Grinding The Tape: Bucs OLB Anthony Edition

Here it is. The final edition of “Grinding The Tape” focusing on the Bucs’ 2022 draft class. I hope you have had as much fun reading these as I have had writing them. For today’s edition, we will focus on the Bucs’ final pick of the draft: LSU edge rusher Andre Anthony.

Up until this point, I have tried to focus on three things each player does well and show you some tape highlighting those attributes in a way that might translate to the NFL. With Anthony, I will need to go in a different direction. And that shouldn’t be a surprise when talking about a seventh-round pick who doesn’t have an elite skill to fall back on like Ko Kieft does. No, Anthony is a complete project who shows one inconsistent trait that the Bucs will hope to build on.

Speed

Coming off a season-ending knee injury, Anthony’s only pre-draft athletic testing was his 40-yard dash. He did not disappoint, clocking a 4.69 second time. And you can see that speed in the clip above. Anthony (No. 3) is able to push off the line and get parallel to UCLA left tackle Sean Rhyan before Rhyan can get fully into his set. This gives Anthony the opportunity to get around Rhyan’s outside shoulder. However, a lack of bend allows Rhyan to push Anthony up the arc and out of position.

Swim Move

Anthony couples his good speed with flashes of a swim move. Above is a great example where he is lined up on the right edge, again working against Rhyan. At the snap, Anthony uses the threat of his speed to the outside to get Rhyan to start working that way. Once he sees Rhyan’s momentum carrying too far wide, he hits him with an effective swim, clearing an easy path to the quarterback. What is a bit curious here is that Anthony’s path to the signal-caller was not a straight line that might have allowed him to get home. Instead, he approaches the QB in a circuitous route from behind, possibly trying to keep containment on a backside bail by a mobile athlete. The Bucs will surely want to cultivate this move in his arsenal.

Lacks A Consistent Counter Awareness

The above clip showed a solid counter that I wish Anthony would use more. However, his pass rush plan from the edge is almost exclusively him trying to win with speed to the outside. That plan leaves too many plays where the possibility of an easy win is left laying on the ground.

Here, Anthony again commands respect from Rhyan with the threat of his speed to the outside. Rhyan over-sets in preparation for that speed and leaves a wide-open path to the quarterback on his inside shoulder. A simple dip or a spin gives Anthony the opportunity to get to the passer unimpeded. But he continues up the arc and right into Rhyan’s waiting arms. Hopefully the Bucs can help Anthony recognize and take advantage of these opportunities more in the future.

Interior Pass Rush?

Most speed rushers are on the smaller side. Anthony is no exception. At 6-foot-3, 245 pounds, he will be the second-smallest edge rusher on the Bucs’ roster, next to Cam Gill. With that small frame, don’t expect Anthony to be able to kick inside on long-and-late situations like Joe Tryon-Shoyinka can. His frame won’t be able to handle the strength of NFL guards. LSU actually tried to use Anthony in this way last year, and he wasn’t very effective.

Here, Anthony is lined up as a 3-technique just outside the left guard’s shoulder. He displays a good jump off the snap and tries to slap away the guard’s punch. Unfortunately, the guard’s right hand lands and effectively stops Anthony’s momentum while the guard resets and stonewalls the rest of the rep. Anthony’s speed does not translate to enough power for him to be effective from the inside.

Bodied In The Run Game

Todd Bowles bases his Bucs defense on the ability to stop the run. If you can’t defend the run, you have a tough time getting playing time in Tampa Bay. Well, as of right now Anthony is going to have a very difficult time seeing the field – if he even makes the roster.

In this clip, Anthony is lined up to the left of your screen in between UCLA’s left tackle and tight end. Anthony’s jump off the snap is matched by the tight end (No. 88) and they connect almost immediately. What follows is Anthony trying to get up-field by slipping through a crease to the tight end’s right. However, the tight end keeps his grip and forces Anthony to rotate perpendicular to the line of scrimmage. At this point, if the run goes wide to his side, Anthony is completely out of position to contain. And that is precisely what happens next. The running back cuts back to the outside and finds a wide-open hole where Anthony used to be.

How Can He Fit With The Bucs?

Anthony shows a very narrow and inconsistent skill set as of right now. He has good, but not great, functional speed. While his 40-time was impressive, his 10-yard split was a much more pedestrian 1.68 seconds. That 10-yard split is much more indicative of how an edge rusher would use his speed to his advantage.

Now, burst off the line can be coached in technique and there is room for Anthony to grow in that department. But for him to become someone the Bucs can rely on, he is going to need to build on and trust his counter moves – like his swim – more, create more functional play strength and become technically sound in both his pass rush and run defense. It will be a long road for him to travel to succeed, especially with questionable instincts, but the Bucs have faith in his character to get there.

Grinding The Tape – Bucs’ 2022 Draft Class

If you missed any of Pewter Report’s previous tape breakdowns of the Bucs’ 2022 draft class, find them below:

Logan Hall

Luke Goedeke

Rachaad White

Cade Otton

Jake Camarda

Zyon McCollum

Ko Kieft

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