The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have won four straight division titles, and their five consecutive playoff appearances is the longest active streak in the NFC. The team finished 10-7 in 2024, the first time since 2021 that the club reached the double-digit victory total. Head coach Todd Bowles got a career year from quarterback Baker Mayfield, and only the Ravens and Lions averaged more total yards per game in 2024,
On the downside, opposing passers found it was easy to exploit the Bucs through the air. While only three teams in the league allowed fewer yards per game on the ground, Bowles’s team finished 29th in the league in pass defense. Tampa Bay totaled a respectable 46 sacks, but the club gave up 27 touchdown passes.
This offseason, general manager Jason Licht took a chance on adding free-agent pass rusher Haason Reddick. Last year, the Philadelphia Eagles dealt the disgruntled two-time Pro Bowler to the New York Jets. Reddick wanted a new deal, and actually asked for a trade. When it was all said and done, he played in only 10 games for the Jets and finished with 14 tackles, one sack, and a forced fumble.
Bucs remain borderline delusional over Haason Reddick
Licht signed Reddick to a one-year deal. Bowles knows what the eight-year pro is really capable of.
“Like I said last year, we need to rush better four, and I think he’s a great addition to help us rush with four so we can cover more. We’ll still (blitz) pressure some, but hopefully it won’t be as much as last year. (We blitzed) because we had to, instead of because we wanted to. I think he brings that to the table.”
Reddick totaled 11-plus sacks in four consecutive seasons with the Cardinals (2020), Panthers (2021), and Eagles (2022-23), respectively. However, weighing that upside, which is now two years in the rearview mirror, with the drama and headaches that surrounded him this past season is the real balancing act for the Buccaneers.
He does offer an awful lot, as long as he is sitting at Bowles’s table. The veteran defensive-minded head coach could have his work cut out for him ensuring that remains the case, however.