The Forgotten Offensive Lineman
December 25th, 2020
Coming on strong.
The Bucs have a lot of personalities on the offensive line that Bucs fans have fully embraced with love — and hate.
At right tackle, rookie Tristan Wirfs has already become a fan favorite, so much so that fans want him moved to left tackle — despite how he dominates at right tackle — because of the human piñata for Bucs fans, Donovan Smith.
Ali Marpet is always celebrated by Bucs fans for being a humble dude from a humble background, overcoming nearly impossible odds (from a Division-III school) to be one of the better left guards in the game.
And of course there’s Ryan Jensen. Bucs fans like him for the edge he plays with, and who doesn’t like a dude who constantly posts social media video when he smokes brisket and beef roasts?
There’s one guy missing: right guard Alex Cappa. He won the hearts of Bucs fans last year when he played against the slimy Saints with a broken arm. That’s one tough SOB.
He looks like a dude from a biker gang but Cappa is one of the nicest, soft-spoken dudes you will ever meet. Outside of popping up at a local MMA event here or there, the dude is like a church mouse.
However, he’s making a name for himself. Though he didn’t make the Pro Bowl, Cappa did lead fan voting at his position, which is wild to Joe because Joe never dreamed he had that kind of a following. Marpet? Yeah. Cappa?
Anyway, Bucs superfan Steven Cheah of Barstool Sports put out a video highlighting Cappa’s play last week against the Dixie Chicks. Dude is getting the job done.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Joe understands many Bucs fans believe the offensive line is trash. Not only is Joe numb to it, Joe thinks it’s terribly unfair (as Joe always said, you want bad? Go back and look at the tape of the Bucs’ 2014 offensive line. THAT was bad!).
And one reason park-violating, home-invading, NFLPA-ignoring, down-forgetting, handshake-stiffing, jet-ski-losing, biscuit-baking Bucs quarterback Tom Brady is still standing upright is the development and the play of a guy like Cappa, now in his third year. He’ll probably be a mainstay of the Bucs from years to come.
You can view Cheah’s breakdown of Cappa in the video below.
Buccaneers 3rd year RG Alex Cappa doesn’t get a ton of headlines, but he’s having a good season. He played a heck of a game in Atlanta against DT Grady Jarrett and the Falcons. Take a closer look. #Bucsfilm2020wk15 pic.twitter.com/iKobHN5CeC
— Steven Cheah (@StevenCheah) December 24, 2020
December 25th, 2020 at 12:25 am
Look at Cappa’s college tape. Most fun you’ll ever have watching an OL. The guy just buried DL.
December 25th, 2020 at 1:48 am
Cappa BEEN like that No CAP !!!
#AllFact
December 25th, 2020 at 2:15 am
“Though he didn’t make the Pro Bowl, Cappa did lead fan voting at his position which is wild to Joe because Joe never dreamed he had that kind of a following.”
-He doesn’t. The players are listed alphabetically, and his was the first name on the list, smh. (NOT smh at you Joe, but at the way in which players are selected.)
AK65, AM74, TW78, DW45, CDIII24, AWJ31, ME32, VV50… these young players are the foundation for our Bucs in the immediate future, and I’m good with it.
December 25th, 2020 at 4:13 am
a keeper!
December 25th, 2020 at 4:50 am
Thanks, Joe for getting the Cappa news out. Licht deserves a lot of credit for finding these small school gems.
December 25th, 2020 at 5:41 am
This is the BEST Bucs offensive line ever!
December 25th, 2020 at 6:14 am
Look at that tape again, and you’ll see the big reason why Cappa is playing so much better this year. That big reason is #78 Wirfs. Cappa now has a young stud next to him, not an old liability. Cappa, and Wirfs are really working well together. Watch the tape again, some great combo blocks.
December 25th, 2020 at 6:46 am
1st half vs Falcons – Bucs had 5 rushes for 8 yards (Fournette and Vaughn)
1st half vs Vikings – Bucs had 11 rushes for 33 yards (Jones)
Seems like abandoning the run early in games is a bad game plan.
December 25th, 2020 at 7:10 am
Donovan looks pretty good at LT too…….
Oh wait…… that’s not Donny!
December 25th, 2020 at 7:28 am
Met him at a Tampa UFC.. super nice first class guy.. helluva player
December 25th, 2020 at 8:15 am
Guy is maturing physically into a excellent pro.. he was scrawny in his first year but ferocious… fortunately for him he landed on a team without depth and he got lots of playing time and experience. He is exactly the kind of guy that could have been buried on another teams depth chart. Merry Christmas Cappa!!
December 25th, 2020 at 8:16 am
It also helps getting dedicated to the weight room, shedding fat and adding muscle.
The knock coming out of college was strength. That is no longer an issue.
December 25th, 2020 at 8:27 am
Luv for the biggins, the key to Brady’s success!
Really, Cappa #1 in fan voting? Locally and/ or nationally? Good for him/ us.
December 25th, 2020 at 9:02 am
The person whose opinion about the OL matters the most is totally supportive.
TB12 has said these guys give him confidence.
That’s all that really counts although I’ll take the icing on the cake. These guys on the OL are a very diverse group of personalities and have the makings of a really good UNIT for some years to come. As they continue to play together they will just get better and better.
December 25th, 2020 at 9:28 am
Blocking highlights are the best.
December 25th, 2020 at 9:36 am
@spbf: I’d like to keep the OL band together, but have some doubts about Smith. I’m not a hater, but for the $$$ is there an upgrade out there?
December 25th, 2020 at 9:56 am
He will keep getting better too as he get wiser and stronger. Excellent video Joe
December 25th, 2020 at 9:59 am
That is awesome tape to watch. All you guys that keep hating on our O-line need to rethink yourselves.
December 25th, 2020 at 11:32 am
One thing that might get overlooked is 4 of our five starting lineman have been Licht draft picks. And if im not mistaken 3 of them we traded up for…..tells me Licht was really high on those picks.
You can argue it took Jason too long to build this line thats fair. But its hard to argue he dont know how to scout quality OL.
I do think we will need another Tackle next year. RT or LT i dont care. But I dont think you can pay Smith which restricts CAP space when he has proven he cannot handle the Saints. Thats just not gonna cut it. Maybe D.Smith gets one last game against the Saints and prooves he can do it. But i wouldnt hold my breathe on that one.
December 25th, 2020 at 1:15 pm
Cappa is already a top-10 right guard in the league and improving. I’m not sure, but probably, the most disciplined OL, I just can’t remember his last penalty.
Credit some of Wirf’s early success to Cappa, the boy can play.
So, it makes me even more puzzled about why he warmbenched for Caleb Benecoch (!!!!!) an entire season… so many valuable reps wasted.
December 25th, 2020 at 1:52 pm
As this spot allows me to voice my views about all things Bucs..
I have decided that the reason for all this: “park-violating, home-invading, NFLPA-ignoring, down-forgetting, handshake-stiffing, jet-ski-losing, biscuit-baking”… in nearly every single post is because of a lack of anything else to say, this is just filler so the page looks full. I have been a long time reader here at JBF and I appreciate all the work out into this site and the amount of buc information presented. But I also have things to do and the “filler fluff and stuff” is a waste of time. I no longer read the Peter King post because of all the “filling” stuff.
I hear ya it is not my blog, and I can always go elsewhere. You know, you are completly correct. So to all of those who I have enjoyed many a great debate and much Buccaneer camaraderie I thank you. Take care.
A. Cappa is growing into his RG role and doing a good job of improving himself and his skillset.
GO BUCS!!
December 25th, 2020 at 2:29 pm
A good story. Thanks, Joe.