Josiah Trotter didn’t make a lot of noise this preseason, but he kept stacking up the kind of snaps that get coaches’ attention.
The rookie linebacker closed the exhibition slate with an 80.5 defensive grade, good for fourth among rookie linebackers who played at least 20 snaps. Only Ohio State’s Arvell Reese, LSU’s Harold Perkins Jr. and Texas Tech’s Jack Kelly ranked ahead of him.
His best showing came against the Jets, where Trotter was on the field for just 15 defensive snaps but still posted an 82.4 PFF grade. He logged three total tackles, didn’t miss one, and earned a 78.1 run defense grade. The tape matched the numbers: he came downhill aggressively, forced ball carriers to redirect, and held his own when matched with tight ends and running backs in coverage.
Run defense was never the major concern for Trotter after Missouri. He put up an 89.3 run defense grade in his final college season and made his name with instincts and a willingness to attack gaps.
Coverage was the bigger question, especially after he finished below 50 in that area in each of his last two college seasons. Even so, Tampa Bay has kept giving him chances to show more.
That showed up when Trotter started next to Alex Anzalone in the Buccaneers’ first-team defensive look against Kansas City, a sign that the battle with SirVocea Dennis for a starting job has been real. Trotter has also said the game has started to slow down for him as he gets more comfortable in Todd Bowles’ defense.
For now, he’s looking like more than just an early-down thumper. That kind of all-around progress could make Bowles’ decision on a regular-season starter a lot easier.
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Across the division, the Falcons are juggling a different kind of quarterback conversation, with general manager Ian Cunningham talking through the teams current situation and the roster moves that have come with it. The broader NFC South picture also includes Carolina, where Dan Morgan has been addressing roster commitments, injuries and practice squad decisions, a reminder that every team in the division is still sorting out the same basic question: who is ready now, and who still has more to prove before the picture settles? [Read more 🡒]