4 Edge Rushers the Buccaneers should target after Haason Reddick trade
By Rob Leeds
Marshawn Kneeland, Western Michigan
While many people are going to focus on the early rounds of the draft to find a guarenteed starter at edge, the Bucs were able to prove just last season that your top guy can come from anywhere if you just find the right player.
YaYa Diaby was the right player for Tampa, and this might embolden Jason Licht and company to look towards the middle rounds again if they see the right type of player. Enter Marshawn Kneeland.
Western Michigan DE Marshawn Kneeland has a Top-30 visit with the #Eagles, per @TonyPauline.
— Word On The Birds (@WordOnTheBirds) March 30, 2024
At 6’3” 267 pounds and possessing 34 1/2” long arms, Kneeland is a very powerful pass rusher with a high motor who always seems to have an impact on the pocket or backfield.
2023… pic.twitter.com/YlleP8TTUd
Kneeland isn't one of the names that you will see most people raving about as a franchise-changer, but that doesn't mean he can't come in and fill the role that Tampa needs desperately. The experienced defender from Western Michigan may not get the same hype as a Chop Robinson in the athletic freak category, but he brings enough to the table to find success in the NFL.
Robinson has experience under his belt after four years at Western Michigan, and while his stats may not jump off the page to the box score watchers, he was able to play the run extremely well and was able to still generate quarterback pressures even when they didn't end in a sack.
Kneeland probably wouldn't beat out JTS for the starting role in August, but it would be very interesting to see how he develops in Tampa's scheme as a guy that Todd Bowles would love to use in interesting positions (perhaps the smaller interior pass rush role in a four-man front that Bowles used Jason Pierre-Paul in).