Tag: Shaq Barrett

Bucs midseason grades: Defense

How do you think the Bucs defense has been?

Since the arrival of Todd Bowles, the Buccaneers defense has been a consistently strong group powered by a stout run defense and aggressive blitz packages. This year, the consistency of the unit has not been as evident, as the Bucs have allowed the fifth-most pass yards (2235) in the league at the halfway point, despite already having their bye in Week 5.

Tampa Bay’s defense has largely survived off high leverage plays, forcing 15 turnovers, and being one of the best red zone defenses in the league. Much of their struggles have stemmed from soft zone coverage, leading to more big plays than are typical with a Bowles defense.

The talent from the Bucs’ Super Bowl run is still mostly on the roster, but the consistency is not. With an offense diminished by roster attrition and a rookie playcaller, the defense has so far been unsuccessful in keeping the team afloat in a winnable NFC South.

Here are the midseason grades for the Bucs’ 2023 defense:

Bucs 2023 depth chart projections: Defense

Here is what the defense could look like for 2023:

For the first time since he became head coach, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers belong to Todd Bowles. Tom Brady is gone, and Bruce Arians’s influence has faded with the firing of Byron Leftwich. Now firmly in the driver’s seat, Bowles and his defense will come to define the Bucs in 2023.

On its face, the defense looks much like it has over the past few years, still boasting headliners like Lavonte David, Vita Vea and Antoine Winfield Jr. However, the guts of the defense, its depth, is not what it once was.

When Tom Brady was their quarterback, the Bucs could load up their depth chart with veteran backups and rotational players. That is no longer the case, and the Bucs will be much younger and less experienced as a result.

Here is the Bucs’ projected 2023 defensive depth chart:

Shaq Barrett believes he’ll be “ready to go” for Week 1

A potential Barrett return in Week 1 would be a big plus for the Bucs in 2023.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers edge rusher [autotag]Shaq Barrett[/autotag] is confident that he’ll be on the field Week 1.

Barrett recently appeared on the Loose Cannons Podcast, where he discussed his path to rehabbing his Achilles injury he suffered in 2022. He mentioned that he believes he will be recovered by the time the Bucs play their first game.

Here is what he said on the podcast:

“Just wanted to sulk in it a little bit. You know, all the questions you ask when something bad happens that you don’t want to happen. Physically now though, I’m good. I’m doing the rehab. I’m getting better. I’ve been jogging on the treadmill. Doing everything pretty much according to plan and on schedule. It might be a little slower right now because we’ve got a lot of time, so not trying to force anything. But I’m ready to go. I’m gonna be ready to go when it’s time to go. I’m pretty sure ‘time to go’ will be the first game. I don’t anticipate missing any games. I don’t anticipate being on any play counts. So, I should be ready to go for the first game for sure.”

Barrett’s presence for the first game of the season would be quite the boon for Tampa Bay, as edge rusher is a position where the team has sought depth. The team may also look to replace him in the draft eventually, too, so this could be his chance to prove his injury won’t hinder him as he comes back from rehab.

As it stands, Barrett is one of the Bucs’ highest-paid players. He has a potential out in his contract for 2024.

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Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett (torn Achilles) expects to be ready for 2023 season

Tampa Bay Buccaneers outside linebacker Shaq Barrett is recovering well from this year’s torn Achilles

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished their disappointing 2022 season with a 31-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in Monday night’s wild-card playoff game, and once again, the absence of their top pass rusher was painfully evident.

All-Pro outside linebacker Shaq Barrett suffered a torn Achilles earlier in the season, and missed the rest of the year on injured reserve.

Barrett met with the media Tuesday morning, giving a positive update on his recovery, and making it clear that he expects to be ready for the start of the 2023 NFL season (via Fox Sports’ Greg Auman).

With Barrett out of the lineup for the entire second half of the season, Tampa Bay’s leader in the sack department was nose tackle Vita Vea with 6.5 sacks.

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5 ex-Broncos made their playoff debuts in the wild-card round

Five former Broncos players made their playoff debuts over the weekend.

Five former Denver Broncos players saw action in a playoff game for the first time over the weekend.

Three of those players made their debuts with the Seattle Seahawks. After being sent to Seattle as part of the Russell Wilson trade, tight end Noah Fant caught one pass for 11 yards and defensive lineman Shelby Harris totaled three tackles in a 42-23 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Ex-Denver linebacker Alexander Johnson, who signed to the Seahawks’ practice squad in October, was elevated to the game-day roster for the Niners game and totaled two tackles. Meanwhile, quarterback Drew Lock was an unused sub against San Francisco.

In addition to Fant, Harris and Johnson, ex-Broncos outside linebacker Bradley Chubb (Miami Dolphins) and former Denver defensive lineman Adam Gotsis (Jacksonville Jaguars) also made their first career playoff appearances in the wild-card round. Chubb forced a strip sack and Gotsis recorded one tackle. Miami also had two other ex-Broncos on the roster in QB Teddy Bridgewater and WR River Cracraft.

Elsewhere in the playoffs, the Los Angeles Chargers (OLB Derrek Tuszka and CB Bryce Callahan) and the Buffalo Bills (QB Case Keenum and WR Isaiah McKenzie) also rostered a pair of ex-Denver players.

The Cincinnati Bengals (QB Brandon Allen) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (OLB Shaq Barett, on IR) also have former Broncos on their rosters.

The playoffs will continue with the divisional round this weekend.

Follow the Broncos Wire Podcast:
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Titans DT Jeffery Simmons provides bulletin board material for Chiefs’ offensive line

After watching the tape, #Titans DT Jeffery Simmons said he’s “very confident” that their defensive line can dominate the #Chiefs’ offensive linemen.

It seems that opponents haven’t learned their lesson when it comes to bulletin board material yet.

The Kansas City Chiefs are set to face the Tennessee Titans in Week 9 on “Sunday Night Football” in a battle between a pair of AFC heavyweights. For the second time this season, a defender for the opposing team has called out the Chiefs’ offensive line ahead of the game. Speaking on SiriusXM NFL Radio on Thursday, Titans DT Jeffery Simmons told Jim Miller and Pat Kirwan that after looking at tape of Kansas City’s offensive linemen, he’s confident in Tennessee’s ability to go out and dominate them.

“We know them. They know us,” Simmons said. “They haven’t changed. And honestly, we might be missing a couple pieces, but we haven’t changed, and the same with them. I watch tape. So I’m looking at the offensive linemen that we have to play against, and I’m very confident that we can go out there and dominate them. I’m looking forward to the matchup up front. Whoever it may be. (Joe) Thuney or Trey Smith at the guard position. But I’m very confident in our defense going out there and having a great day.”

Having a spot of déjà vu, Chiefs fans? That’s because Buccaneers LB Shaq Barrett made some very similar comments back in Week 4.

“I really don’t think it’s too much of a difference,” Barrett said. “I think we have a lot of favorable matchups. I think we really have an opportunity to dominate the game. I think we’ve got an opportunity to really impose our will as pass-rushers, as edge rushers in this game. We can really have like a coming out party. I know we had six sacks the other game, but we can really have a coming-out party as edge defenders in the position group for this game.”

After Barrett’s comments on the Chiefs’ O-Line, the team dropped 41 points on their defense that had allowed just nine points per game coming into Week 4. The Bucs still haven’t quite recovered from that loss either.

This clip of Simmons is already going around the locker room, with Chris Jones recently retweeting the clip of his comments on Twitter. Rest assured the offensive line has heard about it and will have a little extra motivation when they line up against No. 98 heading into this one.

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Bucs place OLB Shaq Barrett on injured reserve

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have placed Pro Bowl outside linebacker Shaq Barrett on injured reserve, ending his 2022 season

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have placed Pro Bowl outside linebacker Shaq Barrett on injured reserve, ending his 2022 season.

Barrett suffered a torn Achilles tendon during Thursday night’s 27-22 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. He was enjoying a dominant performance before leaving with the injury, tallying three tackles for loss and a sack.

Tampa Bay’s top pass rusher, Barrett will now look to bounce back at full strength next season, while the Bucs regroup and try to find ways to make up for his absence.

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Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett suffers torn Achilles, will miss rest of 2022 season

Tampa Bay Buccaneers outside linebacker Shaq Barrett will miss the rest of the 2022 season with a torn Achilles

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had their fear confirmed Monday, as an MRI revealed a torn Achilles tendon for Pro Bowl outside linebacker Shaq Barrett, per multiple reports.

Barrett suffered the injury during Thursday night’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens, and was quickly ruled out, which is rarely a good sign.

Currently riding a three-game losing streak, Tampa Bay will now be without their top pass rusher for the rest of the 2022 season.

Don’t be surprised if this news compels the Bucs to make a move before next week’s trade deadline to add another experienced pass rusher.

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Report: Bucs fear torn Achilles for Shaq Barrett

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers might have lost their top pass rusher for the rest of the 2022 season

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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost a third straight game Thursday night, but they might have suffered an even bigger loss that will last the rest of the year.

Pro Bowl pass rusher Shaq Barrett left the game in the second half with what was originally reported as an ankle injury, but the team fears a torn Achilles, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles confirmed after the game that it’s an Achilles injury for Barrett, but didn’t comment on the severity or prognosis.

That injury would obviously knock Barrett out for the rest of the year, on a night where he logged three tackles for loss and a sack before exiting.

This would be another huge blow to a Tampa Bay team that’s already falling far short of their lofty preseason expectations.

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Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett carted off with ankle injury vs. Ravens

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers might have to finish Week 8 without their best pass rusher

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers might have to finish Week 8 without their best pass rusher.

Pro Bowl outside linebacker Shaq Barrett left the game early in the third quarter with ankle injury, and was carted from the sideline to the locker room. He was quickly ruled out for the rest of the game, which usually isn’t a great sign.

Barrett already has a sack in this game, and losing him for any stretch of time would be a huge blow to the Tampa Bay defense.

Look for Carl Nassib and Anthony Nelson to split the reps opposite Joe Tryon-Shoyinka with Barrett out.

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