NFL games are usually won in the trenches and over the past few years Bucs Gm Jason Licht has done a good job of building up both lines. The offensive line has tremendous depth with at least 7 capable starters, and now this past offseason it was the d-line's turn to acquire much needed depth. The Bucs added veteran Robert Ayers and drafted heralded rookie Noah Spence giving the Bucs defensive line more quality depth. Today at training camp we got a look at a possible rotation for the d-line as the first team was Ayers, J.Smith at end with McCoy and Mcdonald at tackle which is a quality starting line.
Then the second unit had Noah Spence, Howard Jones at end with A.Spence and Will Gholston at tackle which gives the Bucs a very athletic second group. The Bucs were rotating Gholston and N.Spence in with the first group as Gholston was being used at tackle and end usually during run situations while Spence was coming in with nickel personnel. It is going to be exciting to see how creative Mike Smith gets with his personnel as he should be able to put pressure on the qb with his front 4 especially in passing situations.
The Bucs can put N.Spence, J.Smith at the end and then move Ayers inside next to McCoy which gives you 4 capable pass rushers and one of them should win a one on one most of the time. Last year the offensive line became a strength of this team perhaps this year the defensive line becomes a strength as well, and if the Bucs want to make playoffs this year they are going to need a strong d-line. This d-line has everything from athleticism, strength, versatility, and most importantly quality pass rushers. To bring winning back to Tampa, this d-line will have to be one of the strengths of this team, or it will struggle to win consistently.
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