With the addition of Chris “Swaggy” Baker last year, and drafting promising young talent this past year, one would have thought the Bucs defensive line was turning a corner. Instead, our rookie talent is still developing and Baker did not deliver. He seemed to be a locker room liability after earning the reputation of being lazy and undisciplined, and rubbed some players the wrong way. At one point, Gerald McCoy had to confront him on his sloppy style of play when he jumped off-sides on a crucial play late in a game.
The additions of Allen and Unrein should help draw double teams away from key people like McCoy. Even still, the signings of both players have had mixed reviews among Bucs fans; most claiming their stat sheets don’t exactly jump off the page. Though that may be true, consider this- Allen was rated as the top interior lineman in regards to running stop percentage. Both linemen are both known for doing the “dirty work” on the line to help free up others to make key plays.
Allen and Unrein should give us the chance to offer some consistency of play, and at an affordable price. Allen with a 3 year $15M contract, and Unrein 3 year $10.5M contract, are both team friendly contracts. While both are somewhat similar to Bakers’ contract at first glance, the deal has been worked where there is less dead money down the road if things were to not work out. In fact, only about half of each player’s contract is guaranteed.
From Licht’s chair both of these signings add good depth at an affordable rate. Which leaves room to re-sign some of its own star players in the near future, and re-signing your own people is crucial to build a successful franchise.
Edited by Morgan Adele
