John Romano: Buccaneers are in trouble if they don't find a pass rush solution soon

John Romano, Tampa Bay Times on Nov 19, 2025

Published in Football

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

TAMPA, Fla. — The numbers do not lie. Not exactly.

It’s more like they exaggerate. They tease and bluff.

When it comes to rushing the quarterback, the numbers say the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are one of the better teams in the league. Right there in the top 10 in sack totals, which should tell you everything you need to know.

Except, in this case, there’s more to the story. And less to Tampa Bay’s pass rush.

———

The game was nearing its end, and the outcome was still undecided.

The Bucs were trailing the Bills 37-32 and were facing fourth-and-2 at their own 39 with 7:28 remaining in the fourth quarter. ESPN’s analytics say the logical move was to go for the first down. Todd Bowles’ heart told him something else.

Bowles put his faith in his defense and elected to punt. About four minutes and 85 yards later, the Bills had scored a game-clinching touchdown. It was Buffalo’s seventh scoring drive in 10 opportunities. In other words, everything up to that point told you the Bucs defense was unlikely to finish the game as heroes.

“We figured we had enough time to get the ball back,” Bowles explained.

Now, you might argue that the defense had shown some signs of stepping up to the challenge. Had, in fact, intercepted 2024 MVP Josh Allen twice in the first half. But, like everything else in this story, there are extenuating circumstances.

The first interception, near the Bills’ goal line early in the game, was caused by a blitz from inside linebacker SirVocea Dennis. When the Bucs intercepted Allen again in the second quarter, it was also with a five-man pass rush.

The problem is that Allen is an elite talent. And attempting too many blitzes or stunts against that type of quarterback is an eventual invitation to disaster. The Bucs already were seeing that in the first half. When edge rushers Yaya Diaby or Anthony Nelson dropped into pass coverage while defensive backs or inside linebackers were blitzing, Allen began carving up the secondary.

So the Bucs began to rely more on three- and four-man pass rushes.

And thus began the defense’s collapse.

———

Bowles is loathe to criticize individual players publicly.

It may be a different story behind closed doors, but he is not going to embarrass players on camera. His outward criticisms are usually couched and non-specific. That’s why it was noticeable when he was asked Monday to assess the performance of his edge rushers this season.

“We need more,” he said softly. “We need more.”

For a franchise that once built its reputation around defense, the Bucs have struggled to find pass rushers for a very long time. In the last 20 seasons, Shaquil Barrett (in 2019 and 2021) and Jason Pierre-Paul (2018) are the only Tampa Bay pass rushers with 10 or more sacks in a season.

And the unusual part about that is the Bucs are third in the NFL in total sacks since Bowles arrived as defensive coordinator in 2019. It sounds like a riddle, but it’s really a reflection of how Bowles utilizes his resources. His willingness to blitz from any angle on the field — inside linebackers SirVocea Dennis and Lavonte David and defensive backs Tykee Smith, Antoine Winfield Jr., Jamel Dean and Jacob Parrish all have sacks — can make Bowles’ defense a handful against some teams.

However, the better the quarterback, the more likely you are to get burned by repeated blitzes.

That helps explain why the Bucs are fairly high in sacks (tied for 10th) and interceptions (sixth) but are 27th in passing yards allowed per game.

———

It’s not as if the Bucs have failed to address this issue.

Since 2021, they have used first- (Joe Tryon-Shoyinka), second- (Chris Braswell) and third-round (Yaya Diaby) picks on edge rushers. They also used a first-rounder on Calijah Kancey to solidify the middle of the defensive line. Tryon-Shoyinka was a disappointment, Braswell has underperformed, and Diaby has been a solid, if unspectacular, addition.

With the draft failing to yield an elite pass rusher, they’ve also dabbled in free agency. Akiem Hicks was signed to a one-year, $8 million deal in 2022 and produced one sack in 11 games before getting hurt. They tried again with two-time Pro Bowl pick Haason Reddick signing a one-year, $14 million contract this season. Reddick had 1 1/2 sacks through seven games before being sidelined with ankle and knee injuries.

Bowles has said multiple times that the issue with big plays in the passing game is breakdowns. That the pass rush might fail on one play, and the pass coverage fails on the next. That seems to be a generous way of sharing the blame.

The reality is Dean has been one of the best cover corners in the NFL this season. And Smith/Winfield give the Bucs one of the best safety tandems in the league. And Vita Vea has been one of the most effective pass rushers from the interior of the defensive line.

The issue is the guys on the edge.

And unless, or until, the Bucs come up with a solution, it could be a problem that haunts Tampa Bay into the postseason.

____