Danny Smith may end up being the Buccaneers’ most important offseason addition, even if he doesn’t get nearly the attention of the bigger names.
Tampa Bay spent last season getting burned on special teams again and again. The numbers told the story: five blocked kicks allowed and a No. 30 finish in kickoff coverage during the 2025 season. Those breakdowns didn’t always dominate the conversation, but they kept showing up in ways that hurt the Bucs week after week.
That’s why the hiring of Smith as special teams coordinator stands out. He arrives with a long track record in Pittsburgh, where he spent 13 years guiding some of the NFL’s best special teams units. He also brings a reputation for energy, and that matters in a room where buy-in can make all the difference.
Miles Killebrew, an All-Pro special teams ace, said getting the chance to play for Smith again was the biggest reason he signed with Tampa Bay this offseason.
Smith’s edge, though, goes beyond personality. His calling card is detail.
He is known for obsessing over every possible situation, making sure his unit is ready for anything that can come up on game day. That kind of preparation is part of why he has become one of the league’s most respected and longest-tenured coaches.
Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com put the team’s recent special teams struggles in blunt terms: "I'm going to define "big plays" on special teams as blocked punts or placekicks, kickoff returns of 40+ yards, punt returns of 20+ yards, turnovers forced and, of course, touchdowns, elusive as those may be for the Buccaneers in the last decade-plus. If you add these five categories up, the Bucs had five on their side of the ledger, while allowing 15.
Ouch… They allowed a league-high nine kickoff returns of 40+ yards while producing only one. No other team allowed more than six kickoff returns of that length."
Pewter Report also caught a glimpse of how Smith is trying to change the standard in Tampa Bay. The outlet noted the Buccaneers working through an onside kick recovery drill with different players rotating through the hands team, while both longsnappers and kicker BT Potter kept delivering kicks to keep reps flowing.
"The level of attention to detail from special teams coordinator Danny Smith… Bucs are practicing an onside kick recovery drill, rotating different guys through the hands team. Not just that, but the efficiency. He has both longsnappers and kicker BT Potter delivering kick after kick to maximize reps."
For a unit that has been easy to overlook, this could end up mattering a lot. Tampa Bay has made plenty of offseason noise on offense and defense, but special teams might be the area that changes the most. With Smith in place, the Buccaneers finally have a coach who can take a long-running weakness and turn it into something much stronger.
In Other News...
Buccaneers Suddenly Have A Benjamin Morrison Problem In Camp
Benjamin Morrison was supposed to be one of the Buccaneers young cornerbacks to watch, but injuries have already complicated that plan. The second-round pick from 2025 never really got rolling last season, and the same issue has carried into 2026 training camp, leaving Tampa Bay in a familiar spot of having to sort through its secondary without knowing exactly when, or how often, Morrison will be available.
Meanwhile, the competition behind him is not waiting around. Keionte Scott, Damarion Williams and undrafted corner Ayden Garnes have all been putting together strong camp stretches, which only adds pressure to a depth chart that still feels unsettled. For the Buccaneers, the bigger concern is not just Morrisons health in the moment, but what his absence means for his longer-term hold on a role that was supposed to be his to grow into. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Camp Is Creating Early Winners And Losers On Defense
Eight practices into training camp, the Buccaneers are already getting a clearer sense of which young defenders are pushing their way into the conversation. David Walker, Rueben Bain Jr., Josiah Trotter and Ayden Garnes have all turned heads early, giving Tampa Bay some encouraging depth looks as the defense ramps up toward joint practices with the Jets and the preseason opener.
Not every camp story has been a rise, though, and the early grouping of winners and losers is being shaped by availability as much as performance. Benjamin Morrison has been working through a nagging hamstring issue and has slipped behind in the outside cornerback competition, while Devin Culp has also had a tougher time keeping pace. For a team trying to sort out roles before the preseason games begin, those early absences can matter almost as much as the highlights. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Cornerback Depth Issue Is Fueling A Roster Push Fans Should Watch
Training camp depth charts have a way of changing fast, and the Buccaneers are dealing with that reality at cornerback. With Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish sidelined or limited by injuries, Tampa Bay has had to lean harder on the rest of the room, creating more practice reps and more visibility for younger defenders trying to carve out a role.
Ayden Garnes and Damarion "Pepe" Williams have been among the players getting that extra attention, and Williams in particular has taken advantage of the opening. The second-year defensive back already has NFL time with the Ravens and Seahawks, and he has been showing up in camp with plays that stand out to the coaches, which is exactly the kind of response the Bucs need while the position group waits to get healthier. [Read more 🡒]