Vita Vea isn’t just talking about staying in Tampa Bay - he’s talking like a guy who already knows where home is.
The Buccaneers defensive tackle said he never wanted to be traded and made it clear he wants to spend his career with the team. “They say home is where the heart is. I feel like my heart is in Tampa.”
Vea also used the moment to back up head coach Todd Bowles in a big way. He said he would retire if Bowles were no longer around and pushed back on any suggestion that the coach is the problem.
“I want to set the record straight. We all love Bowles.
It is not what he is doing. He is telling us what to do and giving us all the answers to the test and it is on us players to be able to go out there and execute what he is telling us to do.
He is always putting us into the best position to play…If anything, blame us players for not executing. Bowles puts us into the best position to play.
I even told Bowles, ‘the day you retire is the day I retire.’”
Bowles also offered an update on Vea’s availability this week. Vea did not practice on Thursday, and the coach said he is expected back next week for the joint practices in Jacksonville. Vea is working back from a back injury.
In Atlanta, the Falcons locked in new outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith on a one-year contract that carries a base value of $6 million. The deal includes $5 million guaranteed and can reach $8 million with incentives. Smith’s contract features a $3 million base salary, a $2 million signing bonus, and up to $1 million in per-game active roster bonuses.
In Carolina, Ryan Fitzgerald may not have another kicker breathing down his neck, but special teams coordinator Tracy Smith says the rookie is still in a battle every day.
“Kickers always have competition,” said Smith, via Kassidy Hill of the team’s site. “Competition just comes from external players, that kind of thing. So he’s competing with himself every day and competing with everybody else that’s available.”
Smith said Fitzgerald’s first year of experience has made a noticeable difference and that he looks more settled this offseason.
“He’s done a nice job. We’re seeing a different player in some ways just by having the whole season behind him.
Each of these experiences, you’re going to see him do it for the second time. He was different at Fan Fest.
He’s different in preseason one. He’s dealing with off days more like the season.
He’s more prepared for this camp. He knew what was coming, so he’s ready every day for his job.”
In Other News...
Baker Mayfields Preseason Debut Comes With One Troubling Bucs Question
Baker Mayfield is set for his first preseason snaps of 2024 when the Buccaneers host the Chiefs, giving Tampa Bay a chance to get its starting quarterback into game speed before the real pressure starts. The bigger storyline, though, is on the edge of the line, where Tristan Wirfs is unlikely to go because of a hamstring injury, leaving the team to sort through its left tackle options on the fly.
Justin Skule and Benjamin Chukwuma are both in the mix to fill that spot, but their availability has been uncertain after recent practice absences, which complicates the picture even more. With that kind of instability protecting Mayfields blind side, Tampa Bay may choose to keep his preseason workload short and limit the exposure rather than risk a costly hit in August. [Read more 🡒]
Vita Vea Just Sent A Clear Message About Todd Bowles
The Buccaneers locked up Vita Vea with a contract extension, keeping one of the most important pieces of the interior defensive line in place as the team continues to shape its identity under Todd Bowles. It also gave Vea a chance to speak with the kind of authority that comes from being a franchise cornerstone, and he did not waste it when the conversation turned to the coach.
Amid the criticism that followed Tampa Bays late-season slide in 2025, Vea came to Bowles defense and said the staff had the team prepared. He made clear the issue, in his view, was not the game plan but the way the Buccaneers executed it on the field, a public show of support that says plenty about where at least one veteran stands as the organization sorts through the fallout. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Suddenly Face A Joey Porter Jr. Decision Fans Wont Ignore
The Buccaneers are headed into 2026 with real questions in the secondary, and that has made any available cornerback worth a second look. One name now floating into the conversation is Joey Porter Jr., with NFL insider Jordan Schultz reporting the Steelers could be open to moving the former first-round pick as he enters the final year of his rookie deal.
For Tampa Bay, the appeal is obvious enough: a young corner with upside, and a chance to address a spot made thinner by injuries. But the price tag, the contract timing, and the fit on a roster already trying to balance its defensive needs make this look more like a long shot than a clean solution, which is why a deal feels unlikely even if the Bucs keep doing the homework. [Read more 🡒]