There are few positions the Buccaneers have more heavily invested in than its defensive line. Its 2024 rotation included their top picks in three drafts across six years. The results, from the statistics to the final score, were mixed, raising questions over the future of Tampa Bay’s defensive front.
The line continues to revolve around Vita Vea, who remains one of the best nose tackles in the NFL. His mere presence allows the Bucs defense to limit opposing rush success, allowing a 37.3% rush success rate and -0.145 EPA per play, both top-10 in the NFL last season. Vea is also one of the Bucs more reliable pass rushers, collecting 53 total pressures, second only to outside linebacker Yaya Diaby.
The inconsistencies begin with every player behind Vea. 2023 first-round pick Calijah Kancey again missed the first quarter of the season, nursing a calf injury just like his rookie year. When he returned, he flashed the pass rush potential that made him a top prospect, collecting 40 pressures, including 7.5 sacks.
Kancey’s biggest problem was his tackling. According to Pro Football Focus, he missed 25% of his tackle attempts. These issues stemmed largely from his lack of length and were on full display on the final drive of Tampa Bay’s Wild Card loss to the Washington Commanders. With Washington pushing for field goal position to win the game, Kancey burst through the line to drop quarterback Jayden Daniels, but he missed the tackle and allowed Daniels to pick up the first down.
The Bucs’ first pick in the 2022 draft, Logan Hall, showed improvement from last season but remains unspectacular. Hall recorded a career-high 5.5 sacks cut his missed tackle rate from 16.1 to 8.6, and doubled his stops from 10 to 20, all while playing fewer snaps than he did in 2023.
The Bucs will not be moving on from Vea, Kancey or Hall next year, so the core of the defensive line remains intact. Everything behind them is up in the air.
Veteran Greg Gaines continued to be a space-eater on the defensive line but offered little else. Tampa Bay’s second-longest tenured player, Will Gholston, rounded out the group but is clearly slowing down. The remainder of the defensive line rotation, including C.J. Brewer, Mike Greene, Earnest Brown IV, and Ben Stille, played a combined 252 snaps on defense.
Gholston and Gaines are both players that Todd Bowles and the Bucs front office would welcome back. However, Gholston has flirted with retirement for the past couple of years. Gaines is a solid rotational contributor but is not irreplaceable. The main upside to re-signing Gaines is the $950,000 the Bucs would save on their 2025 salary cap by restructuring his void years.
The free agent class is stocked with rotational defensive tackles. Sebastian Joseph-Day would be an upgrade in run defense, though he may cost a bit more than Gaines. While he is unlikely to leave Denver, DT D.J. Jones would add a potent pass rush to Tampa Bay’s rotation.
While the Bucs are not likely to spend another premium pick on a defensive tackle, this year’s draft is exceptionally deep at the position. Texas DT Alfred Collins is raw and is not much of a pass rusher, but his rare blend of size and athleticism would reinforce the Bucs’ run defense and overall strength. Kentucky’s Deone Walker is another massive lineman who could factor into the rotation as a run-stuffer.