Major cog to defensive success?
A few weeks ago, the self-anointed sophists of football, the PFF tribe, tried to suggest Anthony Walker, not SirVocea Dennis, would be the starting inside linebacker next to Lavonte David.
Joe is comforted the PFF tribe monitors the Bucs so well.
At least one national chronicler of the NFL knows better.
Ben Solak of BSPN believes Dennis could be one of the pivotal players in the NFL this year. Why is that? Solak said Dennis was pretty good in pass defense in the games he played last season. And what was the Bucs’ biggest weakness last year? Pass defense in the interior, specifically when Dennis went down with a shoulder injury.
Solak said it was no coincidence that the Bucs stunk defending the pass inside after Dennis was sidelined.
When Dennis was healthy last season, he was fighting K.J. Britt for the starting linebacker spot opposite Lavonte David — and he was winning that competition. Dennis particularly impressed in coverage over the middle of the field, and after his Week 4 shoulder injury, the Buccaneers started getting hammered in the intermediate middle by opposing quarterbacks.
Tampa Bay passed entirely on the linebacker position in the 2025 draft and let Britt go in free agency. With only Anthony Walker Jr. as depth, the Buccaneers have clearly placed their faith in Dennis to play the majority of the snaps opposite David. Tampa Bay’s pass defense was the limiting factor in its postseason push last season, and Dennis should provide a boost there.
Everyone it seemed, and their brother believed the Bucs were going to select an inside linebacker on the first two days of the draft, including Joe. Clearly that didn’t happen.
Was that because of Dennis? Since that draft weekend, several people who toil at One Buc Palace for a living have stated both on and off the record that they are good with their inside linebackers.
Joe’s only problem with banking on Dennis is that he’s only been healthy enough since he was drafted by the Bucs in 2023 to play 17 games. That’s not remotely ideal, no matter how you slice it.
The Bucs are convinced after Dennis had shoulder surgery his shoulder issues are behind him. However, it wasn’t just his shoulder that sidelined Dennis for so many games.
With the addition of new outside linebackers and cornerbacks, the Bucs defense could see an improvement. If Dennis can stay on the field, there could be a big improvement.
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