Screenshot from The Rondé Barber Show, a WFLA-TV streaming production.
Rondé Barber continues to be in disbelief over the usage Bucs edge rusher David Walker.
Walker has been successful against the run and incredibly successful as a pass rusher. And, per Barber, Walker is the best Bucs outside linebacker when it comes to dropping in coverage, a hallmark of a Todd Bowles defense.
“He needs to be playing more,” Barber said for the second consecutive week on his WFLA-TV streaming show. “He’s got a twitch to him that YaYa [Diaby] doesn’t have, that [Rueben] Bain doesn’t have.
Barber detailed the stunning stats shown in the graphic above. “What are we looking at? Play this guy more,” Barber pleaded.
Asked why Walker isn’t a starter, Barber replied: “I don’t know. There’s loyalty issues, I guess.”
The loyalty comment intrigued Joe. The NFL is littered with massive egos, from coaches to players to front office types. The best players don’t always play. As The Sage of Tampa Bay Sports, Ira Kaufman, always says, “investiture” is a powerful force.
It seems sackless starting edge rusher YaYa Diaby could be a sacred cow of sorts at One Buc Palace.
Joe continues to wonder if Team Glazer sits around pondering what the Bucs record might be if Walker simply played double what he has. That would total half of Tampa Bay’s defensive snaps.