A new Pewter Report Roundtable debuts every Tuesday on PewterReport.com. Each week, the Pewter Reporters tackle another tough question. This week’s prompt: What does Santa need to bring the Bucs for 2025?

Scott Reynolds: The Bucs Need An Edge In 2025, Especially On Defense

Former Bucs DT Ndamukong Suh and OLB Jason Pierre-Paul – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

This Bucs team has plenty of talent, but it lacks an edge. Tampa Bay doesn’t have a killer instinct mentality, especially on defense and that’s played a big role in so many games lost at the end because Todd Bowles’ unit couldn’t get off the field on third down with a key stop or get a timely takeaway.

The Bucs have more of an edge on offense with Liam Coen as an aggressive play-caller. Quarterback Baker Mayfield is a gritty leader full of swagger and toughness. Right tackle Luke Goedeke brings intensity and is the enforcer along the offensive line. Rookie running back Bucky Irving has brought some Chicago toughness to Tampa Bay with a hard-nosed running style that electrifies the crowd at Raymond James Stadium to the point in which they chant his name.

A team can never have too much of an edge, but where the Bucs need it most is on defense. There is plenty of talent on the defensive side with the likes of defensive tackles Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey, safety Antoine Winfield Jr., outside linebacker Yaya Diaby and cornerbacks Zyon McCollum and Jamel Dean. But what this team is missing is a gridiron assassin. A stone cold killer or two who bring fire and intensity to the unit, and the edge to finish off opponents.

Bucs general manager Jason Licht knows this and is actively looking for this missing trait on defense. Tampa Bay had those types of players before in outside linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul and defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, each of whom brought some nastiness to the defense and helped the Bucs win Super Bowl LV. Older Tampa Bay fans remember the likes of linebacker Hardy Nickerson and Hall of Fame defensive tackle Warren Sapp, who made the Bucs defense the most feared unit around the league in the late 1990s.

Licht traded for JPP and swapped out nice guy Gerald McCoy for Suh in free agency in 2019. But he might need Santa Claus’ help to find that type of edgy defender via the draft, free agency or a trade in 2025. The Bucs have plenty of players on Santa’s nice list, but it would be great to find a few who could reside on the naughty list, too.

Matt Matera: A Pass Rush From Their Outside Linebackers

Panthers QB Bryce Young and Bucs OLB Yaya Diaby – Photo by: USA Today

There was so much excitement about the potential of the Bucs’ edge rushers going into the 2024 season. Yaya Diaby was dominating in training camp and even when he was injured in practice, the belief was just get him to the regular season and he’ll be fine. There was optimism over rookie second-round pick Chris Braswell being the future of this pass rush.

Hope was sprouting around second year players Markees Watts and Jose Ramirez, especially after Ramirez had a hat trick of sacks in a preseason game. And even Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, who had not played up to his hype, was at least thought of in the sense that maybe he’d play his best in a contract year. Well…none of this happened.

Unfortunately Diaby has had a down year where he’s getting close to the quarterback but not getting sacks. He has 2.5 sacks through 15 games and it’s come as a shock to many. Braswell hardly sees the field anymore, having played two snaps on Sunday night. Watts has been on injured reserve while Ramirez has only dressed in four games and totaled 30 defensive snaps.

Tryon-Shoyinka has made no impact and has been playing less lately than Anthony Nelson, who’s been the only standout outside linebacker for Tampa Bay this season. Nelson’s three sacks lead all Bucs edge rushers and his forced fumble in overtime against the Panthers was a Top 5 play that the defense has made all season.

The inability of the outside linebacker to get to the passer has trickled down to the rest of the defense. Tampa Bay is relying heavily on defensive tackles Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey to get the job done, and while they’ve done really well, it’s eventually going to wear on them because their playing more than ever.

The blitzes don’t hit the same because opponents know it’s coming as it’s the only way that they generate pressure. Offenses are able to pick it up, leaving plenty of time for the quarterbackcs and less defenders in pass coverage, which has already been a big issue.

Looking at next season, they’ll need a bounce-back year from Diaby in particular. JTS is likely gone, but hopefully Nelson is re-signed for depth. That leaves a largely unproven Braswell and an even less proven Watts and Ramirez. The Bucs may have to dip into free agency to find their next top pass rusher, or spend another early draft pick on a player to get an upgrade.

Bailey Adams: Bucs Need An Inside Linebacker (Or Two?)

Bucs ILB Lavonte David and Chargers WR Ladd McConkey – Photo by: USA Today

I’d bet my Christmas presents that much of what’s on the Bucs’ wish list for Santa Claus relates to their defense, but an impact inside linebacker has to be near the top of that list. And not to get to greedy during a season of giving, but if Mr. Claus could make it two impact inside linebackers – maybe one via free agency and another through the draft – that would be a true Christmas miracle that Tampa Bay would be very thankful for in 2025 and beyond.

The state of the Bucs’ linebacking corps is dire right now, as K.J. Britt has been a disappointment in 2024 and team legend Lavonte David is showing signs of being near the end of his days in the NFL, particularly in terms of pass coverage. David is set to hit free agency after this season and after going year-to-year for the last few contracts, he may be ready to call it a career.

So, as much as Tampa Bay needs a more productive pass rush and some depth in the secondary, it would be nice if Santa’s elves could get working on some linebackers for the Buccaneer defense to rally around going forward. At the very least, the Bucs will need one playmaking, assignment-sound linebacker to play alongside SirVocea Dennis, who will is recovering from shoulder surgery. But Tampa Bay hasn’t been able to rely on Dennis to stay healthy, as he missed time during the preseason as a rookie in 2023 and was limited to 13 regular season games before playing just four games this year before missing the rest of the campaign with a shoulder injury.

For the first time in a long time with this franchise, the future of the inside linebacker position is unclear. If Santa can work some of his magic and clear some of that picture up, the Bucs will be much better off for it next season.

Josh Queipo: An Impact Free Agent And A High-Upside Trade

Bucs GM Jason Licht – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R

Jason Licht has built a sustainable winner primarily through his impressive drafting. Eight of his 11 offensive starters and all 11 of his defensive starters were drafted by the Bucs. While that is a commendable strategy that is the envy of most of the NFL, he could use some help in the form of additional roster building steps.

After trying to maximize the team’s Super Bowl window during the Tom Brady years, Licht has had to be very judicious in bringing in external talent. In 2023 he took a chance on Baker Mayfield and hit big. Mayfield had an incredible bounce-back campaign and earned a $100 million contract. This year Licht focused primarily on retaining exiting players but did try a reunion with former safety Jordan Whitehead. That move has not had the same impact as the Mayfield addition. But the unheralded signing of left guard Ben Bredeson has helped turn the Bucs’ offensive line into a real weapon.

Looking back at the 2020 Super Bowl roster and you can see a team that was built through all the major facets of team building. Yes, the roster was primarily developed through the draft. Eight of the Bucs’ 11 defensive starters and six of their offensive starters were drafted by Tampa Bay. But six of those other eight players – quarterback Tom Brady, running back Leonard Fournette, wide receiver Antonio Brown, center Ryan Jensen, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh, and outside linebacker Shaq Barrett – were free agent signings that helped put the team over the top.

And the final two pieces of the jigsaw puzzle – outside linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul and tight end Rob Gronkowski – were critical additions via trade for the low, low price of a third- and fourth-round pick. My colleagues have identified specific roster needs that are essential upgrades this off-season. The team needs to improve at inside linebacker, more depth at cornerback, and a finding a No. 1 edge rusher. You aren’t going to get all of that in the first year of even an historic draft. The Bucs should have more money to spend in 2025.

This team is on the precipice of greatness. Now is the time for Licht to finish the roster in a similar way as the 2020 Super Bowl team and fill in the gaps through alternative roster building methods. Pass rushers Maxx Crosby and Trey Hendrickson could be available via trade from teams either re-building or a team unwilling to pay them. Others will be available as well. Go get them, Jason.

Adam Slivon: A Younger Defensive Coaching Staff

Bucs OLB coach George Edwards and OLBs Yaya Diaby and Jose Ramirez – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Liam Coen was not the only bright offensive mind the Bucs added this offseason. After hiring Coen, the team brought in pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard (34 years old), wide receivers coach Bryan McClendon (40), offensive line coach Kevin Carberry (41), and tight ends coach Justin Peelle (45). Each of these young coaches have helped the offense and its position groups and served as a much-needed refresh to the coaching staff.

Going into 2025, Tampa Bay should have put that on their Christmas wish list to happen on the defensive side of the football. Regardless of whether head coach Todd Bowles is back next season, several defensive coaches should not be.

Although Larry Foote and Kacy Rodgers have not been bad, one wonders if having just one defensive coordinator would help get the message across more succinctly. For outside linebackers coach George Edwards (57), cornerbacks coach Kevin Ross (62), and safeties coach Nick Rapone (68), that means being let go to bring in fresh young minds and perspectives that can get the most out of the player personnel. Keeping nickelbacks coach Rashad Johnson (38) seems like a must given how well Tykee Smith has performed as a rookie.

All season, the outside linebackers have struggled to generate sacks and pressures and the development of the younger players in the room has been stunted. See Yaya Diaby, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Chris Braswell, Jose Ramirez, and Markees Watts. The cornerback room has had its fair share of injuries but has long lacked the playmaking chops to make a difference. Antoine Winfield Jr. has disappointed and has been injury-plagued this season, but Jordan Whitehead also struggled before suffering a season-ending injury and the backups have not fared well.

It comes down to the players on the field but is also a product of coaching methods that have yielded little results. A big theme throughout the year has been the defense’s struggles to communicate, tackle, and lapses in coverage, especially across the middle of the field. Bowles has done what he can with the players that he has, but at the end of the day, the unit is his responsibility as a defensive-minded head coach and it falls back on him. With the offense and its coaching staff having been built out over the span of a season and highly productive, the team should hope a younger defensive coaching staff is gifted to them and does the same.