Calijah Kancey Is Another Defender Gone AWOL
October 6th, 2026
What happened?
It’s 10 p.m. Do you know where Calijah Kancey is?
Of the many, many, many defenders who have come to the Bucs in recent years and either regressed to the point they are unrecognizable or vanished into thin air, is the latest Calijah Kancey?
Quick: Can you recall a play that Kancey, a defensive tackle, made this year? Joe looked up his game log and Joe was shocked by how… white it is. Just shocked.
Kancey has one quarterback hit on Packers signal-caller Jordan Love and three tackles total. For the season!
Who kidnapped Kancey?
Yesterday in his day-after presser, KitKat-eating Bucs coach Todd Bowles was asked for an eval of Kancey. His reply wasn’t exactly a ringing endorsement.
“He’s playing hard,” Bowles said. “Some weeks, he has production; some weeks he just misses some.”
What? “Production?” What production? Three tackles in four games from a starter is “production?”
“We’ve got to get a little more production,” Bowles added about Kancey. “But he does wreck the backfield, and he’s playing hard.”
Joe can just hear his good friend Bernie Miklasz, the retired columnist/radio host and NFL beat writer for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, howling out loud. Miklasz would become enraged at Bowles’ “playing hard” line.
Miklasz used to bark about how the very least one should expect from a professional athlete is to work/play hard.
This is what got so many Bucs fans so steamed at Gerald McCoy; he wrecked backfields with little to show for it but losses that piled up. But at least GMC made plays along the way and landed in six consecutive Pro Bowls.
Since Todd Bowles became head coach, which drafted Bucs defensive players have improved? Joe Tryon-Shoyinka never did. Neither did Chris Braswell. YaYa Diaby had 7.5 sacks as a rookie and has gone downhill since. Now, you don’t even know if he’s on the roster.
Logan Hall didn’t develop and is now a part-time player for the Texans.
Did K.J. Britt improve? Has SirVocea Dennis? What happened to Antoine Winfield after he made All-Pro?
Has fifth-round pick Zyon McCollum improved? Sure. Has Benjamin Morrison improved? Maybe. Tykee Smith? Probably. The jury is out on Elijah Roberts and David Walker.
Jacob Parrish looks like a stud.
The amount of high draft picks on defense, specifically in the front seven, in recent years who have fizzled is astonishing.
And it’s too much of a coincidence for Joe that high draft picks that fell off the map have been on defense (Joe’s hoping Emeka Egbuka doesn’t join that list).
Two years ago, Joe thought Kancey was on the cusp of making a Pro Bowl. He had that kind of impact.
What happened? If you see Kancey out on the street somewhere, please call One Buc Palace. The Bucs need him.
October 6th, 2026 at 3:31 am
He’ll hit the IR soon enough.
October 6th, 2026 at 3:44 am
Honestly, what is this coach done to justify keeping his job or even getting it in the first place?
October 6th, 2026 at 3:45 am
Bowles takes promising young talent on defense and turns it into a turd. It is mind boggling the Glazers are allowing him to make this the worst franchise in the league.
October 6th, 2026 at 4:49 am
It’s the Glazers’ ideology. Let’s remember millionaires run in different social groups than commoners like us. Ideology brings them approval and acceptance. They are fine with the status quo. Only if and when things become financially intolerable will they act. For now, deal with it.
October 6th, 2026 at 5:03 am
Look at the jets when Bowles had a whole defensive line full of #1 draft choices the same thing,
October 6th, 2026 at 5:04 am
Bowles and his crap staff he keeps around clearly cannot develop players. This has been obvious for years now. At this point it reflects poorly on Gboys and I think they need to just sell the team because their incompetence is evident going back many years other than lucking out to get Brady.
October 6th, 2026 at 5:40 am
That all boils down to coaching, IMHO a coach needs to be a disciplineary. Bowles instills no discipline in this team.
October 6th, 2026 at 6:23 am
No its another licht first round disaster
October 6th, 2026 at 6:35 am
It’s about time for his annual 10 week injury, so I assumed he wasn’t playing.
October 6th, 2026 at 6:47 am
The defense is stacked for a 4-3 scheme….unfortunately Bowles is going to run his blitz happy scheme that focuses on featuring the secondary
October 6th, 2026 at 6:57 am
Believe it or not Jose, Buster Kancey is actually living UP to expectations. This is what should have been expected of him from the beginning. He’s just too small to be a quality DL in the NFL. He’s already wearing down from his near continual string of injuries from having to play against guys 50 pounds heavier than him.
I hope I’m wrong but this is my reading.
October 6th, 2026 at 7:15 am
I’m not calling him a BUST – YET…
But I will call him “BUS” for now. He is close to earning that “T” very soon.
October 6th, 2026 at 7:28 am
His past injuries have maybe robbed him of what he SHOULD be? Otherwise I can report not having seen him in the vicinity of any stadium on Sundays when the Bucs have played. Maybe get Detective Kenda, someone might have murdered the man’s ability through poor coaching.
October 6th, 2026 at 7:30 am
I’ve always thought Kancey would be a better DE in a 4-3.
October 6th, 2026 at 7:46 am
The Glazer accountants run things. Not the Glazer Clan.
October 6th, 2026 at 8:05 am
He’s not injured
That’s a positive
October 6th, 2026 at 8:18 am
This scheme or coaching on the defensive side of the ball does not maximize players strengths. Diaby and Kancey had promising starts in the NFL and regressed tremendously.
October 6th, 2026 at 8:22 am
I’d love to see how all that talent responds to good coaching. Not great coaching, good coaching. Good coaching would be a huge improvement. It should be obvious to everyone that the entire coaching staff sucks.
October 6th, 2026 at 8:23 am
Reminds me of the Koetter years right before we hired Arians… we have talent, just need the coaching.
October 6th, 2026 at 8:23 am
Knowing Licht, he will be resigned to a massive contract after a couple good games.
October 6th, 2026 at 8:23 am
This is the problem with Bowels. He is not a straight shooter, hell I remember bruce calling out brady for playing sh itty! Perhaps try to start calling these bums out by name and see what happens. obviously his current system of coaching has many flaws and does not work.
October 6th, 2026 at 8:31 am
He’s a Bust, that’s what’s wrong
October 6th, 2026 at 8:37 am
They all are giving up, playing lazy, and don’t want to get hurt.
October 6th, 2026 at 8:57 am
Joe’s, Kenny Britt was a WR drafted by the Tennessee Titans if I remember correctly.
I think you mean KJ Britt, right? 😬😬😬
October 6th, 2026 at 8:58 am
How many defensive coaches who can’t coach defense stay employed???
The better question is how many of those are gifted the HC job and retain DC status on top of it?
And despite horrific results are not only retained but extended.
The Glazers are huge fans of Todd’s regression culture. It just works.
0-5 on TNF will be a cherry on the sundae.
October 6th, 2026 at 9:16 am
I thought all Kancey needed was camp and to stay healthy and he would turn into a good DL for this team. I mean along with VV, it’s at least two guys on the front that can play. But honestly, outside of the rookies Trotter and Walker (He may as well be a rook) no one has showed much of anything among the front 7.
People can say what they want about the defense, they still stink. No pressure through 4 games –
6 sacks
21 TFLs
3 picks, 1 forced fumble
2nd highest blitz rate in NFL yet these numbers? 27th in pressure rate. Hard to believe there are 5 teams worse. That includes SF, Denver and Philly. NYG and Indy. Even more interesting they have a combined 10 wins and our Bucs – ZERO.
We have played pedestrian offenses outside of Cincy up to this pt. Dallas is gonna EAT OUR LUNCH Thursday night. Wouldn’t surprise me if the Cowboys hang a half a hundred or come close. 0-5 is coming like Christmas.
October 6th, 2026 at 9:43 am
If the Bucs don’t start winning soon this team will self implode with the players shutting down on Todd Bowles.
That could return the team to the Bucs of old. Finding a good coach wanting a HC position could be a problem. He will have to change the culture of the team first like Brady did before making the Bucs contenders again.
The turn around needs to happen soon. Daniels isn’t the answer, he just an undrafted rookie. Baker needs to return in the next two to three weeks and play winning football. He’s not a quitter and his leadership is critical to saving the franchise.
October 6th, 2026 at 9:53 am
i will reiterate…
kancey is nothing…without big vita…
he is the lil fish simply swimming next to the big fish…
that’s all he has ever really been………get real people…
think back to a time when vita wasn’t playing too well…has kancey played well……?…….you know the answer people
October 6th, 2026 at 9:55 am
i wish kancey was a slippery fish, getting skinny and working his way through creases to eat qb’s……………..
but that is simply not the case…………..at all…
but i wish it was
October 6th, 2026 at 10:03 am
I’ll ask again….anyone else notice how players come here and look good and then get coached by Todd and dem and disappear ?
October 6th, 2026 at 10:06 am
this staff cant develop talent…everyone regresses…heck, look at baker
GO BUCS!!!!!
October 6th, 2026 at 10:30 am
Agreed Joe. As DC lots of players were developed and played a huge roll in getting us to the SB. All the DBs and diva white were all developed by Bowles and I personally think he did a good job with the talent on the back end but since becoming HC players have NOT bin progressing unfortunately. From his time being a HC for the jets and now for the Bucs he’s pretty terrible but as a DC he’s got a SB ring and it wasn’t just Brady who got us there. He played a big role but it wasn’t the gravediggers that buried rogers Bree’s and mahomes. All HOF QBs. That’s saying something. I like Bowles as DC I dislike him so much as HC
October 6th, 2026 at 10:37 am
How many years to get someone other than Vita on D-line. Bowles is a joke he ruined the team slowly like a cancer, and Bucs are terminal now. Dying sad without an identity a shell of the BA days.
October 6th, 2026 at 10:40 am
I have been saying this a while, but McCoy just said it on a podcast. Due to injury, Kancey has never really played so he will need to figure himself out. A lot of people/fans kept thinking he was some kind of plug-and-play just because he’s not healthy. My opinion on him was to pretend we didn’t even have him. Number one, because he’s always injured, but number 2 he will be rusty. He has never finished a full season here so this was bound to happen its literially been years. I am not even mad about it. It is what I expected; regardless of his draft position, it’s just one of those it is what it is situations.
For 2027, I would still have DT as a position of need. Vea is older & we have ??? on Kancey’s health and ability.
October 6th, 2026 at 11:00 am
It’s Bowles and his staff. Useless scheme and no development.
Go back and put on the Washington playoff game. Kancey lives in the backfield, Daniels was just too quick and slippery.
Cannot evaluate talent on this team cause of Bowles.
That GMAC interview/podcast whatever was so damning. I mean we all kinda knew it but to have McCoy come out and say it as a guy that is way more in the Bucs loop than any of us… insane that this guy has been here so long. Set the franchise back years.
October 6th, 2026 at 11:22 am
Kancey is simply doing a lot of other things, that Bowles wants his versatile defenders to do.
October 6th, 2026 at 11:37 am
So, if he’s not injured, he still can’t be found…in a nutshell?!
October 6th, 2026 at 12:57 pm
We need some elephants and other animals over to Raymond James, couple of tents. Come see the circus 🎪 The is there but their direction is lost.
October 6th, 2026 at 1:08 pm
Kancey must be tired, he hasn’t missed a game yet. Hall is gone and part time putting up numbers like starters on this putrid defense.
October 6th, 2026 at 4:32 pm
The “next Aaron Donald” is just another stiff.
Cancel his 5th year option immediately if not sooner before it becomes guaranteed due to injury ( it’s a coming ) and/or Bright Licht early extends him proving he’s innovative and his draft picks pan out like gold.
October 6th, 2026 at 6:39 pm
He’s a bust period.
October 6th, 2026 at 10:54 pm
Kidnapped? He never arrived.
He’s tiny. He’s a lil fella, trying to compete against full sized men.
5’10”. 280#
That’s not a defensive tackle.
Those guys are usually around 6’4”, 320#
He’s too little. He gets hurt all the time.
I said this, the week they drafted him.
It will always be the truth