The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have done a tremendous job of building up their roster under general manager Jason Licht. Specifically, the defensive line has seen it be overhauled in recent years and now it is headlined by a two-headed monster in Calijah Kancey and Vita Vea.
But how much weight can they carry as Pro Football Focus continues their positional group rankings this Summer?
They have been breaking down the best position units across the NFL, and the Bucs have been highlighted several times for their roster. The latest group to be covered has their defensive line being placed towards the bottom at the 27 spot.
Zoltan Buday organized the rankings, and he explained his reasoning for why Tampa Bay fell so far down.
“While veteran Vita Vea continues to play at a high level and second-year edge defender Yaya Diaby’s breakout was a pleasant surprise in 2024, the Buccaneers’ defensive line otherwise lacks encouraging signs. 2023 first-round pick Calijah Kancey has failed to earn a PFF overall grade above 50.0 in either of his first two seasons and ranked only 99th in PFF overall grade among interior defenders in 2024.”
Call us biased, but this ranking seems to be a bit harsh.
The trio of Vea, Kancey, and Yaya Diaby is still young, and 2025 is poised to be a big year for the group. Diaby has talked about how he knows his production has to see an uptick, and Kancey is poised for a breakout season if he is healthy. Both of those paired with Vea being his usual self could see the Bucs making a sharp rise up the rankings this time next year.