There is nothing to indicate the Tampa Bay Buccaneers don’t want a completely clean slate at inside linebacker in 2026 — something made crystal-clear by the franchise since the retirement of franchise legend Lavonte David in March.

Since David decided to retire after 14 seasons, the Buccaneers not only went out and signed a pair of starters at inside linebacker in Alex Anzalone and Christian Rozeboom, but also drafted another inside linebacker in the 2nd round with Missouri’s Josiah Trotter.

All of those things point to the Buccaneers turning the page at the position, and Bleacher Report’s Moe Moton tabbed the lone returning starter at the position — SirVocea Dennis — as the 1 player the franchise should look to move in a trade before the start of the regular season.

Dennis finally overcame injury issues that had dogged him through his 1st 2 seasons to start 16 games in 2025, during which his struggles in pass coverage became a problem for the entire defense.

“Although Lavonte David retired and his absence will open up snaps, Dennis may still be behind Anzalone and Rozeboom on the depth chart,” Moton wrote. “They’re both more experienced starters. Moreover, Trotter could be an early contributor. In his first year as a full-time starter, Dennis recorded 101 tackles (10 for loss), three sacks, five pass breakups and an interception, which are solid numbers while on the field for 94 percent of the defensive snaps. However, Dennis allowed three touchdowns and a 122 passer rating in coverage. Anzalone and Rozeboom are superior cover linebackers, and that will likely factor into the pecking order. As a two-down run defender, Dennis has trade value. The Buccaneers should move him with their upgrades in coverage at the position.”

Bucs Received ‘A+’ Grade for Signing Alex Anzalone

The Buccaneers received a rare, A+ grade from The Athletic’s Daniel Popper for signing Anzalone to a 2-year, $17 million contract.

“Longtime Bucs off-ball linebacker Lavonte David is a free agent, and he clearly took a step back last season,” Popper wrote. “David turned 36 in January. The Bucs get younger at the position by bringing on Anzalone, who is a superior athlete as he enters his age-32 campaign. Anzalone is fast, flexible, and fluid. He is slippery when evading blockers, especially as a blitzer … Anzalone is also a versatile coverage player. The one knock on his game is a slight lack of physicality as a run defender. But this is an excellent value deal for the Bucs at a position of need.”

New Draft Pick Son of Legendary NFL Linebacker

Trotter could very well be the linebacker of the future for the Buccaneers, if he’s not the linebacker of the present in 2026. There’s a chance he could displace Rozeboom in the starting lineup sooner rather than later.

“At 6-foot-2 and 237 pounds, Trotter is a downhill, instinctive player who rarely misses tackles and is a very physical run defender,” ESPN’s Jenna Laine wrote in April. ” … Trotter has only two years of experience playing college football (he just turned 21 two weeks ago), and he suffered a knee injury that required surgery at the end of 2025. He also missed his freshman season at West Virginia in 2023 with a torn ACL.”