Johnny Newton Has Family Ties To Bucs, An Option At No. 26

Bucs general manager Jason Licht likes to say that there is no crystal ball when it comes to the NFL Draft. No one, not even Licht, knows what will happen on draft day until the clock starts and the picks begin coming in.

As Scott Reynolds recently outlined this week when discussing Tampa Bay’s top draft targets, Duke interior lineman Graham Barton, Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson, Florida State edge rusher Jared Verse and UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu, and LSU wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. each make sense if they are on the board – but what if each of them is gone by the time the Bucs pick at No. 26?

That is where there could be a surprise, such as when the Bucs took defensive tackle Calijah Kancey at No. 19 last year. This year, the team could go the same route – for the third year in a row – and use their top pick to add talent along the defensive line by taking Illinois defensive tackle Jer’Zhan “Johnny” Newton.

Illinois DT Jer’Zhan “Johnny” Newton Has An Intriguing NFL Skillset

When looking at Johnny Newton, it is clear that he is a very talented defensive lineman. The St. Petersburg, Florida native has spent the past four seasons building up an impressive body of work for the Fighting Illini.

After playing sparingly throughout the pandemic-shortened 2020 season as a freshman, Newton has been a full-time starter for the past three years and has been only getting better.

Here is a look at his numbers:

2021: 50 tackles, 4 TFLs, 3 sacks in 12 games
2022: 62 tackles, 14 TFLs, 5.5 sacks in 13 games
2023: 52 tackles, 8.5 TFLs, 7.5 sacks, 4 blocked kicks in 12 games

At 6-foot-1 and 304 pounds, he is not the biggest defensive tackle, but that has not deterred the team from selecting the likes of Warren Sapp, Booger McFarland, and Calijah Kancey in the first round in the past. While the jury is still out for Kancey, the track record of the Bucs taking “smaller” defensive tackles has paid off handsomely for the franchise.

Newton has an intriguing skillset himself, boasting great pass rush instincts with plus explosiveness and power. He also displays great pursuit and once a quarterback blips on his radar, they are as good as a sunken fleet in Battleship. Newton’s quick hands allow him to disengage blocks and close gaps in both the passing game and running game. He also has great awareness of what is happening around him, which allows him to make the proper reads when the ball is snapped.

Reading a scouting report on a player is one thing, but seeing it in action is another. All of these traits are demonstrated in the short video below.

Newton’s positives do come with some negatives, starting with his below-average size and arm length. Against bigger offensive linemen, he may struggle to overwhelm them at the point of attack.

Still, there is a lot to like about him, and after being picked as a Top 15 player throughout the college football season and early in the draft process, he has started to slip in overall consensus, as former Pewter Reporter Jon Ledyard recently questioned.

There is no question that Newton is a talented player, and he very well could be the best player left in the Bucs’ pool of players when they make their first draft selection next week. If that’s the case though, would they continue to invest in the position?

Would Bucs Draft DL With Top Pick THREE Years In A Row?

After taking Logan Hall and Calijah Kancey with their top picks in the past two drafts, the Bucs have invested plenty of premium draft capital into the defensive line.

But it may not be enough.

Bucs DTs Vita Vea, Calijah Kancey and Logan Hall – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Hall has failed to take that next step into becoming a long-term starter, and while Kancey flashed plenty of promise in his rookie year, the team still needs more production out of the group as a whole. Vita Vea remains the engine that keeps the group going, and veterans Greg Gaines and Will Gholston currently round out the room as rotational linemen.

While the group is far from being the “weak link,” it would serve the Bucs well in drafting another defensive lineman who could take pressure off Vea and Kancey and open things up for the outside linebackers coming off the edge to get after the quarterback.

Not only that but there will be a time when the Bucs will have to prepare for life after Vea, the lead gravedigger in the trenches. Still highly productive and a fan-favorite, he is also 29 years old.

The shelf life for defensive linemen is often short, with Warren Sapp and Gerald McCoy both moving on from the team at 31 and 30 years old, respectively. Sapp’s big 2006 season with the Raiders notwithstanding, both were not the same caliber of players that they were in Tampa Bay.

It is a grueling and highly demanding position, which makes it less surprising that Aaron Donald heavily contemplated hanging them up the past couple of seasons before retiring this offseason after his age-32 season. Adding to that is the fact that at nearly 370 pounds, Vea has a higher risk of injury and has had groin and foot injuries flare up in recent seasons.

Getting someone who can lighten the load is important, and that is where Johnny Newton could help. Last season at Illinois, he rarely came off the field, averaging 62.4 snaps a game while not missing a game throughout his college career.

His high snap count, paired with a high pass rush win rate, would make Newton a tantalizing option to pair with Vea and Kancey now, and pay off in future seasons and iteration of the Bucs’ defense.

The next era of the Bucs defense has already begun.

Bucs OLB YaYa Diaby and DT Calijah Kancey – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

In recent seasons, there has been some significant turnover on that side of the ball. This offseason alone, outside linebacker Shaq Barrett, cornerback Carlton Davis III, and inside linebacker Devin White have all moved on to different teams. With Lavonte David, Gholston, and Vea left as the elder statesmen, it is clear that finding young talent has been a primary focus.

From Kancey, outside linebacker YaYa Diaby, and of course, free safety Antoine Winfield Jr., some of the building blocks have been identified. Others, such as Hall, defensive backs Zyon McCollum, Christian Izien, and Josh Hayes, inside linebacker SirVocea Dennis, and outside linebackers Joe Tryon-Shoyinka and Markees Watts will have more of a chance at proving themselves and sticking around long-term.

Should Tampa Bay choose to continue its defensive youth movement, one of these players already has family ties to Newton.

SirVocea Dennis Would Approve Of Bucs Taking Johnny Newton

Earlier this week on the Pewter Report Podcast we had Bucs inside linebacker SirVocea Dennis as a special guest. While a lot of the focus was on Dennis’ bright future and his hopes to have a big second year, he also shared an interesting tidbit toward the end of his time on the show.

Bucs ILB SirVocea Dennis – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

When he was asked about who he would like to see the Bucs select in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, he name-dropped his cousin.

“I have a lot of friends in the draft and family,” Dennis said. “I’m going to be a little biased, my cousin is Johnny Newton, a Clearwater native. I’m going to be a little biased and go with him, I would love to see him – me and him on the same team. I know he plays defensive line, but I would just love to play with a family member of mine and just have fun and do everything we can there.”

Perhaps SirVocea Dennis’ wish is granted, and it makes a lot of sense for Tampa Bay to consider Johnny Newton on draft day. Jason Licht may not have a crystal ball, but this selection could have some good fortune tied to it.