth perpetrated by Bowles Trolls.
In 2024, the Bucs were randed 18th in Total Defense.
While that is not good enough to be called great, it also wasn’t horrible. When you factor in the injuries and lack of draft picks due to building around Mayfield (andto help Trask if Mayfield goes down), the defense can be made better, and may have been made better this year.
18 is 2 spots removed from the upper middle of the pack. Hopefully, we’ll improve by 4-6 spots this year.
Combined with our inproved offense, we should get at least 2 games deeper into the playoffs, maybe even better
But, I believe that even if we make a trip to the Superbowl (win or lose), it still would not be good enough for the Bowles Trolls
May 31st, 2025 at 10:14 am
(Broken record time)
I do not dislike Bowles. I like him very much, from what I know of him. His HR skills are second to none.
Having one of the worst pass defenses for two years running in a passing league negates any meaningless “total defense” stat. Being the tallest midget in the league’s worst division is luck, not skill.
Overall record, record in prime time games, record in playoffs, midseason swoons, having the team flat for the most important games, wasting timeouts, putting the game in the hands of a proven sieve instead of rolling with your top 5 performing offense to win games at the end – those are and have been huge defects. Having one part timer for two huge jobs rather than two full time coaches for two huge jobs is a glaring flaw.
But, here’s hoping magic happens with Todd’s famous “fix” he found in the lab. I’m heartened he recognizes his defense sucked and out scoring the opposition is necessary.