YaYa Diaby Wants To Get Low
June 15th, 2024
Man, Joe hasn’t seen an extreme physical-specimen freak like Yaya Diaby at edge rusher since Jason Pierre-Paul in his prime, and Diaby is committed to getting freakier.
The man is 6-3 and Joe’s heard Diaby is a chiseled 270 pounds right now, bigger but leaner than last year.
It’s a marvel. Hopefully, it translates into sacks. Diaby was a studly rookie with 7 1/2 sacks last year, and that number probably would have been higher if Todd Bowles was willing to give him more snaps early in the season.
Diaby said this week that he’s a daily weight room guy and is pushing his body to be bigger, stronger and faster. He’s also trying to player lower to be able to maximize all that power.
“A lot of time I caught myself when I was watching film, I was high. I play hot, so I’ve been keying in on playing low and having good hand placement,” Diaby said.
Diaby went on to explain he’s seen that he often needs to lower his punch in order to consistently move offensive tackles.
Joe sees Diaby and thinks of all those rookies that played for the Bucs last season on both sides of the ball.
If each one can take a positive step typical of quality rookies, then the Bucs will be very dangerous and deep this season.
June 15th, 2024 at 4:07 pm
“all those rookies that played for the Bucs last season on both sides of the ball.
If each one can take a positive step typical of quality rookies, then the Bucs will be very dangerous and deep this season”
That’s what makes all the negative prognostications (and the Vegas line of 7 1/2) so ridiculous….
Bucs just added 5 rookies who all look ready to rock and contribute this year…
(Barton, Braswell, T. Smith, McMillan and Bucky)
And there’s also a ton of continuing to developing young talent among the 2nd and 3rd year Buccaneers…. who should all be at least somewhat better this year than last.
(Kancey, Mauch, Diaby, Palmer, Izien, McCollum, Otton, White, Goedeke, Hall?).
I mean – I get it – none of those players are ‘star’ players – yet….
But I bet more than a full handful out of that group WILL become great NFL players – starting this year!
The Bucs are better this year than last mainly because Jason Licht is doing such a fantastic job of acquiring young talent – and our coaching staff also seems to be doing a very good job of developing said talent….
June 15th, 2024 at 4:52 pm
If we get lucky, or fortunate with injuries, we will be a tough out for any team.
June 15th, 2024 at 4:54 pm
Who knows? but I am going with Smith and McMillan will outperform their draft position. Not as sure on the other guys. But hope they will contribute.
June 15th, 2024 at 5:04 pm
Love what we are seeing about these guys.
June 15th, 2024 at 5:17 pm
“all those rookies that played for the Bucs last season on both sides of the ball.
If each one can take a positive step typical of quality rookies, then the Bucs will be very dangerous and deep this season
Bucs just added 5 rookies who all look ready to rock and contribute this year…
And there’s also a ton of continuing to developing young talent among the 2nd and 3rd year Buccaneers….”
**********************
Your optimism is nice, but you do realize every other team in the NFL is saying the same exact thing, right? The Bucs are not unique in that they got to participate in this year’s draft. The Bucs are not unique in that they’re expecting positive development from their 2nd and 3rd year players.
June 15th, 2024 at 6:08 pm
I agree with Pickgrin pretty much all off-season here.
@Hearty Dikerson… Bucs had the 2nd most snaps out of rookies last year and went to the divisional round. Their first round pick missed 2 months of early development. I get your point but we think the quantity and quality of the Bucs young players trumps just about every other team in the league. The ones that are close or better have had multiple first round picks… Lions, Texans, Bears. Paired with the remnants of a Super Bowl winning group/culture, there is every reason for us to be optimistic! Go Bucs!
June 15th, 2024 at 6:09 pm
Hearty – The Bucs ARE somewhat unique in this regard – mainly because of how well Jason Licht is drafting.
The last 2 drafts alone (2022 & 2023) have yielded 8 starters + Hall, Palmer, Sir Dennis, Payne and ST ace Josh Hayes.
The current group of rookies also includes at least 3 or 4 starters/future starters.
What other teams are averaging 4 quality starters every year the last 3 years from their drafts? And drafting from the bottom third of each round?
Few if any any……
June 15th, 2024 at 7:05 pm
Bring back JPP and Suh. Both better still than half the trash on our roster!
June 15th, 2024 at 7:17 pm
CleanHouse: I’m thankful you’re not the Bucs GM.
June 15th, 2024 at 7:28 pm
Really Joe in Michigan? Who’d you rather have today? Suh or Logan Hall?
June 15th, 2024 at 7:37 pm
CleanHouse: Logan Hall. I can’t say that I’m a fan of Hall, but with some improvement he could be the next Gholston A guy like Gholston should’ve been taken in the 3rd to 4th Round range, so Hall was drafted too high. I believe Suh and JPP’s careers in football are over.
June 15th, 2024 at 9:09 pm
“The Bucs ARE somewhat unique in this regard – mainly because of how well Jason Licht is drafting.”
Listen, I do like Licht’s last 2 drafts, but this sentiment that he’s a God-like drafter is odd. Looking at the last 3 years’s top 2 round picks:
6 picks:
3 busts: JTS, Hall, Trask
Goedeke: 1 historically awful year, 1 good year
Kancey: very good first year as a pass rusher with almost 5 sacks, but 1-dimensional as one of the worst-ranked run stopping DTs in the NFL.
Mauch: Had some great snaps but ranked as one of the worst OGs in the NFL in PFF scores and pressures allowed.
Again, overall I’m happy with Licht as our GM, but this “he’s unique” mythology of Jason Licht’s miraculous abilities are out of hand.
June 15th, 2024 at 9:19 pm
And just because a rookie becomes an immediate starter doesn’t always mean that’s a good thing. Chris Izien was a cool story, but heaping praise on the staff for not being able to come up with anyone better isn’t necessarily a badge of honor
June 15th, 2024 at 9:23 pm
Judging players by their rookie season is always a bad idea. It’s the time when they learn their weaknesses. The good ones are the ones who face that adversity and turn it into a position the following year.
June 15th, 2024 at 9:30 pm
Hearty Dikerson Says
“Listen, I do like Licht’s last 2 drafts, but this sentiment that he’s a God-like drafter is odd. Looking at the last 3 year’s top 2 round picks:
6 picks:
3 busts: JTS, Hall, Trask
Goedeke: 1 historically awful year, 1 good year
Kancey: very good first year as a pass rusher with almost 5 sacks, but 1-dimensional as one of the worst-ranked run stopping DTs in the NFL.
Mauch: Had some great snaps but ranked as one of the worst OGs in the NFL in PFF scores and pressures allowed.”
.
Hall is not a bust.
We don’t know if Trask is a bust. If Mayfield gets injured, Trask could conceiably come in and light things up, and never go back to being a backup…like a certain 6th round pick did years ago.
JTS…you are probably right. But…maybe he’ll find his feet at some point.
Goedeke. He had a bad rookie year, learned from it and turned it around. Just like YaYa is trying to do. Not a bust.
Kancey. Player rankings are ALWAYS wrong. That’s why no ‘expert’ ever gets the entire draft right. Kancey did well his first year, and if he learns from it, he’ll be even better. Uncool to assume differently before we even se him play in year 2.
Mauch. He is going to be very, very good. I don’t care what PFF claims. If you go by them, then you are choosing the wrong source.
June 15th, 2024 at 9:32 pm
CleanHouse Says
“Bring back JPP and Suh.”
As coaching staff, that would be great. They’re done playing for the most part.
June 15th, 2024 at 9:47 pm
Let’s go dig up Bubba Smith while some are talking about bringing back aged veterans.
June 15th, 2024 at 9:50 pm
OS —. Logan The Oaf Hall is a stump with arms and legs. He’s pitiful. Todd has already given the hint – he must produce or he will be gone. The next play he makes might be to break Eirfs’ femur.
June 15th, 2024 at 10:15 pm
Listing Trask as a ‘bust’ eh?
Nice Cherry picking to try and make your point Hearty….
Why not go back 4 years instead of 3 – when Licht drafted 2 future HOFers with his 1st and 2nd picks….
Bottom Line – aside from last pick in the 1st rd JTS three years ago and 1st pick in the 2nd Hall from 2 years ago – Jason Licht has been killing the draft just about every year since 2018.
God like? No.
Top 5 GM in the NFL? Without question.
And you didn’t answer the question I posed Hearty – what other team’s GM has been averaging 3-4 starters from every draft going all the way back to 2018?
June 15th, 2024 at 11:01 pm
I also like and agree with Pickgrin’s post. Goedeke did well when his position changed. Night and day difference. Having a good solid CENTER is going to make the entire line better because that nose is the anchor, when collapsed turns plays to mush. Gholston took 3-4 years before he really started to play solid. I believe he was a 4’th rounder out of Michigan State. Solid player for almost a decade now. I think most of the Bucs players, much in part to the Brady effect, are working harder than they have in years. I see a team that has enough talent to become dominant and that team that no one wants to play against. Baker as I’ve said before is a linebacker in a QB’s body. If we can really protect him and give him time, he’s going to have a record season. I think Canales was a likable coach but he hurt the offense more than he helped it. Losing him was a blessing. It’s more a matter of Coaching for success now than anything else. Every team has weaknesses. They need to find every opponent’s weaknesses and exploit them. They have the right players to do it as long as they have learned to be flexible and make changes quickly when plays and schemes aren’t working. For years and years, with the exception of 2020 Sup Team, the Bucs’ Coaches have been their own worst enemies.
June 15th, 2024 at 11:38 pm
Who is a better GM? Licht knocks out drafts every year and really good at making deals to save big money players . We’ve won the NFC South three years in a row, no matter how crappy people think the division is.
June 16th, 2024 at 4:48 am
Excellent point Joe!
We gave all of the rookies non ST snaps last year so there should be some tape for them and the staff to study. Hopefully they are all taking advantage of it as you suggest. Really the same for the 2nd year guys.
The fact that every rookie got Snaps last year amazes me.
Go Bucs
June 16th, 2024 at 4:52 am
BTW I did notice Diaby’s transformation (from a pic I saw last week) and it is astounding! Mauch looks the part this year for sure as well.
Go Bucs!
June 16th, 2024 at 8:11 am
Dude has potential!
Have yet to see anyone turn the corner on an OG like Simeon rice used to do.
Dud would be flying past them 1/2 bent over, 1/2 twisted and all they saw was his back as he flew past them.
June 16th, 2024 at 9:05 am
Pickgrin, you have been really nailing your posts lately. I always liked reading them, but lately you have been killing it. And I have been on here since Joe first started this site
June 16th, 2024 at 9:20 am
That chicken franchise idea could turn into a reality.
June 16th, 2024 at 9:54 am
It is fantastic that YaYa knows what he needs to do and is working out and critiquing his film. He is committed to being better. Agree with Joe and some others, the Bucs are going to be dangerous and deep this season. Jason Licht should be getting more accolades in the sports media for his picks. He has nailed it.
June 16th, 2024 at 12:22 pm
Get Low?
(Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz)
From the windowwwws
To the wallllls
June 16th, 2024 at 2:37 pm
I realize most o the discussions here are about our draft classes in recent years.
Just wanted to say that our conditioning/rehabilitation staff are an unsung group that make a notable contribution. It is great that many of our young players are listening to them.
G o Bucs!
June 16th, 2024 at 5:50 pm
How did y’all just gloss over “A CHISELED 270 LBS”
Diaby was a not chiseled 263 last year. If he dropped 10 lbs of fat, that means he put on 17 lbs of muscle. Offensive lineman routinely remarked about YaYa’s strength and heavy hands last year. He’s going to be a load this year.
EXCITING STUFF!!
June 17th, 2024 at 10:53 am
But we lost Devin White and Shaq Barrett so we will be lucky if we finish 5-12.