Maybe Ndamukong Suh was supposed to be the most visible presence at the AdventHealth Training Center on Friday.
For my money, I totally would have thought that Jameis Winston, Mike Evans, or Devin White would have been the main focus. The presence of Suh, though, seemed to be the component that most announced that training camp had indeed started.
The Collective
With the addition of the drafted linebacker from LSU. All the offseason talk of this being the year for Winston which, honestly, started before last season ended. It was the comfortable familiarity of a large #93 in Buccaneers colors at defensive tackle that seemed to hold a lot of the fortunes of the 2019 season like lightning in a bottle.
Something Old/Something New
For as fleeting as success has been for the Buccaneer defenses of late, the Todd Bowles infused schemes is seemingly chock full of potential. With a lot of shiny new pieces, an injured John Pierre-Paul, a healthy Vita Vea, the aforementioned White, and Lavonte David’s veteran presence, still having #93 on the inside seems to steady the ship. Yet it also provides an unknown quality that will be interesting to watch develop.
The “It” Factor
For the last 10 years, we watched Suh stepping on players, bowling over offensive lineman and putting fear in quarterbacks minds. It might be that we knew all along that if he had still been on the board at number three in 2010, and not on his way to Detroit, all that would have happened here in Tampa Bay. That’s not to say that the Gerald McCoy era was not a good thing, or the results would have been any different. Just that it would have probably played out that way.
Seeing Suh standing on the field taking it all in. After a summer where the defensive tackle got engaged, signed with the Buccaneers, and arrived in Tampa Bay with much fanfare. Now the beast steps between the lines and should provide the veteran leadership a young defense will need to find It’s feet for the 2019 season.
Yeah. Training camp has started. It’s time to siege the day.
