Defensive tackle Gerald McCoy is one of the biggest leaders of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, without a question. With that said, the All-Pro player wants his Bucs teammates to create a new identity this season. According to Pat Yasinskas of ESPN, McCoy wants to make opponents fear coming to play in Tampa.
"When the ball is thrown or the ball commits, all 11 hats to the ball," McCoy told ESPN. "Those guys just swarm the ball and if you're not careful with the ball they'll take it from you. That has to be our identity and we have to make people fear coming to [Raymond James Stadium]."
McCoy also sounded off on making sure that the defense made life as easy as possible on rookie quarterback Jameis Winston.
"We want to make things as easy as possible for him," McCoy said. "He's a great talent, a very smart guy. But any opportunity, not just for a rookie but any quarterback you have, if you have a talented playmaker at quarterback you want to give him as many opportunities as possible. We've got to have each other's back. It's our job to score or get the ball back. Put it back in the offense's hands. We just want to do that as much as possible."
It's definitely nice to hear this mindset from McCoy, but it's going to take a complete effort from the Bucs defensive unit in 2015. Is the talent there? Absolutely. Now, it's time for them to step up and wreak some havoc this year.
(h/t ESPN)
Receive your weekly recap of all the happenings around the world of sports.