FAB 3. Suh Has Plenty Of Worth To Buccaneers

Bucs defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh has become a bit of a lightning rod in the Tampa Bay fan base.

There are those fans loyal to former Bucs defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, a six-time Pro Bowler, that didn’t want Suh to replace their favorite player.

Bucs DT Ndamukong Suh – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

There are those fans that embraced the signing of Suh to a one-year, $9.25 million contract that felt let down – like he underwhelmed in his first year in Tampa Bay.

There are also some Bucs fans that welcomed the signing of Suh and understood the type of impact he had despite some modest stats. Those particular fans would be in lockstep with general manager Jason Licht, head coach Bruce Arians and defensive coordinator Todd Bowles.

Suh notched 41 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 14 QB hits, a career-high four fumble recoveries, 2.5 sacks and a personal-best two defensive touchdowns last year and helped the Bucs field the NFL’s top rushing defense. Suh wasn’t brought to Tampa Bay to sack the quarterback. He was signed to occupy blockers to free up outside linebackers Shaquil Barrett, Jason Pierre-Paul and Carl Nassib to rush the passer.

Arians expressed his desire to have the Bucs re-sign Suh in his post-season press conference on December 30.

“He’s one of the top three,” Arians said. “You can start with Shaq, JPP – either one – and Suh. I want to keep this front seven together. They’ve proven to be pretty dominant.”

The Bucs wanted to part ways with Gerald McCoy last year after he refused to take a pay cut, and also because the team wanted a more stout, aggressive defensive tackle upfront to help stop the run. Suh had been on the minds of Licht, Arians and Bowles for months, and after parting ways with McCoy in late May the team signed Suh, who was coming off a Super Bowl appearance with the Rams, immediately thereafter.

“It’s huge,” Arians said during the football season. “When you have veteran guy, who’s been to the Super Bowl recently, and you put him a room and he really knows how to prepare, and he’s really pro – not just mentally but physically – how to eat, how to stretch, how to do all the things he does to take care of himself – it really helps young players.”

Bucs DT Ndamukong Suh – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Suh came to the Bucs with a reputation for being a nasty player, but that’s only on the field. It turns out he was a great teammate in the locker room and on the practice field.

“He’s been a model citizen – wish I had 10 of him,” Arians said.

Upon his arrival during the Bucs’ OTAs, Suh immediately made an instant impact, telling the defensive players to max out in practice against the run and helped the team foster a dominant attitude in run defense from the start.

“He has been unbelievable since he came in here,” Bowles said. “I didn’t know how intelligent of a player he was, not [having been] around him, but between him and Beau [Allen] in that D-line room helping out the other D-linemen, I think it’s been extraordinary from a help standpoint. Him understanding blocking schemes, taking up double teams and being able to move across the line of scrimmage has helped us a great deal. You can see a lot of guys that [have] been in the league for a while that only do things one way. He learns. He works hard. He wants to be better every day. You challenge him mentally, he challenges you mentally and he makes you want to be a better coach because he wants to be a better player.”

That’s pretty high praise from one of the best defensive minds in the NFL.

But how much influence has Suh had in Tampa Bay’s defense? Has his presence helped the team more than McCoy might have? With 10 other players on defense, including six other players comprising the defensive front, it’s hard to accurately measure Suh’s impact.

Bucs DT Ndamukong Suh – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Let’s examine the 2018 and 2019 statistics from the Rams, the Bucs, and also the Panthers to see what type of impact McCoy – the player Suh replaced – might have had in Carolina.

BUCS TOTAL DEFENSE
2019: No. 15, allowing 343.9 ypg.
2018: No. 27, allowing 383.4 ypg.

Tampa Bay’s defense showed remarkable improvement in yards allowed, not just from 2018 to 2019, but also as the ’19 season progressed. Suh played in all 16 games and was pretty consistent in his role as a three-technique defensive tackle.

PANTHERS TOTAL DEFENSE
2019: No. 23, allowing 374.5 ypg.
2018: No. 15, allowing 353.2 ypg.

Carolina’s defense fell from a No. 15 ranking in 2018 to No. 23 last year. Not all of that is McCoy’s fault, and the Panthers had their share of injuries. The Panthers finished last in the NFC South and a faltering defense was a big reason why.

RAMS TOTAL DEFENSE
2019: No. 13, allowing 339.6 ypg.
2018: No. 19, allowing 358.6 ypg.

The Rams defense had an odd year in 2019. The defense improved statistically, even with Suh’s departure, but defensive coordinator Wade Phillips was fired at the end of the season as Los Angeles failed to make the playoffs a year after making the Super Bowl.

BUCS SCORING DEFENSE
2019: No. 29, allowing 28.1 ppg.
2018: No. 31, allowing 29 ppg.

Tampa Bay’s scoring defense showed marginal improvement in points allowed last year. The Bucs’ young secondary had more of a negative impact in this area than Suh had a positive impact.

PANTHERS SCORING DEFENSE
2019: No. 31, allowing 29.4 ppg.
2018: No. 16, allowing 23.9 ppg.

Panthers DT Gerald McCoy – Photo from Panthers Twitter

Carolina’s defense got significantly worse in scoring defense with McCoy’s arrival in 2019, allowing almost another touchdown per game than the previous year. This was part of the reason why defensive-minded head coach Ron Rivera got fired before the end of the season.

RAMS SCORING DEFENSE
2019: No. 17, allowing 22.8 ppg.
2018: No. 20, allowing 24 ppg.

The Rams scoring defense showed a bit of improvement last year after Suh left.

BUCS RUSHING DEFENSE
2019: No. 1, allowing 73.8 ypg. and 3.3 avg.
2018: No. 24, allowing 123.9 ypg. and 4.7 avg.

If there were an area where Suh made the most dramatic improvement it would obviously be in run defense, which is Suh’s specialty. Tampa Bay went from having the 24th-ranked run defense to the league’s top-ranked unit by allowing 50 less yards on the ground in 2019.

PANTHERS RUSHING DEFENSE
2019: No. 29, allowing 143.5 ypg and 5.2 avg.
2018: No. 12, allowing 112.8 ypg and 4.7 avg.

Carolina’s run defense suffered with the arrival of McCoy, who is a better pass rusher than he is a run defender. The Panthers rushing defense plummeted from No. 12 to No. 29, allowing 31 more rushing yards than the year before.

RAMS RUSHING DEFENSE
2019: No. 19, allowing 113.1 ypg and 4.1 avg.
2018: No. 23, allowing 122.3 ypg and 5.1 avg.

Despite being a stout run defender, Suh’s departure actually coincided with L.A.’s run defense improving in 2019. The Rams allowed nine fewer yards per game, but more importantly, allowed one less yard per carry than they did in 2018.

BUCS SACKS
2019: No. 7, 47
2018: No. 19, 38

Bucs DT Ndamukong Suh – Photo by: Getty Images

Tampa Bay’s sack total saw a dramatic rise from No. 19 to No. 7 with Suh on the team. Yet Suh only contributed 2.5 of those quarterback captures, so it’s hard to gauge how much of an impact he had in this area. The arrival of Barrett, the NFL’s sack leader, certainly made more of a difference in Tampa Bay.

PANTHERS SACKS
2019: No. 2, 53
2018: No. 27, 35

McCoy is a better pass rusher than Suh, and notched five of Carolina’s 53 sacks. McCoy got half of his sacks in one game against Tampa Bay in London, but his presence on the defensive line helped the Panthers field the second-best pass rushing unit in the NFL in 2019.

RAMS SACKS
2019: No. 4, 50
2018: No. 15, 41

Suh’s departure coincided with the Rams actually getting more sacks in 2019 than the previous year. While Aaron Donald’s sack numbers declined from 20.5 in 2018 lining up alongside Suh to 12.5 last year, the arrival of Clay Matthews in 2019 and his eight sacks made up for the dip in Donald’s production.

Tampa Bay wants the 33-year old Suh back for another season to help stuff the run and continue to mentor the team’s younger defensive players like nose tackle Vita Vea. Instead of giving Suh $9.25 million in 2020, I expect the team to get him to agree to a little less – perhaps $7.5 million.

Bucs DT Ndamukong Suh and ILB Devin White – Photo by: Getty Images

Regardless of what Suh’s detractors might think, the Bucs will view it as money well spent.

“I think he’s played great,” Bowles said. “I think we’ve got more than what I thought coming in because I didn’t know how intelligent he was from a mental standpoint. Physically he keeps himself in great shape, obviously taking on double-teams, understanding blocks and getting off the ball. Helping the outside guys make plays is one thing, but his intelligence of the game, how he approaches the game and the way he prepares professionally – that I didn’t know about – has been a pleasant surprise for me. I’m happy to have him.”