Does Bucs ILB Coach Mike Caldwell Have Enough Depth?

There was a bit of a reunion on the Bucs’ coaching staff when Tampa Bay brought back Mike Caldwell to be their inside linebackers coach. Caldwell had coached with the Bucs from 2019 to 2021, winning a Super Bowl with the team, but then went to the Jacksonville Jaguarsd to be their defensive coordinator for two seasons followed by a stop with the Raiders last year.

In 2025 Caldwell is back in Tampa and also reunited with Lavonte David.  It’s been said that Caldwell’s return helped spark David’s decision to keep playing. But after that, it’s an entirely new room for Caldwell and Tampa Bay.

The Bucs have to decide who is going to start next to Lavonte David, and if they want to keep playing David every single snap or give him some time off on third down passing plays. The two players in mind are SirVocea Dennis, who is the stacked favorite to also start along with Anthony Walker Jr, who’s a childhood friend of David and has been training with him for several seasons.

Mike Caldwell Gives Take On Bucs’ Competition For ILB 2 & 3

Caldwell has one thing in mind that’ll make his decision.

“Competition, that’s the main thing,” Caldwell said. “We brought in a few players vying for that position, and competition brings the best out of us. We’ll line them up, let them go out there, they’ll compete, they’re already doing it. Whoever wins the job the other guys will be ready to have their role and ready to fill in when needed.”

He then gave his thoughts about Walker.

“Veteran leadership. He’s a guy that’s played in this league for a while,” Caldwell said. “He understands it, he understands how to play. He’s picking up the system and he’s a very heady player. He’ll go out there, explain something to him one time, he gets it and he’s able to make the adjustments and handle the coaching aspect of it.

Next he was asked about what he’s seen from Dennis.

“You see the talent. You see him making plays out there,” Caldwell said. “Small sample size but at the same time he has the ability to make plays in this league. He just now needs to get his body healthy, stay healthy and go out there and make plays.”

Fixing Bucs’ Pass Coverage And Working With Todd Bowles Again

If there was a glaring issue with the Bucs’ inside linebackers it was their inability to cover the pass, especially against tight ends. Some of that had to do with Dennis getting injured early in the season and K.J. Britt not having the speed to keep up. They feel they’ve upgraded with a healthy Dennis and having a Walker. So what will it take to improve the coverage?

“We just go back to fundamentals,” Caldwell said. “Go back to teaching different coverages, understanding your leverage, understanding the vision on the quarterback being able to break on the ball. Those are things that have been consistent around here and we’re going to continue to harp on those, just the fundamentals, go back, get set, break on the quarterback, pressure the quarterback with the front four, maybe five, maybe six, maybe seven. Just be able to go about it that way.”

Typically in his career, wherever Caldwell is, Todd Bowles is there too. That differed a little once Caldwell departed Tampa a couple of season ago, but they’re back again. Bowles has said Caldwell is like a brother to him. It didn’t take long for Caldwell to know what’s going on with the defense when he got back to the building considering the relationship between the two and what they’ll be able to accomplish this season.

“Familiar faces,” Caldwell said. “It’s like riding a bike. Once you’ve done it for a while the scheme is very similar. The terminology is still what is used to be, so easy adjustment for me.Not a lot changed, it’s just Todd’s going to be an aggressive guy. That’s what the defense is built around, being aggressive. He puts his players in positions to make good plays and he’s going to continue to do that.”