The Tampa Bay Buccaneers decided to roll the dice at edge rusher in 2024, signing veteran free agent Randy Gregory to a 1-year, $5 million contract in the preseason.
In return, Gregory never showed up.
Not figuratively, like he played bad, but literally. Gregory took the Buccaneers’ $1.1 million signing bonus and never showed up for minicamp or training camp. Never even called to say he wasn’t coming to work.
Some of the Buccaneers’ edge rushers who did show up for the entire season didn’t do much better than Gregory. Thanks to a valiant effort by Tampa Bay’s interior defensive linemen in Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey, the Buccaneers still made the playoffs for the fifth consecutive year, although they were upset at home by the Washington Commanders in the NFC Wild Card Round.
Without much salary cap space available in 2024, the Buccaneers need to get creative in bringing in a free agent edge rusher — they’ll likely use their first round pick on one as well — and 4-time Pro Bowler Matthew Judon might be the best bet after one season with the Atlanta Falcons.
Bleacher Report listed Judon as the “best value” free agent at edge rusher in free agency in 2025 — what might equate to a 1-year, $4 million contract from the Buccaneers.
From Bleacher Report: “The Falcons acquired Matt Judon last summer to spearhead their pass rush, and the results were, um, bad. His 5.5 sacks were his fewest in a full season since his rookie year. But it wasn’t that long ago that the 32-year-old logged 28 total sacks over two seasons with the New England Patriots. And in the right scheme, he can still make an impact, likely on a reasonable, short-term contract.”
Judon’s 2024 Struggles Reflected Falcons’ Struggles
While Judon might take accountability for not living up to his own standards during the 2024 season, it might be more indicative of what a dumpster fire the Falcons’ offseason and season ended up being under first year head coach and former Buccaneers head coach Raheem Morris.
While most of the Falcons’ drama surrounded the quarterback position, the real problem was the defense, as Atlanta finished 23rd in the NFL in team defense. Not great considering Morris was hired after 3 seasons as the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams.
It’s also important to point out that Judon’s 5.5 sacks in 2024 would have put him third on the Buccaneers behind Kancey (7.5 sacks) and Vea (7.0 sacks).
Buccaneers Likely to Add Edge Rusher in First Round
Athlon Sports’ Luke Easterling thinks the Buccaneers will add a player who could be the answer to their pass rush problems in his latest mock draft, where he has Tampa Bay projected to take University of Tennessee edge rusher James Pearce Jr. with the No. 19 overall pick.
“The Bucs are still searching for an edge rusher who can take over games and force opposing offenses to slide protections and extra blockers his way,” Easterling wrote on January 30. “Pearce hasn’t been as consistently dominant as you’d like, but all the traits are there, and he’s shown flashes of brilliance that prove what he’s capable of, and Tampa Bay could unlock his lofty potential.”
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