The Pewter Plank
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Getting to know Mitch Unrein

By David Harrison

NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 29: Drew Brees #9 of the New Orleans Saints scrambles out of the pocket away from Mitch Unrein #98 of the Chicago Bears during the third quarter at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 29, 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 29: Drew Brees #9 of the New Orleans Saints scrambles out of the pocket away from Mitch Unrein #98 of the Chicago Bears during the third quarter at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 29, 2017 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) /
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It’s obvious now that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made improving their performance in the trenches a priority in their 2018 free-agency strategy. Signing Mitch Unrein from the Chicago Bears was just one example of this.

He’s expected to play defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but you could easily see him playing in a defensive end role if the team mixes in some 3-4 sets for 2018.

However, before you see him on the field, what is there to know about him off the field?

Unrein hails from Eaton, Colorado and comes from a fairly athletic family. He’s the youngest of six children in his immediate family and has two brothers and a sister who each participated in collegiate sports.

He’s also married to Olympian Corey Cogdell who has an impressive list of accomplishments including national medals, international medals and two Olympic bronze medals in Women’s trap shooting.

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Being added to the roster with guys like Ryan Jensen and Vinny Curry, while also coming in the string of signing guys like Mike Evans, Cameron Brate and Brent Grimes means most Bucs fans saw and moved past his signing fairly quickly.

Chances are, this isn’t going to bother Unrein in the slightest. While he’s come from an athletic background, he’s also come from being underestimated in sorts.

As a walk on at Wyoming, the defensive linman eventually earned a scholarship. Then, as an undrafted free-agent, he was first signed by the Houston Texans before being released.

Then, he had a shot with his hometown Denver Broncos which he converted into a roster spot and million dollar tender in 2014.

During the 2015 free-agency period, Unrein inked a two-year deal with the then San Diego Chargers but was ultimately released and signed by the Chicago Bears.

That’s what leads us to today. With the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Unrein is a versatile player. He’s a defensive lineman by position, but a football player by nature.

He’s lined up as a fullback, and even scored his first offensive touchdown against the very team he plays for now.

With 2.5 sacks last season for the Bears, many wondered just how he would help the pass rush. The simple answer is, he won’t. At least not directly. But he’ll do the other things his team needs to help improve the unit accross the board.

For those who enjoy hard-working no-nonsense football players, he should become a favorite of yours quickly.

For those who doubt his ability to impact the defense. He’s outperformed expectation before, so there’s no reason he won’t do it here.

"Check out the Locked on Bucs podcast discussing all of the team’s free-agent moves, and discussing just who will be the most impactful in 2018."

Let’s hope for his sake and the sake of the entire Tampa Bay Buccaneers organization he gets to add some hardware of his own next to his Wife’s impressive collection.

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