TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS
(Sunday, Oct. 18, 1 p.m. at Raymond James Stadium)
Series: Steelers 10-2
Last meeting: Steelers 20, Buccaneers 18 (2022 at Pittsburgh)
Coaching: HC: Todd Bowles; OC: Zac Robinson; DC: Bowles; STC: Danny Smith
2025: 8-9, second in NFC South Division (21st total offense; 19th total defense)
The Buccaneers missed the playoffs for the first time this decade after a Jekyll-and-Hyde season. They went 6-2 before the bye and 2-7 after. The Buccaneers lost their final four games, against sub-.500 teams, while needing only one win for a fifth consecutive division title. The primary issues behind the collapse were injuries. QB Baker Mayfield threw 2 interceptions before the bye and 9 after, due in part to an AC sprain in his left shoulder and a knee injury that hindered his mobility. WR Mike Evans missed nine games with hamstring, concussion, and clavicle injuries. WR Chris Godwin and LT Tristan Wirfs missed eight and five games, respectively, with leg injuries lingering from the 2024 season. RB Bucky Irving missed seven games with ankle and shoulder injuries. The struggle to the finish line resulted in the departures of offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard and special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey, along with a couple of on-the-field heroes from the 2020 championship season.
Key returnees
* OT Wirfs struggled with injuries but was still named to his fifth Pro Bowl in his sixth NFL season. The left tackle is the foundational piece of a young and talented line that was forced into nine different starting combinations last season.
* S Antoine Winfield Jr. made his second Pro Bowl in his sixth NFL season. The free safety had 93 tackles and 2 interceptions last season.
* WR Egbuka caught 63 passes for 938 yards and 6 touchdowns to finish fifth in the Offensive Rookie of the Year voting.
Key losses
* WR Evans signed a three-year contract with the 49ers in free agency. The signing ended his 12-year career in Tampa Bay, during which Evans caught 866 passes for 13,052 yards and 108 touchdowns. Evans was a captain on the 2020 championship team. Jalen McMillan, a third-round pick in 2024 who spent most of last season on the reserve/injured list, is penciled into Evans' spot.
* ILB Lavonte David retired on March 24 to end a 14-year career with the Buccaneers. David made 1,716 tackles, including six in a 31-9 win over the Chiefs in Super Bowl LV. David was one of the defensive captains during the 2020 championship season.
* CB Jamel Dean signed a three-year contract with the Steelers in free agency. Dean, who will turn 30 in October, led the Buccaneers with a career-high 3 interceptions last season.
* DT Logan Hall signed a two-year contract with the Texans in free agency. Hall, 26, led Buccaneers defensive linemen with 39 tackles and 6 QB hits.
Offseason additions
* RB Kenneth Gainwell left the Steelers in free agency to fill the same backfield niche that he did in Pittsburgh, that of pass-catching complement to the primary runner, in this case Irving. Gainwell signed a two-year contract with the Buccaneers in the first 24 hours of free agency.
* ILB Alex Anzalone also signed a two-year contract within the first 24 hours of free agency. Anzalone, 32 in September, made 93 tackles with 2.5 sacks last season with the Lions.
* DT A'Shawn Robinson signed a one-year contract in free agency to replace the departed Hall. In his 10th NFL season, Robinson made 65 tackles with 8 QB hits and 2.5 sacks for the Panthers.
* OC Robinson replaces Grizzard as the play-caller, bringing his version of the Sean McVay offense to the Buccaneers. That should benefit Mayfield, who worked with Robinson when both were with the Rams in 2022.
Days 1 & 2 draft picks
Round 1: DE/OLB Rueben Bain Jr., Miami, was drafted 15th overall and is projected to replace Haason Reddick in the starting lineup. The second-team All-American and ACC Defensive Player of the Year is described this way by NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein: "Note taker, grudge holder and block destructor with a compact frame and defensive tackle play strength."
Round 2: ILB Josiah Trotter, Missouri, is projected to replace David on the first-team defense. The first-team SEC linebacker hails from the great Trotter family of linebackers. Father Jeremiah and brother Jeremiah Jr. also play(ed) in the NFL.
Round 3: WR Ted Hurst, Georgia State, is a 6-foot-4, 206-pounder who begins the Tampa Bay search to replace the 6-5, 231-pound Evans as an outside deep threat. Hurst caught 71 passes for 1,004 yards as a senior.
Familiar faces
Along with Gainwell, the Buccaneers brought the special-teams duo of Smith and Miles Killebrew over from the Steelers. Smith, of course, coordinated the Steelers' special teams the last 13 seasons. Killebrew was Smith's captain the last four seasons. Killebrew's knee injury in the sixth game last season ended his five-year run with the Steelers.
Matching up with the Steelers
The Buccaneers passing game begins its post-Evans era with a talented pair of receivers in Godwin and Egbuka. Of course, Evans was a mighty third receiver and won't easily be replaced. The run game will be helped by a healthy Irving, a more stable line, and the addition of Gainwell, who led the Steelers with 73 receptions and gained 1,083 yards from scrimmage last season.
On defense, Vita Vea, the 347-pound nose tackle, anchors the fifth-ranked run defense, but the Buccaneers ranked 27th against the pass and are hoping to replace the departed Dean with 2025 second-round draft pick Benjamin Morrison at cornerback. The three new linebackers will also need an acclimation period, although Bain will boost the pass rush.
