The Buccaneers Most Underrated Player

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are one of the most overlooked and disrespected franchises in all of sports. Look no further than Lavonte David, one of the best and most productive linebackers in NFL history, has only ever been voted to one Pro Bowl. It is a team that consistently fails to receive the spotlight that they deserve.

So when looking at what Bucs player is the most underrated, then it should come as no surprise that there are a lot of candidates. Of course David is the answer if you’re looking at it from a historical perspective. He very well might be the most underrated player in NFL history and perhaps in all of sports.

However, my focus is more on the now. Looking at a group of really good players and determining which one most deserves more praise across the league. It wasn’t easy, but here is my most underrated Buccaneers player.

Honorable Mentions

I said there were a lot of candidates and I really believe that’s the truth. But there were two who deserve specific mention.

The first is right guard Cody Mauch. After struggling some as a rookie, he took a big step forward in year two. He is a very mobile run blocker who is a bit of an agitator. He also brings very good lateral agility in the pass game and shows off his college left tackle skills to mirror opponents.

The other is defensive tackle Calijah Kancey. While I do think he gets more credit from analysts across the league as one of the better interior pass rushers in the NFL, there is still a population of detractors. In fact, sites like Pro Football Focus (and fans who rely on such sites for analytics) consider Kancey one of the worst starting defensive tackles in the league when in reality he is one of the best (arguably a top 10 defensive tackle in the NFL).

The Buccaneers Most Underrated Player 

The player I chose is someone who could be argued as a top five player in the league at his position. Even more than that, he is a tone setter for their entire roster. If every player played with his mentality then every team would dread playing the Bucs.

That man is right tackle Luke Goedeke. The big man out of Central Michigan struggled in his first season after being moved to left guard. However, since being moved back to right tackle, where he played in college, he has thrived at the NFL level.

The first thing that stands out is his run blocking. Goedeke has both the power and mobility to push opponents around and get into space. On one of the NFL’s best offensive lines, he is easily the Bucs best run blocker.

Beyond the physical tools, Goedeke also brings the perfect mentality to play offensive line. He is a mean, physical, aggressive, agitator with a sprinkle of psychopath baked in who is looking to put opponents in the dirt whenever possible. He is without a doubt the Buccaneers tone setter on offense.

—

As a pass blocker you are looking at a brick wall. Running through Goedeke is a difficult task because he’s so powerful. He also brings above average lateral agility to seal off edge rushers from turning the corner.

I wouldn’t go as far as to call Goedeke a top tier right tackle in the game. That category is reserved for Detroit Lions Penei Sewell and Philadelphia’s Lane Johnson. Those two are the gold standard in the game today.

However, Goedeke is firmly in that second tier. The likes of Minnesota’s Brian O’Neill, Buffalo’s Spencer Brown and Carolina’s Taylor Moton are some of the best right tackles in the game today and the caliber of player that I would compare Goedeke to.

Goedeke is a very good offensive tackle. He’s a mauling run blocker, a tone setter and an above average pass blocker.  There is a real argument that Goedeke is a top five right tackle in the NFL and one of the best players on a star studded Buccaneers offense.