2026 Could Be Transformative For Bucs Defense
May 15th, 2026
Defensive makeover coming?
Joe doesn’t know what to expect from the Bucs defense this fall. Cornerback looks really shaky, unless you are referring to nickel corner. The Bucs have the market on nickel corners, well, cornered.
That’s not a good thing in a passing league.
Much will depend on the pass rush. Sadly, the Bucs defensive coordinator has never prioritized a defense’s most important position. And “this Joe” does not expect that to change.
One thing that could change and last for a few years is how the Bucs play defense. No, the defense won’t change how it operates. But this offseason could very well spark a change in how the defense operates.
Veteran NFL reporter Dan Pompei of The Athletic provides Bucs fans with a hint.
The Bucs are banking on Calijah Kancey, Tykee Smith and Jacob Parrish to be as good as they were last year or even better. (Yes, Joe knows Kancey missed most of last year with an injury. He pretty much had already established he’s a good player — when he’s on the field.)
The Bucs wanted to get much more physical, so they brought in players known for being physical, like Alex Anzalone and A’Shawn Robinson. Add to that physical rookies such as Rueben Bain, Josiah Trotter and Keionte Scott, the Bucs could have a defensive makeover.
Last year, the defense was soft. With an infusion of gnarly, physical, glass-eating players, the whole DNA of this defense could shift for the rest of the decade.
May 15th, 2026 at 12:14 am
Just an FYI Joe, the link for the Dan Pompei Athletic article is invalid.
May 15th, 2026 at 12:26 am
I like what they are trying to do with the defense and the added pieces. Only time will tell if it works out.
May 15th, 2026 at 12:46 am
dont even know what kind of chemistry these guys will have
May 15th, 2026 at 12:47 am
Thanks for the update Joe
May 15th, 2026 at 12:49 am
robinson could be making love to the tree like that free agent from the redskins years back
May 15th, 2026 at 12:57 am
Thanks for the tip!
May 15th, 2026 at 1:30 am
Will Bowles finally pay attention to the pass rush or will Bowles finally have replacements for Shaq and JPP? Hmm.
May 15th, 2026 at 2:16 am
If he runs the same defense as last year, he’s cooked. If he actually embraces a pass rush, plays to players strengths, we’ll be alright. I will lose it if I hear “Oh look at how complicated and exotic this Todd Bowles defense is” from a color analyst and have the qb throw a dime on the following play.
May 15th, 2026 at 3:11 am
I wouldn’t say they are cooked because he will run exactly the same defense.
It’s not the Base defense or even different packages and how they line up.
It’s personnel and calls that have sucked.
The line did the back end zero favors last year.
I wouldn’t call Parrish or Scott Nickel corners.
Im betting Scott cross trains at outside corner anyway because we have tons of safeties.
With an effective front seven, Parrish and Scott could be outside corners and we would be fine. I bet all these guys are more effective in man than we think.
Todd knows we haven’t had a rush with 4 so why play man?
Teams would score 50 points against us if we did and the QB had all day.
Then Todd would be the dumbest coach out there and he isn’t.
May 15th, 2026 at 3:33 am
This pass rush could be Great this year Bain, Yaya, Vita, Kancey, AQM, Walker, Robinson,.NACHO, Nelly an just imagine if Braswell does.anything to make this Bucs team keep him around that will be a Scary DLine like Attitude I honestly believe Bain Jr will.raise the level of play for all the guys around him they will want to follow his lead How did we ever get so lucky to get Bain
May 15th, 2026 at 3:33 am
This pass rush could be Great this year Bain, Yaya, Vita, Kancey, AQM, Walker, Robinson,.NACHO, Nelly an just imagine if Braswell does.anything to make this Bucs team keep him around that will be a Scary DLine like Attitude I honestly believe Bain Jr will.raise the level of play for all the guys around him they will want to follow his lead How did we ever get so lucky to get Bain 2 pipe.dreams.in a row back to back years in the 1st round
May 15th, 2026 at 4:41 am
This should be the best all around team the Bucs have had since winning the Super Bowl.
May 15th, 2026 at 4:57 am
Joe … ‘One thing that could change and last for a few years is how the Bucs play defense. … With an infusion of gnarly, physical, glass-eating players, the whole DNA of this defense could shift for the rest of the decade’.
Very nice article Joe, and a lot of potential there to chew on for more future articles to dig deeper. At the heart of it all is whether Todd Bowles is ‘The Man’ to orchestrate all that change. Most JBFers appear to think ‘NO!’ but I disagree. Bucs IMO are intentionally trying to rebuild the type of defense that they had in 2019-2021 when we had Vea, Suh, RNR, Gholston upfront & JPP, Shaq & Nassib as OLBs plus LVD & White patrolling as LBs. As I look at the additions we’ve made this off-season, the similarities are striking.
Todd got good results from that ‘veteran front’ that we had in 2019-2021, and I think he can duplicate it again. It took a little time in 2019 to get everyone on the same page, but that became a very good defense (Top-10 ranking in 2020 & 2021). And that Secondary, as we all remember, was extremely young. Still, Bowles got them all playing together well, and yes, playing with an attitude. I think we’ll see similar results this season.
May 15th, 2026 at 6:36 am
Might see more dime packages with two nickel corners on the field. That ought to make it a lot harder to hit those easy short/middle passes over the middle.
Parish
Scott
McCollum
Morrison
Smith
Winfield
May 15th, 2026 at 7:33 am
Defense Rules. “Very nice article Joe, and a lot of potential there to chew on for more future articles to dig deeper”. Hehehe. Like a kid in a candy store, Joe. DR can’t help it, he just can’t help it.
May 15th, 2026 at 7:54 am
ScottyMack
i agree
great post
GO BUCS!!!!
May 15th, 2026 at 8:09 am
When the Bucs decided a few years ago to recruit offensive linewith with nasty attitudes the offensive line were amonged the best offenses in Football. Using this strategy fot the defense will bring similar results.
The Bucs hopefully will be a top 10 defense by the playoffs and a contender for the Super Bowl ?.
It happened in 2020 with Brady. GODWIN and others players from the 2020 Bucs should be telling bedtime stories to all the Big Boys on Del Maybry Blvd.
May 15th, 2026 at 8:55 am
Hilarious that you lemmings still think Bowles is somehow going to fix what he broke.
That strategy is a one way ticket to a lost decade. The 2026 season is already lost.
Based on historical evidence the defense is going to cost us a ton of games.
And we will miss Evans on offense more than people realize.
7-10 at best.
May 15th, 2026 at 11:05 am
“No this Defense won’t change how it operates, but this defense could very well spark a change in how the defense operates”
What?
May 15th, 2026 at 11:53 am
The scrubber is active.
The trajectory of defensive performance since the 2022 season began is well defined. That trajectory will continue to accelerate in 2026.
May 15th, 2026 at 12:33 pm
DR,
I’m surprised that you went with that claim….
You KNOW full well that Arians Insisted on His Style of ball. Offense And Defense…
You’re also aware that BA “red pen’d” what he didn’t approve of.
You Also Know that JUST AS SOON AS (with the Horses STILL here on that front seven with the exception of maybe 1..) BA left the position, Bowles Immediately enacted changes in style and personal (got rid of and or drafted his “cover type” of OLB) which quite frankly And clearly Did Not work out… What he was teaching the rookie OLB’s “looked” to the rest of those watching as a Giant Fail…. On the other hand he view his training (cover style) as a Great Success and touted our 2021 1st round draft pick, as a Real Weapon. We All watched it. He Threw Away what “BA” had in place. Now, twist it to work out how you like BUT…. to the rest of us it WAS a miserable failure.
The truth is he feels like he can get more from an edge, than the traditional standards have to offer and bottom line prefers them 80% covering and 20% rushing VS the traditional “other way around”.. (You might think it “should work” in a passing league) .. However Without CONSTANT Pressure on the QB, a QB IS GOING TO pick you apart… Far too many options for the QB.
But let “HOPE” you’re right and he decides to ATTACK for a change instead of defend on a “traditionally” ATTACKING FRONT LINE……. Bain.. CAN BRING MASSIVE PRESSURE! Let’s cross our fingers that he Indeed let’s Bain EAT!
May 15th, 2026 at 12:34 pm
Bruce Arians OWED the team from 2019 to 2021…….. PERIOD
May 15th, 2026 at 4:25 pm
bunch of mean guys lead by a weak head coach. nothing will change. Bucs will blitz. it won’t get home fast enough, and they will be close to last in passing defense.
new season, same broken record.
May 15th, 2026 at 8:10 pm
Perhaps playing more dime with all the nickel/safeties. Blitzing one or more of them in different combos could help. Kind of what he did 2 years ago in the opener against Detroit! It worked in that game! Throw in Kancey, Vea, Bain, and Yaya. That could bring pressure!!!
May 16th, 2026 at 6:41 pm
We will have lots of new names on the field. Of course the fact that we will have the same Defensive Cordinator/HC running the same old scheme will hurt our chances I’m afraid. Hopefully the new savage attitude & fresh new blood on the field will work. It could work!!
May 16th, 2026 at 6:43 pm
We will have lots of new names on the field. Of course the fact that we will have the same Defensive Cordinator/HC running the same old scheme will hurt our chances I’m afraid. Hopefully the new savage attitude & fresh new blood on the field will work. Maybe Bowles will suprise everyone with a few new wrinkles It could Happen!!