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The Bucs have revamped several parts of their roster in various areas. No overhaul was bigger or will have a direct impact on Tampa Bay’s chances to be successful and make the postseason than what general manager Jason Licht did at the inside linebacker position.
There always going to be a changing of the guard with Lavonte David retiring, but the fact that the Bucs may possibly only have one player remain on the active roster that was here last season shows how different this team can be.
A lot of time was spent in free agency to address this, signing former Lions inside linebacker Alex Anazalone to be the new leader of the group. Veteran Christian Rozeboom was also brought partially because of his experience in the NFC South division, having some starts under his belt, and being a capable special teams player as Tampa Bay also made plans to boost that area of the team.
Bucs ILB Alex Anzalone – Photo by: IMAGN Images – Kirthman F. Dozier
But the grand prize in all of these adjustments comes from second-round pick Josiah Trotter out of Missouri. Trotter has been known to bring a “contagious energy” to his game while playing for the Tigers. He’s soft spoken at the podium but plays loud with his game. He’s a downhill player with excellent speed that can blitz and hit hard. That the model of a player that can work well with Todd Bowles.
Since the 31-year old Anzalone is on a two-year contract and everyone else is on a one-year deal, Trotter is the future of this Bucs team. It’s paramount that he can hold his own in his rookie season to eventually take the reins for a position synonymous with greatness in this organization.
Jason Licht Really Likes Josiah Trotter And Bucs’ ILB Depth
Bucs general manager Jason Licht appeared on the Pewter Report Podcast this week and shared his thoughts about Trotter and how the inside linebacker room is shaping up.
“He’s also a really, really smart player,” Licht said. “You can help when you go out to these practices, these organized team activities, how just the landscape of that position has changed with him and Anzalone and Rozeboom. We’ve got some bigger guys, they’re long. Trotter is very athletic, he looks very good going through bags, doing drills out here. We haven’t put the pads on yet, but we’re very excited.”
Bucs ILB Josiah Trotter – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
It doesn’t just end with Anzalone, Trotter and Rozeboom, though. Last year’s starter, SirVocea Dennis, is back for a contract year. It’d be a surprise if he’s starting again this season, but if he’s third-string or even fourth-string on this team, that’s a good sign. The Bucs also claimed John Bullock off of waivers, who was on the team last year in a special teams role. He and Nick Jackson will compete once again, while undrafted free agent Javin Wright is also expected to make some noise this camp.
The Bucs have a good problem on their hands. The depth is way better from top to bottom than it was a season ago, and they have more pieces to put together on special teams, to benefit a unit that struggled heavily.
“Voss looks good,” Licht said. “We’ve got a lot of depth there right now, and we brought back Bullock and got a couple other guys that we have on the roster so now that we added undrafted free agents. We’ve got some size there and we’ve got a lot of athleticism. The depth is going to be a lot better, our special teams are going to benefit from that. We’ve got Danny Smith, who’s been amazing. There are quite a few positions I think that we reloaded and helped stock up some depth that we’re excited about.”
Bucs GM Jason Licht – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
What was a glaring issue for Jason Licht and the Bucs last year could end up being a strength of the team this season. Outside of Trotter and two seasons of Anzalone, it’s not exactly a long term fix, but it’s the adjustment that Tampa Bay Bay needs for the time being.
Check out the entire interview that Pewter Report had with Licht, where he spent almost a whole hour on Wednesday’s Pewter Report Podcast.