Ryan Neal joins the Bucs this year after spending the last four seasons with the Seahawks. While Tampa Bay and Seattle don’t typically play each other too often, Neal got an up close look at his future team when the Bucs and Seahawks played in Germany last season.

The biggest takeaway he had from the Bucs’ 21-16 win over the Seahawks – the speed from Tampa Bay’s defense combined with the exotic looks that head coach and defensive play-caller Todd Bowles presents.

“They’re real pros,” Neal said. “One thing about the defense – they’re fast. They fly around. The linebackers are extremely fast. Play to play, they are just A-to-B like nothing. But [they’re a] really professional team, well prepared of course – everything executed great. That Germany trip was already a hassle – you all did it the best way, I’m not going to lie. It was fun, but boy it was a long trip for us. Playing in that game, the atmosphere was awesome.

“Just to have the chance to play against ‘12’ (Tom Brady) and a Super Bowl-winning team, it’s always a good thing to do. I had fun doing it and playing against the caliber of players here. Finally being a part of it is dope – I’m really looking forward to that, man. I love all the pieces that they have and like I said a moment ago, how can I add mine and make us even better? I’m looking forward to playing with everybody.”

Versatility Will Bode Well For Ryan Neal & Todd Bowles In Tampa Bay

Ryan Neal has the opportunity to play with a group that was the main reason the Bucs won the NFC South. On top of that, he gets to work with a head coach Todd Bowles that not only is one of the best play callers on the defensive side of the ball, but specializes in utilizing versatile defensive backs. Neal has loved what he’s seen on tape when studying the Bucs in preparation for other opponents.

Bucs S Ryan Neal – Photo By: Matt Matera P/R

“Even game-to-game, we’ll watch tape on them for the teams we would be playing and stuff like that,” Neal said. “One thing about [Todd Bowles] is he’s a mastermind. He never ran the same thing so it was kind of hard trying to figure out what was going on. It was like, who’s doing what? You don’t know who’s doing what, who’s going where. I think it’ll be really cool for me.

“I’ve done a lot of different things in our defense for the past four years – been in multiple positions. It’ll be cool to see how [versatile] I can be. I’m looking forward to the challenge, man. I’m always looking to see if I can affect the game anywhere – that’s always been a goal of mine. I’m excited to play for Coach [Bowles] – it’ll definitely be exciting.”

With OTAs and mini-camp around the corner, Neal plans on inundating entirely into the playbook as soon as it’s handed to him. When you have the type of scheme that Tampa Bay implements, you need as much time as possible to get caught up.

“I’m hitting that thing tonight if they give it to me if they give it to me, seriously. Like I said, [I] hate being new. I’d rather be caught up to speed as fast as possible so as soon as they hand me the playbook I’m going to be at home going, ‘Okay, let me get this right’ because I’m trying to figure this out so I play fast and just be the best I can be for the team. As soon as I get it I’m on it.”