AJ Dillon, RB
Rather than spend the legal tampering period getting into bidding wars with other teams, the Buccaneers opted to hang back and take care of their own guys first. One of those players was Chase Edmonds, who missed a large chunk of last season due to an injury but is clearly someone the front office believes in.
Just because he’s back doesn’t meant the Bucs are done addressing the running back situation. Tampa Bay’s rushing attack was among the worst in the league last year, despite how electric Rachaad White was. Edmonds projects to be in the mix for the RB2 role but bringing in AJ Dillon and forming a three-headed monster could be what helps pull the run game out of the dark depths it’s been trapped in.
Dillon’s time in Green Bay is unquestionably over after the team signed Josh Jacobs, which is good news for the Bucs. The running back market is settling down and Dillon is still available, which means Tampa Bay might be able to get him at a reasonably discounted price.
What they’d potentially get in him is a complementary back to what both White and Edmonds offer. Dillon isn’t a pass-catching threat like White and is bulkier than Edmonds, which means he could give the Bucs a dynamic option in short yardage situations. That’s a spot the team struggled in last season, but Dillon being able to move the chains or serve as a goal line back might help open things up.
Liam Coen is expected to run a similar system to what he had in Los Angeles with the Rams, which also featured a few different backs in a few different ways. It’s a risk, as Dillon had a down year last season and has battled through injuries, but at the right price he might be worth the gamble.
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