In his third year with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, former Washington defensive tackle Vita Vea was set to break out and stake his claim among the best defensive linemen in the NFL. Sadly, a broken ankle in Week Five against the Chicago Bears cut his season short. Before that injury, Vea was proving to the league that he was worth the 12th overall pick, which was hotly contested at the time, due to former Florida State safety Derwin James being named an All-Pro as a rookie, while Vea missed most of the season with an injury.

The reigning Super Bowl champions have put their faith in Vea by picking up his fifth-year option, and he won’t let them down. Before the injury that knocked him out until the NFC Championship, he racked up three quarterback hits, and the Buccaneer pressure rate was 33.9% with him on the field, compared to just 26.6% when he was on the sidelines. With 5.5 career sacks heading into year four, if he plays all 16 games, he has the potential to double that total.

The Buccaneers are returning all 22 starters from the 2020 season, and have also added former Husky Joe Tryon to their defensive line with their first-round pick. With dominant forces around him like Tryon, Ndamukong Suh, Shaquil Barrett, and Jason Pierre-Paul around him, opposing offensive lines won’t be able to double team Vea as much as they might like. With his insane athleticism and raw power, he’s going to be a much bigger piece of the Tampa Bay pass rush in 2021.

With a contract extension and title defense looming, this is a very important season for Vea. There’s a giant gap between Aaron Donald and the second-best defensive tackle in the league, whether it be Chris Jones, Fletcher Cox, or Deforest Buckner. That slot seems to be open for debate, and this should be the year Vea throws his hat in the ring for that title.