Calijah Kancey Nearly Matched Vita Vea In This Defensive Run Stat
July 5th, 2025
Respected stathead defends.
It’s a holiday weekend and Joe should be hungover this morning from a full day of sipping good Kentucky bourbon and having a few ice cold Florida beers celebrating Uncle Sam’s birthday.
And yeah, Joe’s head is throbbing not from the aftereffects of the bourbon and beer, and not from the constant pounding of the fireworks in the burbs.
No, the PFF tribe and their dumbass grades have Joe’s head hurting.
The tribe’s assault on Calijah Kancey is driving Joe nuts. Do these people even watch games? But no, these guys act like a football version of Socrates because some dope in his Irish dorm room “grades” plays.
And there are enough folks that are gullible enough to swallow these grades whole, like football Gospel. They’re trash, just as any reliable person working in the league knows.
(Please do not confuse the PFF tribe’s dumbass grades with their advanced stats. Those are two wholly different things. Apples and oranges. Joe respects the tribe’s advanced stats.)
The PFF tribe in recent weeks has suggested Kancey is on the bubble for what the tribe deems an inept run defense. And recently, the tribe ranked the Bucs as having the fifth-worst defensive line in the NFL, largely because of Kancey.
Can you imagine?
Well, let’s allow some logic to enter the conversation. In his Sharp Football Analysis 2025 Preview, noted handicapper turned stathead Warren Sharp documented how Kancey is no slouch defending the run.
The Bucs allowed 4.2 yards per carry on running back runs in 2024 (13th), but for the most part, they shut opposing running games down. They faced the second fewest rushing attempts from opposing running backs, allowed the fourth fewest yards to the position, the fourth fewest rushing touchdowns, and had the fifth best success rate against RB runs.
The core of the defensive line returns and is set to once again be led by Vita Vea. Vea logged 9 run stuffs in 2024, 34th among qualified defensive linemen, and contributed 7 sacks on an 11.1% pressure rate. 2023 first round pick Calijah Kancey unfortunately missed time again in his second season, but he led the team with 7.5 sacks and had 8 run stuffs of his own.
So let Joe get this straight: Kancey played in four fewer games than Vea, a Pro Bowler, yet Kancey only had one fewer run stuff than Vea?
A run stuff is when a defender stops a runner for either no gain or a tackle for loss.
Yet the PFF tribe will have you believe that Kancey is fighting for his professional career because he’s so bad against the run.
How is it Warren Sharp, NextGen Stats and sober eyes can see Kancey can play the run just fine, yet the PFF tribe can’t?
Joe knows why: Because their GD grades suck!
July 5th, 2025 at 8:44 am
Kancey’s been with us 2 season’s now, and from what I see he improved significantly in 2024, even though he only played in (and started) 12 games.
As a 2023 rookie he played in 14 games & logged 577 def snaps (53.4% availability). He got 4 sacks, 12 QB Hits, 10 TFLs, 26 tackles (19 solo). Bucs defense finished ranked #7 overall on the season, and ranked #5 in Rushing Yards Allowed based on allowing 1620 rushing yards in 422 rushing attempts (average of 3.8 YPC).
As a 2nd-year player in 2024 he played in only 12 games & logged 541 def snaps (50.8% availability). But his stats improved considerably despite 2 fewer games, and he got 7.5 sacks, 17 QB Hits, 11 TFLs, 28 tackles (22 solo). Bucs defense however finished considerably lower, ranked #16 overall on the season, and ranked #4 in Rushing Yards Allowed based on allowing 1663 rushing yards in 389 rushing attempts (average of 4.3 YPC).
BTW, Elijah’s stats last season were amazingly close to those of Logan Hall, even though Hall played in 16 games (4 more). Logan got 5.5 sacks, 10 QB Hits, 6 TFLs, 28 tackles (17 solo). He logged 539 def snaps (50.6% availability), almost exactly the same as Kancey’s 541 def snaps.
Surprising that the PFF tribe didn’t pick on Logan Hall as opposed to Kancey since he took 4 more games to get somewhat lesser stats. And yet we all know that Hall improved considerably in his 3rd year in this defense. And yes, Kancey even more-so. Personally I just wish that we had a bit more beef in the middle of this DLine. Vea can’t do it all by himself.
July 5th, 2025 at 8:53 am
Amen
July 5th, 2025 at 9:06 am
I will be a believer once Vea and/or Kancey take over a game, defensively. Ala Sapp, Rice, etc.
July 5th, 2025 at 9:16 am
I’m posting this here because I don’t know where else to go…Right now on NFL network, they’re doing hour long documentaries on the year of each Super Bowl winning team. Right now, it’s the ‘93 Cowboys. I wanted to record the 2002 Bucs, but lo and behold, they’re not doing 2002. It’s the ONLY year in which the NFL network is not doing a team documentary…Is Tampa Bay actually this disrespected that the NFL network is effectively ignoring our Super Bowl year, with arguably the best defense of all time (yeah, I’m talking to you’85 Bears)?!! WTH?!!!
July 5th, 2025 at 9:31 am
This goes on because they are not held accountable and too many people are lazy in society as a hole.
July 5th, 2025 at 10:15 am
BridleOaksBuc Says:
“they’re not doing 2002. It’s the ONLY year in which the NFL network is not doing a team documentary…Is Tampa Bay actually this disrespected that the NFL network is effectively ignoring our Super Bowl year”
Its not about Tampa Bay or the Buccaneers – its about Jon Gruden…. who the league still considers ‘cancelled’ because he called Goodell and a Glazer naughty names and said the one announcer dude had big lips – in a private email….
and Gruden is suing the NFL for $100M or whatever – which is the real reason I’m guessing…..
July 5th, 2025 at 10:18 am
Agree DR, hope our depth there doesn’t get challenged. Gotta stay healthy. Healthy or not we need one more interior beast defensively. Hopefully the Brass is thinking the same way and busy behind the scenes addressing it.
July 5th, 2025 at 10:50 am
Clearly an edict from the league. Remember Chucky and his lawsuit? And also, Warren Sapp is pretty much blackballed from the league for his hassle in Phoenix. So two of the three guys highlighted in that video are persona non-grata with the league.
There is a Dallas segment that is also blackballed. The one that highlights Dallas’ former PR director. He got busted video’ing Dallas cheerleaders in manners of undress.
July 5th, 2025 at 11:15 am
Hey, Conor Orr finally came around after JBF calling out his dimwiticisms.
Maybe this is enough to get the Irish to shut down the dorm housing all these socially inept dorktards . Keep going, Joe! Good reporting matters!
July 5th, 2025 at 11:25 am
Joe wrote about this earlier in the week.