Getty The Tampa Bay Buccaneers air aiming to exceed expectations in 2023.
The new-look Tampa Bay Buccaneers have the advantage of heading into the upcoming NFL season will low expectations. Skepticism surrounds the team with Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine labeling Bucs first-round pick Calijah Kancey as a potential bust candidate. The NFL analyst picked one player from each team who could disappoint in 2023.
“Kancey is diminutive by NFL defensive tackle standards. At 6’1″, 281 pounds, he’s even slightly thinner than Aaron Donald was (6’0″, 285 pounds) when he came into the league,” Ballentine wrote on July 10, 2023.
“Kancey’s build and tape point to a player who is going to struggle to defend the run, as noted by [Bleacher Report’s] Matt Holder in his scouting report.
“‘The team that selects him will be looking for an interior pass-rusher who might develop into a three-down player with more time in the weight room. But again, that team will be betting on a big outlier,’ Holder noted.”
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Rookie Calijah Kancey Is Transitioning From a 4-3 to 3-4 Defense
Calijah Kancey was recently predicted by @BleacherReport to be the #GoBucs biggest bust in 2023. Most concerns were about his size.
Feels like a good time to share this epic Karate Kid reference by @thorku when discussing Kancey’s unique athleticism for an IDL.
Kancey heads into Tampa with the lofty expectations that accompany being a top-20 draft pick and is projected to be the Bucs starting defensive tackle. The rookie signed a four-year, $14.4 million contract and is slated to have a $750,000 base salary in 2023. Kancey will be transitioning from a 4-3 defensive scheme he played at Pitt to Tampa Bay’s 3-4 formation.
“I think I learned a lot of football schematically,” Kancey noted during a June 15 press conference. “Just understanding the new defense for me coming from a 4-3 in college to a 3-4 here. There are just a lot of movements and stuff like that. It’s just understanding football as a pro.”
Calijah Kancey Is Drawing Comparisons to Hall of Famer John Randle
Kancey notched 31 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks during 11 appearances for Pitt in 2022. The Bucs defender has his supporters including NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein who compared Kancey to Hall of Famer John Randle.
“Undersized, one-gapping defensive tackle who is explosive and productive,” Zierlein wrote in his pre-draft profile of Kancey. “He’s a strong and determined player, but Kancey is still going to be a hit-or-miss run defender due to his lack of mass and length.
“While he will get pushed around at times, his first-step quickness and short memory allow him to make tackles in the backfield. He’s a nightmare for offenses as a pass rusher.
“His twitchy feet can slide and reset points of attack. His leverage and motor are often too much for guards to handle alone. Kancey might be most effective as a rotational run defender and full-time, sub-package rusher, but his size will not define him in the NFL.”
Tampa Bay Bucs Head Coach Todd Bowles Is ‘Very Impressed’ With Calijah Kancey’s Intelligence
Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles cited Kancey’s football intelligence as a major reason why the franchise believes the defender will be a successful pro. Learning alongside Vita Vea as part of the interior of the Tampa Bay defensive line should help ease Kancey’s transition.
“He’s smart,” Bowles told reporters on June 14. “He’s a lot smarter. He’s not just a lineman trying to line up and do things, he’s trying to understand everything on the defensive line and the offensive line so he knows how to play. I’m very impressed with that.”