The Chris Godwin contract situation dominated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offseason, and rightly so, but the franchise was still working in the background on other deals.
One such move was for Haason Reddick.
With Tampa in desperate need of some pass rush help, the move for Reddick has gone under the radar due to his last season with New York Jets as he held out of all of training camp and even missed regular season games.
It can be hard to remember that Reddick was one of the best pass rushers in football just over 12 months ago, but for general manager Jason Licht, who was speaking on 95.3 WDAE, he knows what he's getting.
"He’s such a freak athlete, and he really knows how to get after the quarterback," Licht said. "54 sacks in 4 years, just one year removed from that string that he had where he was an elite guy. We had talked several times internally that if he hits free agency, this guy might be something that’s worth betting on because he is going to be very hungry to prove to everybody that he is still the same player that he was before last year."
A “freak” who is “hungry.” … 2 incredible words.
Reddick was one of the Philadelphia Eagles' best defenders before moving to the Jets, and well, the less said about that, the better.
Now coming to Tampa with a chip on his shoulder, Reddick will look to re-establish himself as a defensive force for Todd Bowles' unit.
With Reddick joining Calijah Kancey, Vita Vea, Lavonte David, and Logan Hall, the Buccaneers, who were seventh in sacks last season (46.0), now get some serious juice from a player who has a point to prove.
The offense is set, with new coordinator Josh Grizzard taking over from Liam Coen. Defensively, while there are still several holes that can be filled in the draft with the "freak athlete" in Reddick, the Bucs, on paper at least, have a pass rush that will give offenses nightmares.
