The Biggest Stat the Buccaneers Need to Reverse in 2026

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers cannot be poor in this area next season.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles walks around the field during warmups prior to a game against the Miami Dolphins | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a lot of different things they need to do to get better in 2026. They must improve on offense from the back stretch of last year, and Tampa Bay is trying to address that by hiring new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. Tampa Bay's ground game on offense has to improve, and general manager Jason Licht attacked that by signing Kenny Gainwell in free agency.

The defense, however, is largely cited as the biggest culprit, and there's some rationale to that line of thinking. Tampa Bay finished the year with a 19.8% pressure rate, per Pro Football Reference, which was good for just 25th in the NFL, and it was also the 27th worst passing defense in yards per game, per Team Rankings, giving up 238.2 passing yards per game.

There's a lot of work to be done. But all of that isn't as bad as one particular ranking the Buccaneers held last year, and that's red zone defense. And if the Bucs want to contend next year, they'll have to do a lot better in that area.

Buccaneers defense must do better in the red zone

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach and defensive coordinator Todd Bowles walks off the field during halftime | Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

To say the Buccaneers had a bad red zone defense is perhaps underselling it — they had the very worst red zone defense in the league in 2025.

The Bucs finished the season giving up a touchdown in the red zone at an absolutely staggering 69.77% clip, allowing teams to score a touchdown almost seven of every 10 times they went against the Bucs. That's obviously a huge problem, and it's something head coach Todd Bowles has to figure out if the Bucs want to be even remotely competitive this upcoming season.

So what makes a red zone defense bad? Everything in the red zone, particularly in the low red zone toward the goal line, is condensed, and that includes offensive and defensive formations. A lot of discipline is required when this happens, and that typically means communication breakdowns really can't happen — the margin for error shrinks dramatically, and if a team isn't prepared or isn't communicating when the defensive scheme gets compressed, breakdowns can happen early and often.

The addition of Alex Anzalone at linebacker, a veteran who wore the green dot and relayed plays for the Detroit Lions in 2025, should help with that aspect next year. Additionally, another edge rusher to add pressure and a disciplined linebacker to play alongside Anzalone would be a huge benefit, too.

Ideally, the Buccaneers wouldn't let teams in the red zone at all. But when they do, they have to be stout, and even being league average at stopping touchdowns would go a very long way in turning Tampa Bay's defense around.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram for the latest news.