Tampa Bay Buccaneers 53-man roster prediction after OTAs
By Josh Hill
Linebacker (9)
- Lavonte David
- Devin White
- Shaquil Barrett
- YaYa Diaby
- Joe Tryon-Shoyinka
- K.J. Britt
- SirVoccea Dennis
- Anthony Nelson
- Jose Ramirez
Next to the offensive line, the deepest position the Bucs might carry into the season is at linebacker. It could end up being the most difficult position to make cuts in since there seems to be such a surplus of talent from top to bottom.
Lavonte David chose to re-sign this offseason and will be back as a key defensive leader. Devin White requested a trade in April but has the incentive to play out of his mind this year to increase the value of the contract he'll be getting next offseason. There's a chance he plays hardball and sits out to preserve his health during a contract year but he has some questions he must answer on the field that would go a long way in getting him the deal he wants.
Shaq Barrett is coming off a torn Achilles and should be back to being closer to the player he was in 2020 than he was in the eight weeks he played last year.
What makes the linebacking group perhaps the most interesting on the roster is the depth of talent beyond the starters. Rookies YaYa Diaby and Jose Ramirez are sleepers who could have an impact at a few different positions, but SirVoccea Dennis could be the breakout star of the class. He was teammates with Calijah Kancey at Pitt and there's a pretty decent chance he stood out in the tape Bucs scouts were looking at of Kancey enough to convince them to spend a high mid-round pick on him.
As outstanding as the rookie class could be, don't forget about veterans like K.J. Britt and Anthony Nelson.
One guy to keep an eye on is Joe Tryon-Shoyinka. With the depth of rookie talent looking to make an impact, he's on the bubble in terms of being a guy who once offered great promise but failed to deliver on any of it. He and Logan Hall were separated by a year but both might find themselves pushed out by this year's class if they don't find a way to step up this season.