There's little doubt that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going to win the NFC South and will probably run away with the division title. The NFC, however, is another story and the Bucs certainly have their work cut out for them when competing with the likes of the Eagles, Lions, Packers, and Rams.
One surefire way for the Buccaneers to get ahead of the competition is for them to swing for the fences ahead of next week's trade deadline. They could use help in the pass-rushing department and the trade deadline gives them the perfect opportunity to improve and make their team stronger.
One name in particular that would be a dream come true for Bucs fans ahead of the deadline is Giants pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux. The Giants have plenty of other pass-rushing depth on their roster and they're not contending this year but could be competitive next year if they get the right pieces for the 2026 season. Trading Thibodeaux would give them a chance to do just that.
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report listed Thibodeaux on his list of possible trade candidates and he put the Buccaneers as a potential suitor (along with the 49ers). In order to acquire the Giants star, Knox predicted it'd take a 2026 first-round draft pick, which would likely be a late first-round pick since Tampa should win the NFC South and hopefully win a few playoff games.
Bucs trading for Kayvon Thibodeaux would change narrative in NFC
Thibodeaux was the fifth overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft out of Oregon and had a monster second season in the league in 2023 notching 11.5 sacks. While he's come nowhere close to those numbers in Years 3 and 4 (which is this season), the potential is clearly there and Tampa could surely bring that out.
The Bucs pass rush actually has been pretty good this year, sitting in third with 25 sacks through their first eight games. That being said, would anyone complain if the team added more help, especially in the form of Thibodeaux? Probably not.
These are the types of moves that can help a team go from Super Bowl hopeful to true Super Bowl contender so Tampa needs to take the swing and go for it. Go big or go home, as the cool kids say.