The NFL offseason is also the ranking season for NFL teams, including the Tampa Bay Bucs. And no one has more talked about rankings than Pro Football Focus, which is one of the most widely respected analytics sites around. In an ongoing series they are ranking not only individual players, but positional groups as well. In their latest piece they put together the 2023 linebacker unit rankings and the Bucs fare very well.

Bucs Rank Ninth In NFL

The Bucs have a favorable ranking, placing inside of the Top 10 at ninth overall. Here is what Dalton Wasserman had to say about Tampa Bay’s unit:

“Another case of an ageless wonder and a struggling young player with big potential. We’ll start with the veteran Lavonte David, whose coverage prowess over the last decade is nearly unmatched. His 85.1 overall grade and 88.0 coverage grade ranked third in second, respectively, in the NFL in 2022. David enters his age-33 season in peak form.

Devin White’s first four years have been more of a struggle. He makes the occasional splash play and has proven his worth as a blitzer, but his struggles elsewhere have given the Buccaneers pause when it comes to handing him a contract extension. Since he entered the league in 2019, White owns the lowest grade out of 59 linebackers who have played at least 2,000 snaps. He was excellent during the Bucs’ Super Bowl run in 2020 but has never found consistency otherwise.”

David’s value is well-known to Bucs fans, as are White’s struggles. The two work well as complimentary pieces. PFF’s rankings don’t get into the details of depth, but if they did the Bucs may drop from that favorable ranking.

Bucs Don’t Have Top Billing In NFC South

Bucs LBs Devin White and Lavonte David – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

While the ninth place ranking is one to be proud of, the Bucs don’t rank highest among NFC South teams. That billing goes to the New Orleans Saints, which rank fourth in the league. This matches my own rankings that I published last week. PFF is similarly high on Saints linebacker Pete Werner which led to the favorable ranking.

Here is what Pro Football Focus had to say about Werner:

“Back in 2021, Werner had a tremendous rookie season that included an elite 91.0 run-defense grade. His performance fell off a bit in 2022, and Elliss’ breakout cut into his playing time. The 2021 version of Werner would have the Saints challenging for the top spot on this list. The 2022 version is more of a serviceable contributor than a star. His play will be worth watching this coming season.”

Some may (and frankly have, if you look at the comments in my article) question why the Bucs ended up behind the Saints. The reasoning surely came down to coverage abilities where the top billings for each team are both very good (David for the Bucs and Demario Davis for the Saints), but Werner has shown a more consistent ability in coverage than White.

The other members of the NFC South ranked considerably further down on the list. The Panthers linebackers placed 16th in the rankings, while the Falcons linebackers wound up 28th.