Bucs Front Office Feels Confident That Defensive Holes Were Filled

The weeks leading up to the draft, most mock drafts had the Buccaneers taking a DB. To be specific they had Derwin James coming off the board at No. 7 overall. In a surprise move though, Tampa Bay decided the best way to help out the DB unit was to address a glaring hole on the defensive line by drafting Vita Vea from Washington at No. 12 overall after a trade with Buffalo, (Where Licht picked up two additional 2nd round picks). Which resulted in mixed results from fans, but when you look a little deeper you will find that it might help our defense more than initially thought by the staunchest of opposers’.

After a season where the defensive line was continually pushed around in the run game and non-existent pass rush, the Bucs may have found their missing piece. “We overhauled that defensive line room quite a bit.” Licht said at a post-draft press conference. “Dirk and I thought it was a necessity after last year. It starts up front, and you can never go wrong having some ass kickers up there.” Licht added.

In the second round, they used those two extra picks (No. 53 & 63 overall) to add help at defensive back. Those two selections, M.J. Stewart and Carlton Davis, could end up battling it out for the CB spot opposite Grimes. If nothing else the Bucs just added immediate competition to the CB group, and put Hargreaves on notice that his job isn’t safe. Even as a nickel back.

Overall the Bucs front office did a decent job of filling critical holes on defense. Tampa Bays defense rank last or close to it in almost every stat of significance. So it needed all the help it could get. Through the draft (and free agency), our defense is now primed to take a step forward in the 2018 season.