Buccaneers: Defense set to be special in 2020 and beyond

I slowly said to myself outloud, “He did not just do that to Carson, I’ve got to see that again.” Moments later I did see it again, still scratching my head. In a couple of days, I searched for the video of it and probably watched it another 25 times.

It’s not that he just ran the 60 yards, but that he was 15-20 yards down line away from the play when Carson busted it loose. There was only one other player that even gave serious pursuit with White. That player was Vernon Hargreaves III and he was right behind White by a few yards, whatever that’s worth.

After saying that, I will add it was time for Vernon to move on, therefore opening up the position for the rookie Sean Murphy-Bunting to get in there and get some plays under his belt. Murphy-Bunting joined fellow rookie Jamel Dean, who only was three off the NFL leader in passes defended. Bunting himself tied for 22nd in interceptions with three. Not too shabby after only starting six games.

After seeing these rookies play in the 2019 Buccaneer defense, my assessment is that they are studs in training. Dean and Murphy-Bunting haven’t shown how good they can be yet. They are both going to get much better. Devin White is basically there now as he’s playing at an ultra high level, and he will only get better and more consistently great with time.