Final Buccaneers 53 man roster predictions: Who makes the cut and who doesn’t?

Outside Linebacker (6)

A close second in the most chip-on-the-shoulder unit is the outside linebackers. Much like the defensive line, the whole group is made up of guys with something to prove and the talent to seemingly do so.

Shaq Barrett headlines the group but is coming off an injury-shortened season last year. It seems to be forgotten how important he was to the Bucs Super Bowl-winning defense. He’s further away from his prime now than he was then, but there’s still Pro Bowl talent in Barrett’s tank, and the Bucs need him to find a way to find that gear.

Joe Tyron-Shoyinka is the Logan Hall of the linebacking group, but unlike his teammate there’s a make-or-break element to his season. Tryon-Soyinka has largely failed to make any sort of meaningful impact since being drafted in the first round back in 2021, and it feels like he might be running out of time to change that.

Cam Gill and Anthony Nelson project to be important depth pieces, and are both returning from last year’s team. It’s a pair of newcomers who pique the most interest in this group. Rookies YaYa Diaby and Markees Watts have very different paths to the Bucs final roster but could both elevate themselves as key members of the defense this season. Diaby was a Day 2 pick for the Bucs back in April while Watts is one of the many undrafted rookies who made a big at training camp.

It could be that nothing goes right and the outside linebackers are a liability this year for Todd Bowles. That doesn’t pass the smell test, though, and there’s enough talent in this group that somebody pops and turns out to be a difference maker.