INTRO: I love defense, and if you love defense – well, this SR’s FAB 5 column is for you. Led by stars like strong safety Tykee Smith, Todd Bowles’ unit is playing exceptionally well at the start of the season and is a big reason why Tampa Bay has a 6-2 record coming out of the bye. So let’s talk Tykee Smith and Tampa Bay’s takeaway machine, which has 12 takeaways in the last six games, along with 15 sacks in the last three games. Enjoy!

FAB 1. Tykee Smith Is The Badass The Bucs Defense Needs

When second-year Bucs safety Tykee Smith talks, he speaks in facts – not hyperbole.

Don’t mistake his confidence and swagger for bluster when he says things like, “I’m a different animal.”

He is, and the Georgia product is not self-promoting. He’s just keeping it real.

And right now, No. 23 for the Bucs is as real as it gets.

As the second half of Tampa Bay’s 2025 season begins on Sunday against the 7-2 New England Patriots at Raymond James Stadium, Smith, who was Pewter Report’s Bucs Defensive MVP at the midseason point, leads the defense in tackles with 66 stops and has a team-high eight pass breakups through eight games.

To say that Smith’s transition from nickelback to strong safety this year has gone smoothly would be an understatement.

As a part-time player last year as a rookie, playing about 70% of the snaps, Smith was tied for the team lead with three forced fumbles and two interceptions. Smith went to head coach Todd Bowles in the offseason and asked to switch positions and replace Jordan Whitehead because he didn’t want to come off the field.

That move has paid off big time this year, as Smith has had two double-digit tackle performances at Atlanta and at Detroit, as well as his first two career sacks blitzing from the slot. Smith also recovered his first fumble in the NFL at Seattle in Week 5.

Bucs SS Tykee Smith – Photo by: USA Today

Just as important as the plays he’s made, he’s become the tone-setter in Tampa Bay’s secondary.

“I’ve taken on the role of the badass,” Smith said. “That’s the role I’ve taken on, and then trying to be the enforcer every week and have the other DBs feed off that.”

And Tampa Bay’s defensive backs are feeding off that. The secondary has become a turnover machine this season, led by cornerback Jamel Dean, who has a team-high three interceptions and two forced fumbles along with one sack. Safety Antoine Winfield Jr. has a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and an interception, while rookie nickelback Jacob Parrish has two sacks and five tackles for loss, which ranks third on the team.

Cornerback Zyon McCollum is the lone starter without a sack or a takeaway on defense yet. McCollum and Smith tied for the team lead in interceptions last year, although neither has recorded their first pick of the season just yet. That time is coming, though.

“When he first came in as a rookie I was like, ‘That’s not really a rookie,’” McCollum said about Smith. “His mindset is what differentiates him from the majority of people I’ve seen in this league. He’s just a confident person. He expects to win every single time, and he holds his teammates accountable to his standard.

“It’s a refreshing thing to see from a safety who is supposed to be kind of the field general back there. And also to see a guy who is as willing as he is in the run game – it’s exciting to play with him.”

In his second season as a starter, Smith is taking on more of a leadership role and has found his voice in the huddle.

“I’m definitely finding my voice,” Smith said. “I think the more plays I make that leadership role will continue to grow. I am trying to step up more as a leader. I’m still a young guy right now and there are still some older guys on defense. But I do speak up more and say what I see and say what I feel because I’ve never been the type to bite my tongue. I’m trying to make that role grow as much as possible.”

Bucs SS Tykee Smith and ILB Lavonte David – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

When Smith speaks, his teammates listen because he has quickly earned their respect with how hard he plays the game. He opened eyes in the defensive film room when he took on pulling right tackle Colton McKivitz in the 30-19 win over the 49ers and flattened him and then proceed to tackle running back Christian McCaffrey.

Smith is 5-foot-10, 203 pounds whereas McKivitz is 6-foot-6, 301 pounds.

“That play against the 49ers? Yeah, he prides himself on making tough plays like that,” McCollum said. “And he throws around big 300-pounders like that, and now he expects everybody to be able to throw around 300-pounders, which is a refreshing thing to see.”

When I asked Smith about that play in the locker room on Wednesday he just smiled.

“That’s the biggest thing – I think it’s heart over height,” Smith said. “That’s the motto I live by – heart over height. And then I try to impose my will on somebody each and every play, and make my presence felt.”

Bucs S Tykee Smith and Eagles RB Saquon Barkley – Photo by: USA Today

Bucs co-defensive coordinator Larry Foote shows his outside linebackers how hard Smith plays and demands that kind of play from his unit.

“I do not want to do that (talk about Smith to the media) in here, because my guys [have] been fining me, personally, because I talk about him a lot on tape,” Foote said. “I always mess with this generation, but he is one who could have played back in my day. He is mean, and I really challenge guys…You better watch his attitude, and you need that as a football player, especially if you [were] a guy like me. You need that extra edge to excel in this league and he plays with a chip, and you can see it.

“It is contagious, but I need more guys [to be] caught with whatever he has or being affected by whatever he has. I am pleased with him, and he likes the game, and you need that to be successful in this league.”

So where does Smith get that edge that he plays with? He was raised on the mean streets of West Philadelphia.

“I think it was where I grew up and then knowing my ‘why’ – what my family had to go through and sacrifice for me to be in this position,” Smith said. “I try to play with as much grit as possible as a result.”

When Smith asked Bowles to make him Whitehead’s replacement at strong safety in the offseason, Tampa Bay’s defensive mastermind knew it was a good idea.

“I’m not surprised,” Bowles said. “You saw it last year when we got him. You saw it the first day of practice when he just did everything like a pro and he kind of knew what he was doing out there, and he really turned it up a notch in the game. He’s been playing great football for us – one of our key pieces over there.

“[In Detroit], he played a hell of a ball game [with 13 tackles and a sack]. Nothing surprises me with him – you know he’s going to be there on Sunday to have your back. He’s one of [those] guys [where if] you go down an alley, you want to fight with and you know he’s going to be right there. He’s smart, very intelligent, he’s athletic. He knows how to play the game, and he’s got that old-school mentality. He understands what it takes to win.”

Bucs SS Tykee Smith and Lions QB Jared Goff – Photo by: USA Today

After transferring from West Virginia to Georgia, Smith helped the Bulldogs win two national championships for defensive-minded head coach Kirby Smart. It was Smith’s toughness, football I.Q., championship pedigree and production that made him a steal in the third round last year.

Between the Mountaineers and the Bulldogs, Smith tallied 215 tackles, 21.5 tackles for loss, five sacks, eight interceptions and two forced fumbles. He was a big-play machine in college, and he’s been that guy in Tampa Bay, too.

“In the moment I’m really excited – just to make those plays in the moment,” Smith said. “But then I definitely critique myself when I watch the film and see what I can work on to get better. Could I see the play faster? Instead of just getting a hit, could I have broken up the pass? Could I have gotten an interception? That’s what I’m itching for right now.

“But when I see myself on film, I see a dawg. Somebody that is going to play hard and show up with bad intentions.”

Yep, that’s what everyone in the NFL is seeing, too.

FAB 2. Bucs Defense Takeaways Train Must Keep Rolling

I tried.

I tried to give Baker Mayfield his flowers during a press conference back at the start of training camp when I asked him how great it is to finally be in the same offensive system for the second year in a row with Josh Grizzard keeping much of Liam Coen’s playbook intact.

I even prefaced my question to Tampa Bay’s quarterback by rattling off Mayfield’s astounding stats from his 2024 season: a franchise-best 71.4% completion percentage, 4,500 passing yards and 41 touchdowns, which ranks second in franchise history in a single season.

Mayfield didn’t bite. All he cared about was cutting down on his turnovers in 2025, especially his 16 interceptions, which was tied for the league lead.

“Yeah, it’s exciting knowing that we have the same system,” Mayfield said. “The starters are back, same guys, chemistry continues to build. Anytime you can have that — when you are on the same page – good things are going to happen.

“But, I’m more focused on the other stuff from last year. Sixteen interceptions, how can I elevate that? And that in turn, helps the whole team out, helps the defense. When we punt it, we want to get them down deep and let them drive. So, I’m more concerned about that specifically.”

Mayfield has definitely accomplished that so far this season. He’s only thrown two interceptions in eight games to help Tampa Bay get off to a hot 6-2 start, which is tied for the best in team history.

Bucs HC Todd Bowles and QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

Just as important, Todd Bowles’ defense is taking the ball away at a much higher rate than a year ago.

In 2024, the defense had seven takeaways through the first eight games, including five interceptions. Meanwhile, Mayfield and Co. had 12 turnovers on offense, including nine interceptions as the 2024 Bucs started the season 4-4.

After eight games, the Bucs were minus-5 in the turnover margin. They would finish the season at minus-6 and become the only playoff team in 2024 that had a negative turnover differential.

It’s been a completely different story for the Bucs so far in 2025. Turnovers on offense are down and takeaways on defense are up. Tampa Bay is plus-7 in turnover differential, trailing only Jacksonville (plus-8), Pittsburgh (plus-9) and Chicago (plus-13).

The Bucs have just five turnovers on offense – two Mayfield INTS and three fumbles. Bowles’ ballhawking defense already has seven interceptions, which was the team’s total in all of the 2024 season, including the playoff loss to Washington, along with five fumble recoveries.

The Tampa Bay defense has generated five more takeaways through eight games than it had at this point last year, and that’s quite a feat considering that the first takeaway didn’t come until the Week 3 win over the Jets.

WEEK 1 – Bucs beat Falcons, 23-20 – turnover battle even at 0-0
WEEK 2 – Bucs beat Texans, 20-19 – turnover battle even at 0-0
WEEK 3 – Bucs beat Jets, 29-27 – won turnover battle 2-0
WEEK 4 – Bucs lost to Eagles, 31-25 – lost turnover battle 2-0
WEEK 5 – Bucs beat Seahawks, 38-35 – won turnover battle 2-0
WEEK 6 – Bucs beat 49ers, 30-19 – won turnover battle 2-0
WEEK 7 – Bucs lost to the Lions, 24-9 – turnover battle even at 2-2
WEEK 8 – Bucs beat Saints, 23-3 – won turnover battle 4-1

Whoever wins the turnover battle in the NFL usually wins the game. Tampa Bay is 5-0 in games where the team doesn’t turn the ball over. And when the Bucs defense records a takeaway, the team is 5-1.

The Bucs defense is coming off its best game of the season in New Orleans where the defense had five sacks and created a season-high four takeaways, including a pick-six and a forced fumble by outside linebacker Anthony Nelson, who won NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Bucs OLB Anthony Nelson and ILB SirVocea Dennis and Saints QB Spencer Rattler – Photo by: USA Today

“I think definitely everybody is settling into their roles and understanding Bowles will put certain plays in and what he expects from those specific players,” Zyon McCollum said. “But also, I see [Jamel] Dean make a play, and I’ve got to go make a play. I see [Jacob] Parrish make a play, I’ve got to make a play. Tykee [Smith] sees all of us make a play and he has to go make a play.

“We know we can’t intercept every single pass, so we’re going to punch out the football. We’re going to go after runners as they’re going down, we’re holding guys up and just trying to find creative ways to make the takeaway because we can’t let Dean have all the fun.”

Cornerback Jamel Dean is leading the takeaway charge with a career-high three interceptions and two forced fumbles this season. Usually Antoine Winfield Jr. is the ringleader when it comes to takeaways in the secondary, but he’s hot on Dean’s trail after the Saints game in which he recorded his first interception of the season and recovered a fumble.

Bucs FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: Jeffrey Jones/PR

“If anybody wanted to make a play it was Antoine,” McCollum said. “He was on the sideline talking about it. ‘I’ve got to make a play!’ Then they called back the touchdown and he was like, ‘You can’t do that to me!” I’ve never seen Antoine that mad. He was really, really genuinely that mad – not just once, but twice. He just loves this game so much.

“But to see guys on the sidelines have it on their minds – everybody was talking interceptions, trying to punch the ball out. Now we go out on the field and it’s just 11 guys trying to wreak havoc.”

And it’s no surprise that Bowles’ defense ranks No. 1 in the NFL in havoc play percentage this season.

If the Bucs are going to beat the 7-2 Patriots, the 6-2 Bills and the 6-2 Rams in the coming weeks, they’ll need to continue to win the turnover battle – and that means continuing to take the ball away on defense.

FAB 3. Bucs Must Find Their Focus Again After The Bye Week

A head coach in the game of football has to wear a lot of hats. Roster management, game management, clock management and depth chart management are among the responsibilities – and then some head coaches call plays on offense or defense.

Another responsibility that head coaches must assume is that of a psychologist, and that’s an area that Todd Bowles has excelled at this year. The Bucs are 6-2 thanks to a hot 3-0 start, and have not lost back-to-back games so far. Bowles’ messaging to the team week-to-week has been spot on.

His message to the Bucs this week, coming off a bye and facing a 7-2 Patriots team was: don’t be the Lions.

Detroit came out of its bye week and suffered a home loss to Minnesota, 27-24, last Sunday. Head coach Dan Campbell took the blame for his team looking “rusty” after the bye week.

“It’s probably one of the worst games we’ve played in a while,” Campbell said. “We looked rusty… that’s evident that I didn’t have ’em ready.”

Kudos to Bowles for noting that on Monday when the players returned from having the bye week off. Bucs outside linebacker Yaya Diaby said that was Bowles’ message right off the bat.

“Coach Bowles stated ‘We don’t want to be that team,’” Diaby said. “We don’t want to be that team coming back from a bye like Detroit, and it all started with [Monday] . Guys focusing up and getting a little extra day to get an edge on an opponent.”

Bowles’ Bucs are 1-2 coming out of the bye week. In 2022, the team lost at Cleveland to Jacoby Brissett and the Browns, 23-17 in overtime. In 2023, the Bucs lost to the Lions at home, 20-6. Yet last year, Tampa Bay beat an overmatched Giants team at New York, 30-7.

Bucs cornerback Zyon McCollum said that Bowles’ message has the team’s attention.

“That’s exactly what he mentioned,” McCollum said. “He mentioned the Lions, and how they came out sluggish after the bye week. You know we’ve had our share in the past of starting slow when we’ve had a little bit of a break, or a team that’s come in that we think that we have the edge on and kind of not respecting them as much – we’ve learned from those mistakes.”

Bucs HC Todd Bowles and CB Jamel Dean – Photo by: USA Today

Bowles’ word at practice this week?

Focus.

Focus on the details.

Focus on doing your job and executing your assignment flawlessly.

Focus on continuing to take the ball away.

“It’s as simple as focus, really – focus on what we have to do to prepare, and then on game day focusing in play in, and play out,” McCollum said. “Not letting the hype or thinking, ‘I’m going to mess up’ or thinking, ‘My teammate is not going to be in the right spot,’ get you out of focusing on what you have to do. That’s been the biggest point of emphasis.

“When we’re playing together and all 11 guys doing their job, we look like an all-out good defense. It only takes a couple of people to get out out of that focus. And we’re getting back to that focus. We had a little bonus day [on Monday] and a full week of practice to get right back on that track.”

Bucs FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: USA Today

Bowles had the Bucs practice without pads on Wednesday, but then the team put the pads on for Thursday’s practice. And he was very demanding throughout the week.

“You know Bowles has been hard on us really, really hard,” McCollum said. “Even [Wednesday] in practice he was on us really, really hard about maintaining and keeping that intensity this late into the season. We know he’ll take care of us and our bodies, but he expects everybody to run around full speed, which is exactly what we’re doing.”

Bowles has done his best coaching job so far in Tampa Bay with this year’s 6-2 start. We’ll find out Sunday afternoon if he’s done his best job as the team’s psychologist, too.

FAB 4. Rattling Drake Maye Will Be The Key To Beating The Patriots

The New England Patriots are this year’s Washington Commanders from a season ago.

In 2024, it was veteran defensive-minded head coach Dan Quinn quickly turning around a bad Commanders team with a sensational young quarterback in Jayden Daniels. The Commanders were the NFL’s upstart, Cinderella team, making it all the way to the NFC Championship Game after a 12-5 regular season record.

This year, veteran defensive-minded head coach Mike Vrabel is quickly turning around a bad Patriots team that has been 4-13 the past two seasons with a second-year quarterback in Drake Maye. New England is this year’s surprise team with a 7-2 record, and Maye’s 17 touchdowns to just four interceptions have been a big reason for the Patriots’ success.

Patriots HC Mike Vrabel and QB Drake Maye – Photo by: USA Today

Maye will likely be without deep threat Kayshon Boutte, who is dealing with a hamstring injury, and starting running back Rhamondre Stevenson, who is also injured. He’s been the second-most sacked quarterback in the NFL this year at an average of 3.8 sacks per game.

Tampa Bay’s defense has 25 sacks this season, including 15 in the last three games. Pressuring Maye early and rattling him into some mistakes will be key for Todd Bowles’ unit.

“He’s talented – he’s special,” McCollum said. “I remember I was talking to my brother (former Eagles safety Tristan McCollum) last year and I didn’t think that he was going to be as good, and Tristan was like, ‘No, we played him – they had a joint practice with him when he was at the Eagles – we played him, he’s  special.’

“I didn’t realize he’s a sleeper dual threat quarterback until I watched the film, and his touch is really, really impressive. You know he throws the deep ball better than a lot of guys in this league, and he’s very composed. He can run, so it’ll be a great challenge for us.”

In addition to completing 74.1% of his passes, Maye has scrambled for 270 yards and two touchdowns while averaging 4.6 yards per carry. When the Bucs rush four or blitz they will need to do so with maintaining their pass rush lane integrity. If there’s an escape route to be found, Maye can find it and hurt the Bucs defense with his legs.

If there is a weakness along the Patriots offensive line, it’s the left side. Left guard Jared Wilson has given up four sacks so far and rookie left tackle Will Campbell, a top 5 pick, has surrendered five sacks. Look for Bowles to dial up some weak side blitzes to attack Maye’s blind side that have resulted in a pair of sacks for Jacob Parrish, and sacks for Jamel Dean and Antoine Winfield Jr. so far this year.

Bucs NCB Jacob Parrish and Jets QB Tyrod Taylor – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

In just two years Maye has lived up to his draft billing as the No. 3 overall pick in 2024. Is he a legit NFL MVP candidate? If he beats the Bucs in Tampa Bay – and the Patriots are undefeated on the road this year – that MVP conversation will only grow.

Bowles has made sure that his defense respects Maye’s ability despite a lack of abundant experience in the league. McCollum has certainly come around to appreciating Maye’s talent and ability.

“It was me being ignorant,” McCollum said. “He was coming out of college, and you know how you can sit around your boys and you’re like, ‘Oh, that guy’s gonna be good.’ You know? It was that kind of deal. And then he kind of shut everybody up. He’s been playing really good.”

FAB 5. SR’s Buc Shots

• Bucs cornerback Zyon McCollum is now the highest-paid cornerback on the team thanks to his three-year, $48 million contract extension that averages $16 million per year. Jamel Dean was making $13 million per year, but was forced to take a pay cut this offseason due to injuries and a lack of interceptions over the past two seasons.

But this year, Dean is highly motivated, as he’ll now be an unrestricted free agent in 2026. He’s leading the Bucs with three interceptions, which is a career high, in addition to two forced fumbles and his first career sack.

Bucs CB Jamel Dean – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“He’s living right,” McCollum said of Dean’s hot start to the 2025 season. “I told him, ‘Whatever you’re doing outside of this football stuff – keep doing that because it’s working!’ He said, ‘You know, Zyon, I’m going to keep doing it!’”

Dean has shaved his head this year. Was that the secret formula to his success?

“That could be it!” McCollum said. “If he gets to five interceptions, I’m going to think about cutting my hair!”

• Bucs head coach Todd Bowles now has two playmaking safeties as Tykee Smith’s move to strong safety to play next to Antoine Winfield Jr. has paid off. Smith and Winfield are basically interchangeable, play-making chess pieces for Bowles and the two have become extremely close this year with Smith’s position switch from nickelback.

“It makes us real dangerous the way we can play off each other,” Smith said of playing next to Winfield. “I think we do a real good job of playing off one another, thinking what the other one is thinking. We sit next to each other in every meeting and we’re always talking with each other about how we see it and how we’ll play it. Then we bring the energy for each other. He’s really helped me grow tremendously.”

• If you love Bucs defense like me, here is a collection of every Bucs takeaway so far along with a list of who has produced those takeaways. Tampa Bay already has seven interceptions – including two pick-sixes – in eight games, which matches the total from the entire 2024 season with nine games to go, along with six forced fumbles and five fumble recoveries.

Interceptions

CB Jamel Dean – 3
FS Antoine Winfield – 1
ILB Lavonte David – 1
OLB Anthony Nelson – 1

CB Kindle Vildor – 1

Forced Fumbles

CB Jamel Dean – 2
OLB Anthony Nelson – 2
OLB Yaya Diaby – 1
FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – 1

Fumble Recoveries

FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – 1
SS Tykee Smith – 1
ILB Lavonte David – 1
DT Vita Vea – 1
DT Elijah Roberts – 1

Don’t Miss These Must-See Podcasts!

Yours truly was a part of three must-see podcasts over the last two weeks. We had two legendary, Super Bowl-winning head coaches on the Pewter Report Podcast recently in Bruce Arians and Jon Gruden. Each episode was fantastic, so if you missed them make sure you go back and watch them this weekend. Just great Bucs content.

I also had the honor of being a guest on the Rondé Barber Show on WFLA along with Buccaneers.com senior writer and editor Scott Smith. That was such a fun episode as we gave a “state of the Bucs” address heading out of the bye week. I’ve included a link to that podcast as well.

And finally, make sure you tune into Pewter Report’s Pewter Pregame show at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday – just four hour prior to kickoff. It’s a great podcast to enjoy on your way to Raymond James Stadium if you can’t watch it live on our PewterReportTV YouTube channel.