The Buccaneers’ pass defense need to improve.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers just had one of the more surprising performances this season. No one really expected anything from the team… or anyone from the NFC South, for that matter. So when the Bucs eventually won the division, no one batted an eye. They were the shiniest hunk of metal in the scrap yard. Shiny, yes, but still ultimately scrap metal.

However, their so-so standing hid their scrappy, underdog nature. Tampa Bay had a surprisingly solid defense and a tenacious offense led by Baker Mayfield, of all people. Mayfield’s offenses weren’t world-beaters like the Detroit Lions or San Francisco 49ers, but they were able to get the job done when they needed to. The Buccaneers proved their worth in the Wild Card round, where they knocked off the Philadelphia Eagles.

Their playoff hopes ended at the hands of the Lions, but they still put up a hell of a fight there. Still, despite the surprisingly deep playoff run, the Buccaneers still have a lot of work to do on their roster. Let’s analyze their roster to see what needs they need to address.

Buccaneers’ season recap

The Buccaneers had a pretty strong season, which is pretty surprising considering the expectations set on them in the offseason. After losing Tom Brady (for real this time!) to retirement, Tampa Bay was stuck in a rebuild. They signed Baker Mayfield as presumably a bridge quarterback while they prepare for a lengthy road back to relevance.

Instead, though, we saw the revival of Mayfield in the NFL. Cast off from Cleveland and a disappointing 2022 season behind him, Mayfield proved to the Buccaneers why he’s still a good quarterback in the NFL. The Buccaneers QB threw for 4,000 yards with 28 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. They aren’t MVP numbers, but that’s pretty solid. Mike Evans’ presence certainly helped as well, as he notched yet another 1,000 yard season.

The defense, while being mostly solid, still has some holes. Still, it’s worth noting that the Buccaneers’ unit was one of the better units in the league. They allowed the seventh-least points in the league and allowed the fifth-least rushing yards. There’s really one one weakness of the team, one that can be fixed in the offseason.

Buccaneers’ biggest need
At the start of the season, fans would easily tell you that the Buccaneers’ biggest need is a quarterback. Having a good quarterback is the first team to becoming a competitive team in the NFL. No one really believed in Mayfield’s ability to lead a team. After this season, though, the need to sign a quarterback has diminished.

Would the Buccaneers benefit by drafting a young quarterback or taking a flier on a young gun that’s fallen by the wayside? Perhaps. However, with Mayfield emerging as a solid option, the team can build the offense around him while working behind the scenes to find the future quarterback.

Wide receiver help is also an option for them to address, especially considering the Mike Evans situation. Evans is due for a new deal, but the Buccaneers might not agree with the wide receiver on a price point. If that does happen, they’ll need to quickly find a new WR1 for the offense. Even if Evans ends up staying, the team could surely benefit from that.

However, there’s a much more pressing matter at hand for the Buccaneers. Earlier, we mentioned the fact that the Buccaneers were one of the best point-preventing teams in the league. However, they are also near the bottom ten in yards allowed per game. What’s the culprit behind this bizarre trend?

Passing defense needs to improve
Well, it’s their passing defense. The Buccaneers gave up the fourth-most passing yards to their opponents in the 2023 regular season. Considering the opponents they played during that stretch, it’s certainly a worrying trend. Their inability to affect their quarterback (19.7% pressure rate) despite blitzing at a high rate (40%) makes them vulnerable to elite passing offenses.

It’s a problem that has two facets to it. We already talked about their pass rush a bit: despite calling a blitz almost more than anyone in the league, the Buccaneers just can’t get pressure on the quarterback. With how complicated offenses are in the NFL, pressuring the quarterback is paramount.

There’s also the matter of their secondary being… well, not good. The Buccaneers are allowing the second-most air yards in the league with 2680, a sign of blown coverages and/or DBs getting beat. To make matters worse, they also lead the league in yards after catch allowed. So, not only do they let wide receivers catch the ball, they also let the receivers gain more ground after catching the ball.

There’s plenty of ways for the team to improve their defense. Getting another elite rusher to get to the quarterback would be great. In theory, an elite edge rusher would lessen the need for designed blitzes, thus overexposing the secondary. Rebuilding the secondary completely is another good option, with star safety Antoine Winfield Jr possibly the only man to stay.

In either case, if the Buccaneers want to remain competitive in 2024, fixing their defense needs to be the main priority. They have the 2024 NFL draft and free agency to potentially sort their issues. Addressing other team matters is also important, but if they enter the 2024 season with the same defense… they’re asking for trouble.