The Bucs are bringing back a veteran member of their 2023 playoff team. The 33rd Team’s Ari Meirov is reporting the team and defensive tackle Greg Gaines are in agreement on a one-year, $3.5 million contract.

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Gaines originally joined the team last year on a one-year $3.5 million deal after spending his first four years in the NFL with the Los Angeles Rams and gets an identical contract this offseason.

A former teammate of Bucs nose tackle Vita Vea, the Rams selected Gaines in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL draft. Last year he played a rotational role, filling in for Vea and Calijah Kancey when they needed breathers.

Multi-Faceted Greg Gaines Provides Bucs With Versatile Depth

Bucs DT Greg Gaines – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Gaines is able to play multiple roles along the defensive line, as he can line up as a 3-technique, or even as a 4i or 5t at times. But the Bucs prefer to use him mostly as a nose tackle.

He has not graded out as a great run defender over the past two years, posting Pro Football Focus run defense grades of 57.5 and 47.9 in 2022 and 2023, respectively. Interestingly enough, despite being a good run defense team, PFF did not grade most of the Bucs’ defensive linemen with good run defense grades.

He has shown an ability to rush the passer in the past, with his high-water mark coming in 2021 when he had 38 pressures while lined up next to Aaron Donald, but that skillset seems to have eroded as Gaines only posted 11 pressures and one sack last year over 277 pass rush snaps.

Still, his signing provides the team with a capable depth piece that can fill in for multiple players in a variety of roles. For his career, Gaines has 146 tackles, 11.5 sacks, and two fumble recoveries across five seasons.