Bucs Rookie Edge Rusher Talks His Transition to the NFL

Chris Braswell is getting used to how the NFL operates.

Chris Braswell Training Camp /

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' first preseason game of 2024 is almost upon us, as they will head on the road to face the Cincinnati Bengals this upcoming Saturday night.

We have only just begun to see what the team has looked like with full pads on and still have a ways to go, but there is progress being made across the board for the Bucs. One area that has been watched closely is how the pass rush is shaping up after not living up to the standard in 2023.

The Buccaneers drafted Alabama pass rusher Chris Braswell in the second round of the 2024 draft to help clean this area up after a less-than-spectacular showing last season. The move came after Shaq Barrett darted to Miami in free agency before ultimately deciding to hang up the cleats and retire.

We haven't heard much from Braswell this offseason, but following Tuesday's practice, Braswell spoke to the media about how the rest of the defensive linemen, who he will be playing next to, have helped his transition into the NFL.

"A lot. Yaya [Diaby], Joe [Tyron-Shoyinka], 'Nelly' (Anthony Nelson) – all those guys in the room, in my room and Vita [Vea] – all those guys. They [are] helping all the rookies out, not just me, and just being able to pick their brains and see how they go about their days, especially in training camp, is really beneficial."

Having a group of veterans to learn from like those in the Tampa Bay locker room is a luxury for a rookie coming in who is looking to learn the ropes. It's honestly hard to find better guys to learn after, and even learning from a guy like Yaya Diaby, who had a fantastic rookie season in 2023, will be beneficial and important to Braswell's development.

Gaining knowledge isn't the only aspect of change that happens once one enters the professional realm of football. The speed, physicality and so much more also intensify, but Braswell believes that the speed of the game from the collegiate level to the professional level isn't all that different.

"I'd say the speed is similar. I feel like the offensive linemen may be like a tad [faster], a little bit more athletic, like they're able to move a little bit more laterally… better than college, and I feel like in college, you might have a little bit of drop off with some offensive linemen, but in the league, everybody's great."

READ MORE: Bucs Rookie Tight End Says He's 'Loving This Whole NFL Thing'

Makes sense why Braswell would gear this towards the offensive line as that will be who he is mostly going against on a snap-by-snap basis, but it would be wise of him not to get too far ahead of himself as he will be asked to do a multitude of things including having to deal with some of the fastest guys to play at their positions.

Braswell finished off his media session by talking about technique and how much larger of a role it plays at this level than at the collegiate level, as he understands that he will be going up against the best players in the world.

"Technique plays a bigger role in this league because everybody's good. You [are] pretty much going against the best in the world, so the only way you can win is you have to have better technique than the other person, because at the end of the day, everybody's great, and everybody can play football."

As mentioned, Braswell was brought in to help the Buccaneers' pass rush, but that doesn't automatically translate to snaps. He will have to earn those. The Bucs revealed their unofficial depth chart for Saturday night's game against the Bengals and Braswell was listed as the second-string OLB backing up Joe Tryon-Shoyrinka.

Even if the starters do play, we fully expect to see the guys behind them earn the lion's share of snaps through this one as the staff wants to avoid major injury with their ones while giving opportunities to those who aren't obvious starters.

READ MORE: Joe Burrow Expected to Play vs. Bucs in First Preseason Game

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