Buccaneers defensive coordinator Mike Smith stated the obvious last week when he said that the team’s defense needs to be better than it was during a 5-11 2017 season.
It was obvious based on the way the Bucs played and by their offseason focus on adding pieces to the unit. Many of those pieces were added to a defensive line that’s been anchored by defensive tackle Gerald McCoy in recent years.
The Bucs have added Jason Pierre-Paul, Vinny Curry, Beau Allen, Mitch Unrein and first-round pick Vita Vea to the group this offseason, which McCoy sees as reason for optimism tinged with the realization that they can’t just show up and expect better results.
“Me going into my ninth year, we need more experience in the room and I am excited about it,” McCoy said, via the Tampa Bay Times. “It’s going to be good. Here’s the thing, the media, you guys see names and you immediately get excited. There is a lot of work to be done.”
There are new faces to integrate on the other levels of the defense as well and the ability to do so successfully will have a lot to do with how the Bucs fare in 2018.