AFC North contender named as potential landing spot for Joe Tryon-Shoyinka trade

While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers did a lot to try and answer some big questions this offseason, there are still a few loose threads dangling as OTAs get underway.

Antoine Winfield Jr., Baker Mayfield, and Mike Evans are all back after being pegged as priorities for the team in free agency. Lavonte David and Chase Edmonds returned as well, and the Bucs invested on the defensive side of the ball with additions like Jordan Whitehead and Randy Gregory.

The Bucs didn't go nuts adding players, which makes the swings that they did take even more notable. Gregory and rookie Chris Braswell crowd an edge rusher room that already has Joe Tryon-Shoyinka in it, and only further adds pressure on what could be a make-or-break season for the former first round pick.

Steelers could be a potential trade destination for Joe Tryon-Shoyinka

Bleacher Report put together a list of potential trade candidates this offseason and linked Joe Tryon-Shoyinka to the Pittsburgh Steelers. It wouldn't be the splashiest of trades for Tampa Bay, but it could net them an extra draft pick for Jason Licht to try and cook with next year.

It would also give Tryon-Shoyinka a potentially perfect landing spot to try and turn his career around under the guidance of Mike Tomlin.

For all the strange hate that Steelers fans give Tomlin, he's been nothing but a consistently steady hand in the Pittsburgh locker room. Bucs fans got a front row seat to just how good Tomlin is at keeping his players on the right track when Antonio Brown went off the rails in Tampa Bay.

Brown isn't the only player to have faltered after leaving Tomlin's nest, and Tryon-Shoyinka wouldn't be the first stray to find a proper home either. There's something about the way Tomlin is able to tap into the very best of his players that serves as a big reason why the Steelers have never had a bad year with him as head coach, even when the circumstances create a situtation that would sink almost any other coach in the league.

Todd Bowles has tried to tap into what the Bucs saw in JTS when they drafted him back in 2022, but there have only been brief flashes of the playmaker he needs to be. He only has 13 career sacks and posted a pressure rate of just 9.1 last season, which was down from an impressive 13.2 the year before.

Tryon-Shoyinka has been far from a disaster, but he's quickly getting boxed out of a spot on the depth chart and a meaningful role on the team. Both Gregory and Braswell are on the left side of the linebacking group, but it's hard to see either one losing snaps at the expense of keeping JTS in if he's struggling. Anthony Nelson is right behind Tryon-Shoyinka on the depth chart with Jose Ramirez and Markees Watts looking for opportunities to prove themselves as well.

An ideal outcome is Tryon-Shoyinka finally hitting his stride and developing into a playmaker for Tampa Bay. If that doesn't happen, a trade and a fresh start might be what's best for all.

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