TAMPA — Head Coach Todd Bowles said the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ revamped defense is “probably the most complete defense we have had in a couple years,” crediting an aggressive offseason that added five defenders — including first-round pick Rueben Bain Jr. and second-round selection Josiah Trotter — to a unit he wants built around physicality and accountability.

The Buccaneers brought in defensive linemen A’Shawn Robinson and Rakeem Nuñez-Roches alongside veteran Al-Quadin Muhammad to complement Bain and Trotter. Bowles, speaking on the Rondé Barber Show, singled out Robinson and Nuñez-Roches as the catalysts for a culture shift that began the moment the offseason program opened.

“The biggest change is A’Shawn Robinson and Nacho because they bring attitude,” Bowles said. “They bring accountability and they call people out on it and they did that from Day One when we got into the offseason program and that made everybody else snap into shape and fall in line and that was the biggest change for me.”

Bowles outlined five non-negotiable positions in his hybrid 3-4 base and 4-2-5 nickel scheme: two edge-setting outside linebackers, a dominant nose tackle and two lockdown cornerbacks. He pointed to nose tackle Vita Vea as a player who breaks the traditional mold at the position.

“The outside backers have to set the edge, I need a dominant nose tackle and I need two corners that can really play,” Bowles said. “Vita is one of those guys that can play all three downs, so he is not your typical Casey Hampton-type nose where he is just a first and second down guy, he can actually move. Typically, you don’t have those nose’s run sideline to sideline but Vita can run sideline to sideline so that helps us. Then you need quicker inside backers to get to the sideline and guys that can set the edge.”

The head coach acknowledged that the talent infusion changes his approach to game-planning. Rather than scheming primarily to hide weaknesses, Bowles said the deeper roster allows him to be more aggressive.

“I think the more horses that you have and the more talent, then you can just line up and say, ‘Go get em,’ and you do not have to worry about it,” Bowles said. “This is probably the most complete defense we have had in a couple years so I feel very good about that, but you move the stress around. I do not feel like trying to confuse the offense without getting ourselves lined up and protecting who needs to be protected, then you worry about the other stuff.”

The Buccaneers open the 2026 regular season later this month, when Bowles’ retooled defense will face its first live test.