Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sign Free Agent Defensive Tackle from Los Angeles Rams
Despite a lack of financial flexibility, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have not only managed to re-sign some of their own key free agents, but now they've managed to lure some valuable depth pieces from other teams as well.
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After recently signing Chase Edmonds — formerly of the Denver Broncos — to add to his stable of running backs, GM, Jason Licht, decided to spend some additional dollars in order to help reinforce the team's lack of depth along the defensive line.
Gaines has spent his entire career playing for the Rams, and was selected by the team in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL draft. Even though he's just 26 years old, Gaines has valuable playoff experience, most notably from the 2021 season, where after knocking off the Buccaneers in the Divisional Round, the Rams went on to conquer the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI, where Gaines got to hoist the Lombardi trophy on his home field at SoFi stadium.
Not only does this signing provide the Buccaneers with some much-needed depth along the interior of their defensive line, but it also reunites Gaines with his former DT partner from the University of Washington, Vita Vea.
The season after Vea left Washington to join the Buccaneers, Gaines went on to win the Morris Trophy, given annually to the best defensive linemen in the Pac-12 conference as voted on by opposing players.
At the NFL level, Gaines has developed a reputation for being an effective interior pass rusher, where he has improved his level of production each season. After registering a total of just 2 sacks over his first two years in the league, Gaines has 8.5 sacks over the past two regular seasons.
Listed at 6'1", 312 pounds, Gaines has the size and athleticism to be disruptive within Todd Bowles' defensive scheme. Throw in his familiarity with playing alongside Vita Vea at the collegiate level, his Super Bowl experience in the NFL, and his year-to-year improvement since entering the league, and it looks like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers may have found themselves a diamond in the rough with the signing of Greg Gaines.
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