Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles prior to the game against the Buffalo Bills. Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Buccaneers’ 3 biggest question marks ahead of Falcons game

Originally posted on Tampa Bay Buccaneers on SI
By River Wells | Last updated Sep 1, 2025 2:21 PM ET

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are ready to go for their season opener against the Atlanta Falcons in what should be a fierce NFC South matchup. There's a lot to like about the Bucs — Tampa Bay is returning every offensive starter and has revamped its defense with splash signings like Haason Reddick on the edge. That being said, there are always some things to be wary of when it comes to any NFL team.

With Atlanta on the way, here are three question marks for head coach Todd Bowles and the Bucs as they gear up to start their season:

Depth in the trenches

The Buccaneers are lacking in depth on both sides of the ball when it comes to the trenches. Tampa Bay has only two backup linemen on the 53-man roster (Elijah Klein, Ben Chukwuma) and carried just five defensive linemen, leaving almost no depth at the position.

Practice squad call-ups will do the Bucs well in this respect, as players like OL Michael Jordan and DL C.J. Brewer are likely call-ups, but any injury could end up being rough for the Bucs in either of these areas. Hopefully, the team stays healthy during its game against the Atlanta Falcons, because if it doesn't, there aren't many players who can come in to assist.

Josh Grizzard's playcalling debut

Josh Grizzard is no stranger to this Bucs offense. He was the team's pass game coordinator last year, and he was largely in charge on third-down plays in a year that saw the Bucs boast the NFL's best third-down conversion rate. Now, though, he has to call plays, and the Bucs are hoping that he's good at it.

Grizzard's offense is the same as Liam Coen's, but his tendancies as a playcaller and his offensive philosophy is different. The Bucs are rightly confident in Grizzard and he's had experience getting his feet wet during the preseason, but now, the NFL world will really get to see how good he is at calling a full game.

The linebacker corps

The Bucs entered this offseason with a shaky linebacker corps, and they didn't do much to address it during the regular season. They brought in linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. to shore up the room, but the Bucs ended up releasing him after he spent the entirety of training camp injured and he went to Indianapolis to sign with the Colts. As it stands, the Bucs are only carrying four linebackers: Lavonte David, SirVocea Dennis, Deion Jones and John Bullock.

The room is unproven, and Dennis is set to start after two injury-prone years to start his career. The Bucs are riding on him performing well, just as he has in the short glimpses he's been healthy. If he can do that, Tampa Bay will have a solid corps with David next to him — if he can't, the unit is very thin.