Can Calijah Kancey Save The Defense?
January 3rd, 2026
Returns today.
Joe has a bad vibe about this.
No, please don’t be confused. Joe thinks the world of Bucs defensive tackle Calijah Kancey. Had he not gotten hurt, Joe thought he was going to have a breakout season.
But he got hurt. And he wasn’t scaring many quarterbacks before he got hurt.
So it appears Kancey will play today when the Bucs face the Stinking Panthers in a do-or-die, win-and-wait game. The Bucs, even if they win, will have to bank on a slimy Saints victory over Atlanta on Sunday to back door into the playoffs.
But back to Kancey. Joe has a hunch Kancey showing up leading the cavalry is like the cavalry showing up to save a central Texas town the day after the Comanches raided the place.
Joe is not blaming Kancey, but the damage to the Bucs is already done. Joe doesn’t think the defense is suddenly going to snap to life and play shutdown football and put the quarterback on his backside (NO!) just because Kancey steps on the field in the final game of the regular season.
Would be nice. Joe would hope so. But Joe has a strong vibe it’s too late.