Tampa Bay Buccaneers GM Jason Licht seeks defensive "nastiness" with new additions like A'Shawn Robinson and Al-Quadin Muhammed, aiming for aggression and improved play.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht doesn't want his players to be nice guys.
Off the field, sure.
On the field? Well, this is football, after all, and in a violent game, players, particularly on the defensive side, are encouraged to be "nasty," "mean," "aggressive," etc.
"I think the guys that we that we signed this year," Licht told Bucs.com in an exclusive interview posted Wednesday, "especially on the defense, kind of epitomize that. So we're excited about that."
The Bucs came into this offseason knowing they had to revamp their defense. The unit finished 20th in the league in scoring in 2025 and will need to improve on that to reclaim the NFC South. So, the Bucs got to work.
On the defensive line, the Bucs signed veteran tackle A'Shawn Robinson, who, just last season, helped the Carolina Panthers take the NFC South from Tampa.
In Robinson's first Buccaneers press conference, he talked about his longtime love of whooping opponents' you-know-whats, which lines up with the mentality that Licht talked about.
"That guy's an (expletive) to block," Licht said. "He's tough, he's strong. He's a big, big body. He keeps coming."
Robinson wasn't the only reinforcement the Bucs added to the defensive line. Tampa knew it needed to add to its edge room to assist YaYa Diaby, and the Bucs did that by signing Al-Quadin Muhammed from the Detroit Lions. Muhammed is coming off a career year in which he ended with 11 sacks, which would have led the Bucs by four.
At linebacker, the Bucs signed another former Lion in Alex Anzalone, a veteran who the Bucs saw a lot of when he played in the NFC South with the New Orleans Saints (2017-2020) and a little more of with theh Lions (2021-2025), who have played the Bucs three times in the last four seasons (including the 2024 divisonal playoff game, which the Lions won in Detroit).
Licht cited Anzalone's ability to play sideline to sideline and in coverage as things that appealed to the Bucs. Pro Football Focus rated Anzalone No. 23 out of 88 linebackers in coverage last season (65.3 coverage grade), and in 2024, he was even better, ending with a 72.1 coverage grade that's the highest of his career.
The Bucs GM described Anzalone as a "thorn in our side, because of the fact that he's really good," and excels in "some areas that we've struggled in in the past."
The Bucs signed Anzalone before franchise legend Lavonte David announced his retirement, and although it's official that David won't be playing for the Bucs in 2026, his presence both on the field and in the locker room is magnified.
It also helps that Anzalone is a Tampa guy. Although he was born in Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, Anzalone played at Florida and, after graduating in 2017, spent every offseason in Tampa.
"He really, really wanted to be in Tampa," Licht told a small group of Bucs reporters earlier this month. "Lives here, but also -- and he was being very genuine -- he wanted to play in Todd (Bowles') defense and do more things."
In that interview, Licht talked about the type of guys Tampa brought in-- and used some colorful language.
"We've stressed some high character, football character, but that doesn't mean we don't want some nasty (expletives) when they get on the field," he said. "But when we have a chance to get guys like (them) -- and Anzalone's also [one] -- to get those kinds of guys and the energy that they have ... when we had A'Shawn and Muhammad in the building, it definitely raised the level of intensity. It's going to be a lot of fun, I think, because they definitely are nasty [jerks on the field]. I'm looking forward to that. It was a bonus."
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