Shaq Barrett: Bucs Need More Pass Rush
December 3rd, 2025
Regular readers here know Joe’s angst when it comes to the Bucs’ nearly invisible edge rush.
Imagine how Bucs sacks king Shaq Barrett feels about it.
You don’t have to imagine too much. Shaq talked to RG.org this week and chimed in on the state of the Bucs.
Shaq has been seen at Tampa Bay games this year and, to Joe’s knowledge, is still residing locally.
“They just got to get healthy,” says Barrett of the Buccaneers.”When they were healthy, they were playing really good on offense. The defense was playing alright, but they need to get some more pressure on the quarterback, and that’ll help out a lot. I just think that defense, they have to step it up on defense and make their plays when they need to make them, like they did in the Arizona game last week.”
Barrett says that the difference between the current Buccaneers and the current Broncos is Denver lost the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in Patrick Surtain II and they went undefeated in his absence.
The Buccaneers haven’t done as well in the absence of their star players such as Evans and Godwin.
“The offense, I just think if they get healthy, and then when they’re not healthy, they need their guys to step up and make the plays, because that’s what’s the difference between the Tampa team and the Denver team,” says Barrett. “I think when I was in Denver, we had injuries. We had a lot of injuries in Denver, but the next guy stepped up and filled them with little to no drop-off. That’s what we need to do.”
For those unaware, Shaq was a backup on the Broncos’ 2015 Super Bowl team, a 5 1/2-sack guy off the bench. The Bucs signed him in 2019.
As for the Bucs’ edge rush, well, next-man-up or first-man-up, Joe will welcome any kind of improvement. Anything that could remotely scare an offensive coordinator would be exciting.
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:20 pm
We should’ve signed Shaq and JPP before this season.
We would be much better off with both of them as starters, I guarantee it.
Not one or the other, but both.
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:28 pm
yes we need pass rush but we need it to come from the front 4 lineman without blitzing…
one game at a time!!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:32 pm
2019 Bucs had a 19.5 edge rusher and the Pass Defense was still bottom 10 in the league
Same scheme
Same defensive coordinator
Every year in this scheme it is the same results, top 10 run defense and bottom 10 pass defense
NOTHING IS CHANGING
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:32 pm
Yes, the Putrid Pass Defense remains the Achilles of this team.
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:34 pm
The Rolling Stones wrote a song in the 80’S called “Winning Ugly” you guys should listen to it and sing it to yourselves daily.
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:37 pm
In a passing league, Todd Bowles sells out to try to stop the run. Make it make sense.
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:48 pm
Need an actual defensive mastermind just because some people have said it doesn’t make it true or maybe it just isn’t true anymore and if players are consistently failing to play well in this scheme maybe do something different instead of trying to fit a square peg in a round hole or not maybe just keep failing at the same thing over and over again.
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:53 pm
Smarter than Joe Says:
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:32 pm
2019 Bucs had a 19.5 edge rusher and the Pass Defense was still bottom 10 in the league
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what happened in 2020 without a 19.5 sack guy?…..we went 0-16 right lol…with the worst defense in the league lol…
#CLOWN
GO BUCS!!!!!
December 3rd, 2025 at 12:53 pm
Alleged-Pass-Rusher-Reddick is back, so our prayers have been answered. Just need to give Zyon help and we’ll be okay in coverage.
December 3rd, 2025 at 1:00 pm
No Sh*t Shaq!
December 3rd, 2025 at 1:16 pm
Well Shaq, why tf didn’t you get in shape last season to help us!
December 3rd, 2025 at 1:21 pm
I think the numbers tell a nuance story of why the pass defense gets a lot of undeserved bad press. In 2019 the Bucs pass defense ranked the following: 30th in yards (4322), 25th in TDs (30) finishing at 7-9 and out of the playoffs. In 2020 the Bucs pass defense ranked the following: 21st in yards (3945) and 20th in TDs (29) finishing at 11-5 and the Lombardi. In 2021 the pass defense rankings were 21st in yards (4062) and 13th in TDs (26) finishing 13-4 bowing out to the Rams in the Divisional Round. In 2022 the pass defense rankings were 9th in yards (3461) and 28th in TDs (29) finishing 8-9 and a wild card exit to Dallas. Yes the pass defense isn’t consistent, but there have been seasons where its been exceptionally above average either on pass yards (2022) or TDs given up (2021) in the years where either Brady or Winston were the starting QBs.
Since passing yards doesn’t actually mean points lets look at how many points against the defense and their rankings: 2019 – 29th (449), 2020 – 8th (355), 2021 – 5th (353), 2022 – 13th (358), 2023 – 7th (325), 2024 – 16th (385), 2025 – 23rd (301). Since 2020 the Bucs defense was ranked in top 10 in points allowed 3 times and were in the top half in 2020-2024, the embodiment of bend-but-don’t-break. I think a lot of the explanation to yards given up in the air is because in those years since 2019 the Bucs also had some of the most prolific scoring offenses that required teams to air it out to catch up. 2019 – 3rd in points scored (458), 2020 – 3rd in points scored (492), 2021 – 2nd in points scored (511), 2022 – 25th in points scored (313), 2023 – 20th in points scored (348), 2024 – 4th in points scored (502), 2025 – 17th in points scored (279). Since 2019 the Bucs had a top 5 scoring offense in 4 of those seasons. That’s a lot of points for opposing teams to make up. The most efficient way to make up the deficit is to air it out.
December 3rd, 2025 at 1:23 pm
I’m ready to see Mo Kamara to get some reps. Anybody that watched him in college knows he’s got some juice with him and at this point, if it cuts into Watts’ or Braswells’ reps, then so be it.
December 3rd, 2025 at 1:31 pm
I read the SF Chronicle each day. Today they had a piece where they write about the two guys they pulled off other teams practice squad or cast offs and how much they have contributed to the 49rs’ defense. Compare this to Licht’s totally lack of mid-year additions. Possible reason’s:
1. The Toad is just fine with who we have on defense right now.
2. Our defense is too complicated for even experienced players.
3. Licht is spending 100% of time evaluating the draft.
4. Sheer incompetent thinking by TB/JL.
December 3rd, 2025 at 1:58 pm
@SoCal, great write up and I’d also say in regards to the 2019 defense which was year 1 in Bowles scheme, they got put back on the field early via offensive turnovers *checks notes* 41 times!
I still think that helped get Shaq the amount of reps it took for him to get 19.5 sacks. That’s alot of extra opportunity. Also remember then rookie Devin White making the defense doing what they did at the end of that season in-spite of the offense.
Again, good write up and a nice change of pace from the doomsday posters
December 3rd, 2025 at 2:26 pm
Can’t understand Licht for realizing it’s smart to build the trenches with big men to protect the quarterback and keep drafting skilled receivers but on the defensive you decided You in 7 years you won’t spend any premium picks on a big man after Vea, no skilled pass rushers because all yaya has is a bull rush, you would sign a premier passer in free agency but not a premier pass rusher then you hang on to your lesser talented draft picks for their entire contracts only then do you draft to replace them and rely heavily on udfa’s and late round picks. So basically when people get hurt we have a mediocre team at best
December 3rd, 2025 at 2:38 pm
is he suggesting O sucking is what’s hurting D? been wondering how much D fatigue is a factor.