As the intrigue in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defense heats up this offseason, here is an equally hot take on linebacker and safety Deone Bucannon.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneer defense is gearing up for a massive overhaul in the 2019-2020 season. The Bucs have brought in a smart and aggressive defensive coordinator in Todd Bowles who will be the perfect teacher for a very young unit. In addition to coaches, the Bucs have spent a number of draft picks and free agent signings to further bolster the previously depleted ranks of their defense.
Devin White, Ndamukong Suh, Sean Murphy-Bunting, Jamel Dean, and Anthony Nelson are all new to the Buccaneers team and seem as though they will all be instant starters. In addition to these five there are also battles going on at safety and the defensive line, which also means more newcomers could obtain starting spots. While the Buccaneers are set as far as starting linebackers go, new addition Deone Bucannon may be set up for a comeback season despite likely being a backup at two positions.
Throughout his five year career Bucannon has done it all. He started with Bruce Arians at Arizona playing safety and taking snaps at corner. After a year of this and the safety competition becoming more competitive, Bucannon began taking reps at linebacker where he played the majority of the next four years. After his playing time began to take a hit, Bucannon followed Arians to Tampa Bay.
It is this wealth of experience in the secondary that gives Bucannon a leg up on other linebackers. His time playing in the deeper zones at safety have given him the skills necessary to play the coverage linebacker position very effectively.
In most cases, wide receivers are more agile and fast than running backs and this is good preparation for the incredibly shifty backs that populate the NFC South. This transition only goes one way in most cases as linebackers would tend to struggle in the coverages that a defensive back would play but not vice versa. Bucannon has the tools to provide help across the defense for the Buccaneers and play at a high level.