[](https://www.joebucsfan.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Speed.png)Twice Joe wrote about inside linebacker E.J. Speed as a quality free agent target for the Bucs last year.
It didn’t happen. Speed went to the ferocious Houston defense on a 1-year, $3.5 million contract. Instead, Bucs fans were treated to the SirVocea Dennis experience.
Speed, 30, is a pending free agent again.
He was a rotational inside linebacker for the Texans (9 starts) and was lauded there for his fiery play and (gasp!) work on special teams. Speed had 62 tackles in 16 games.
In 2024, Speed had a whopping 142 tackles as a full-time starter for Indianapolis. He spent six seasons with the Colts after being their fifth-round pick in 2019 out of the Division II ranks.
Joe sees Speed — again — as a value-priced player who can produce. Perhaps Speed wants a team where he’ll get more playing time?
If Speed was good enough to start for Houston, that’s enough for Joe to hand him a Bucs helmet.