Getty Carlton Davis believes the Buccaneers are still a contender without Tom Brady.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers veteran cornerback Carlton Davis has a stern warning for the rest of the NFL — the Buccaneers aren’t going to disappear after Tom Brady’s retirement.
While speaking to Tyler Dunne of Go Long, the 26-year-old veteran revealed his and Tampa Bay’s aggressive approach to the 2023 season. The former Super Bowl champion goes so far as to say that teams are in for a “rude awakening” if they underestimate the Buccaneers.
“We’re about to do it to ’em,” Davis said. “Anybody who feels we’ve lost Tom — and lost something — is going to be in for a rude awakening. A rude awakening. Tom was a great addition for us, but obviously it’s a team sport. Obviously, you need components to be successful. We still have those components. And I’m only getting better.”
Buccaneers Lost Many Key Players in Offseason
Tampa Bay went through a reload during the offseason. Not only did they lose their best player in Brady, a number of key veterans left, including the likes of Leonard Fournette, Cameron Brate, Sean Murphy-Bunting, Mike Edwards and Donovan Smith.
Even with all of those veterans — all of whom were members of the Buccaneers’ Super Bowl team from the 2020 season — Tampa Bay still had a losing record at 8-9 and only won the NFC South due to playing in the weakest division in all of football. The three other teams in the NFC South finished with a 7-10 record.
While the NFC South is still arguably the worst division in the NFL, it’s definitely improved since last season. The New Orleans Saints added four-time Pro Bowl quarterback Derek Carr after relying on journeyman QB Andy Dalton last season. Furthermore, the Carolina Panthers added a franchise quarterback through the draft in Bryce Young and the Atlanta Falcons will feature Desmond Ridder, first-round draft pick Bijan Robinson and Kyle Pitts.
Carlton Davis Believes NFC South is Weaker
Despite the improvement within the division, Davis isn’t intimidated. In fact, he goes so far as to say that the NFC South is “worse” than it was before.
“And our f****** division is worse than what it was before,” said Davis. “So, we run through the division. Get to the playoffs. Run through the playoffs and it’s the Super Bowl.”
Davis predicts the Buccaneers’ defense will turn in many big plays this season. By comparison, the defensive unit from last season turned in just 10 interceptions — 24th in the NFL — and 20 forced turnovers — 20th in the league.
“We’re going to wreck s***. Like, wreck s***. Interceptions. Turnovers,” Davis said. “Plays will be made. I will say. Plays. Will. Be. Made.”
It’s worth noting that not only are expectations low for Tampa Bay this season, it’s to the point where some expect them to finish last in the division. In fact, BetMGM has the Buccaneers pegged at +15000 odds, the second-worst figure behind only the Arizona Cardinals.
A lot of that has to do with the fact that Tampa Bay will either start the inexperienced Kyle Trask — just nine career pass attempts — or Baker Mayfield, who is playing for his fourth team in the span of a year.
Via Dunne:
“Including the harsh reality now facing his 2023 Tampa Bay Buccaneers,” writes Dunne. “This is a team fully expected to implode post-Tom Brady. Speaking of gambling, the Bucs’ Super Bowl odds are +15000 on BetMGM. Only Arizona is worse. Nobody’s expecting a pulse from a team staging a Baker Mayfield vs. Kyle Trask quarterback competition this summer. Which… perplexes Davis.”
Davis is certainly entering the 2023 season with the right mindset. But until the Buccaneers prove it on the field, it’s hard to envision Tampa Bay ending the season as a Super Bowl contender.