Buccaneers

Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles placed an emphasis on finding more pass rushers to complement OLB YaYa Diaby.

“[Diaby] was clearly our best pass rusher up front,” Bowles said, via ESPN. “I thought he had a heck of a season, especially in the second half of the season. He was one of our best players. He plays hard, he plays with a lot of energy, and we just have to help him out with the other guys up front.”

Tampa Bay also has a glaring need in the interior of their defense. LB Lavonte David is on the verge of retiring and LB SirVocea Dennis was inconsistent throughout the year.

“I thought [Dennis] got better as the season went on, especially in the run game,” Bowles said. “He can be a lot better.”

Buccaneers OC Zac Robinson had high praise for RB Bucky Irving, comparing him to Falcons RB Bijan Robinson, however, they do need depth behind him. RB Sean Tucker is a restricted free-agent and RB Rachaad White is an unrestricted free-agent.

“I see Bucky in a very similar light [to Bijan Robinson] there with what he can do in the passing game, and there’s not a run concept that he can’t run,” Robinson said. “So I’m excited to work with Bucky and know that there is a ton of meat on the bone in the passing game.

Lastly, defensive line is a position that Tampa Bay will likely look to upgrade this off-season. They didn’t do as good of a job generating a pass rush as they have in previous seasons and need to get more push up front.

“I thought it was a tough year, defensively,” he said. “It starts with me, because I’m the [defensive] coordinator as well, and the coaching staff, but we’ve got to rush better, and we’ve got to cover better. It works together. Sometimes the rush got there and the coverage wasn’t there. Sometimes the coverage was there and the rush didn’t get there. It’s not about the sacks — it’s more, for us, about the pressure and making the quarterback get rid of the ball and be incomplete. I don’t think we did that consistently.”

Falcons 

• Regarding Falcons OLB James Pearce Jr.‘s recent arrest, Albert Breer of SI writes that Atlanta must operate as if Pierce will be gone for “quite some time.” 
• As for impending free-agent TE Kyle Pitts, Breer writes that he’ll be in demand this offseason. Breer could see Pitts being a replacement for Chiefs TE Travis Kelce or being a fit for the Giants’ offense under new OC Matt Nagy. 
• If Pitts proves to be too expensive for Atlanta to retain, Breer thinks Browns TE David Njoku could be an option. 
• Breer is convinced that Falcons’ free agent RB Tyler Allgeier will receive a “nice payday” on the open market. With Bijan Robinson bound to earn a “megacontract” in the near future, Breer doesn’t think there is space for Allgeier. 

Falcons

Falcons OC Tommy Rees said QB Michael Penix, Jr. put a lot on film that he is excited to build upon, most notably his toughness and arm strength.

“Extreme arm talent would be the first thing, just from a film standpoint, that you see,” Rees said, via Falcons Wire. “I mean all the throws, outside the numbers, down the field, can throw with anticipation and can throw with great accuracy. He’s a tough guy in the pocket, man. I mean, he will stand in there and deliver the ball down the field. Like any young player, there’s always going to be areas for improvement and growth, and that’s what we’re so excited to get to work with Michael on. But I mean there’s a lot to really, really like on the film. I’m excited and eager to get ready to build that with him.”

Rees added that he’s extremely impressed with Penix’s demeanor and the mental aspect of his game.

“Had a chance to meet him and what a great young man,” Rees said. “Overlapped with some guys that I coached in college over different points of my career and everyone has always spoken so highly of him. You meet him for two minutes and you can feel that right away. I think you’re looking at a young player that’s really hungry and eager to get back out there and it’s our job as coaches to put him in a position to have success.“