Here is the latest on Kacy Rodgers, the former New York Jets defensive coordinator under Todd Bowles. The Bucs have been pursuing Rodgers to join Bruce Arians’ coaching staff in Tampa Bay as the defensive line coach, replacing Brentson Buckner. Rodgers and Bowles are close from their coaching days together in Dallas and Miami over a decade ago, in addition to New York most recently.

PewterReport.com has learned that Rodgers will be joining the Bucs’ coaching staff as the defensive line coach despite recently interviewing with the New York Giants. Buckner, who joined the Bucs last year to replace Jay Hayes, who was fired after Tampa Bay had a league-low 22 sacks in 2017, has signed with Oakland as the head defensive line coach. Buckner, who coached with Arians in Arizona from 2013-17, helped the defensive line improve and record 31.5 of the team’s 38 sacks this season.

Bucs DE Jason Pierre-Paul and former DL coach Brentson Buckner – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The 49-year old Rodgers went to school at Tennessee and played one year for the Pittsburgh Steelers (1992) and one year for the Shreveport Pirates (1994) before getting into coaching in 1994 at Tennessee-Martin where he coached the defensive line for five years. Rodgers has also coached the defensive line at Northeast Louisiana (1999), Middle Tennessee State (1999-2001) and Arkansas (2002) at the collegiate level.

Rodgers jumped the NFL in 2003 as the defensive tackles coach in Dallas and then took over the entire defensive line from 2005-07 before moving on to Miami where he coached the D-line from 2008-14. Rodgers joined Bowles in New York as the defensive coordinator from 2015-18.