One of the great Bucs tragedies over the past decade has been the lack of national recognition for linebacker Lavonte David. Despite being in the conversation for best linebacker in the NFL, David has been selected to just one Pro Bowl. He also has just one All-Pro nod. The Bucs are hoping that same fate doesn’t befall left guard Ali Marpet, who enters his seventh season looking for his first Pro Bowl.

“I hope so,” Bucs wide receiver Mike Evans said. “It’s well overdue. He deserves it. He’s the guy up front that year in and year out, he comes in and is very consistent. He is one of the best in the league, and he is interchangeable. He can play all three positions – center, guard and tackle.”

Evans has seen firsthand what Marpet has done over the course of his 91-game career. The Bucs captain was selected in the draft class before Marpet, and he’s watched the Hobart College product evolve into an elite player. The NFL’s lack of recognition for Marpet likely comes from being a guard on a losing team. But the Bucs are winning now – Super Bowl champs – and Marpet is starring in the process.

Entering Week 6, Eagles defensive tackle Javon Hargrave was on a tear. The powerful nose tackle recorded six sacks over the first five games of the season, but against the Bucs he met his match. Marpet handled Hargrave all game long, keeping Tom Brady clean. On the season, Marpet has surrendered just nine pressures and zero sacks, per PFF. He’s playing at an elite level on one of the best teams in the NFL.

There is little debate that Marpet has been criminally undervalued around the league for years now. But in Tampa Bay, they couldn’t think more highly of him. The lineman’s value was evidenced when the Bucs inked him to a five-year, $55 million extension in 2018. Marpet has started all but 11 games since the team drafted him in 2015.

Bucs LG Ali Marpet and LT Donovan Smith and Falcons DT Grady Jarrett – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The drafting of Marpet and left tackle Donovan Smith was the beginning of a new age for the Bucs offensive line. Maligned as a weakness of the team for years, Marpet and Smith’s steady growth has coincided with the rise of the unit. GM Jason Licht added Ryan Jensen in free agency and Tristan Wirfs and Alex Cappa through the draft to round out the group. But the change started with Smith and Marpet, and the work they put in to be great.

“Watching all of our units, just the way we communicate now – we’re a band of brothers,” Evans said. “Those big guys up front, they really came together this year. They had it in their minds to be one of the best offensive lines in the league, and they’ve proven that. They’re keeping Tom [Brady] safe back there, keeping him clean, giving him time to throw us the rock. We appreciate those guys. [They are] opening up big lanes for the running backs. They’re doing a great job this year.”

And it’s all led by Marpet, who is still the unit’s best, most consistent player. The only question is, will the rest of the NFL world finally notice?