The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have acquired another young player to rush the passer.
On Tuesday, the final day for teams to complete trades in the National Football League during the 2010 season, the Buccaneers traded for Kansas City defensive end Alex Magee. A third-round pick out of Purdue in the 2009 draft, Magee played in 15 games with one start as a rookie and contributed two sacks.
The Buccaneers acquired Magee and an undisclosed pick in the 2011 NFL draft in exchange for another 2011 undisclosed pick. Magee takes the roster spot in Tampa opened when running back Kareem Huggins was placed on injured reserve on Tuesday.
The 6-3, 298-pound Magee was the 67th player drafted overall in 2009. In his two seasons with the Chiefs, he has played in 17 games and contributed 11 tackles, 2.0 sacks and four quarterback pressures. This season, he has played in two of Kansas City's first five games.
At Purdue, Magee played in 50 games with 33 starts – including 25 in a row – and finished his collegiate career with 117 tackles, 14.0 tackles for loss and 6.0 sacks. He also added three forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries, an interception and two passes defensed. In his senior season, he posted a career-high in sacks and made six stops behind the line of scrimmage.
Magee joins a young and talented defensive line crew in Tampa that is still looking to find its groove, having recorded four sacks so far in 2010. The 23-year-old Magee joins such other up-and-coming pass-rushers as 22-year-old DT Gerald McCoy, 23-year-old DT Roy Miller, 23-year-old DE Kyle Moore, 24-year-old DE Michael Bennett and 25-year-old Tim Crowder.
Though trades are relatively scarce in the NFL, and even more so during the season, the Buccaneers have not been shy about using that method of reinforcing their roster and obtaining resources. Last year, the Buccaneers traded defensive end Gaines Adams to the Chicago Bears for a 2010 second-round pick at the deadline, and in 2007 they acquired RB Michael Bennett from the Chiefs on the final day of trading. Other recent deadline-day deals include DT Anthony McFarland to Indianapolis in 2006 and QB Tim Rattay from San Francisco in 2005.
Other players acquired by the Buccaneers via trades at times other than the deadline have included TE Kellen Winslow (February, 2009), G Sean Mahan (September, 2008), QB Brian Griese (March, 2008), DT Ryan Sims (May, 2007) and QB Luke McCown (April, 2005). Players that have netted the Bucs draft picks through trades in that same time period include McCown, TE Alex Smith and G Dan Buenning.
Huggins was moved to injured reserve due to the right ACL tear he suffered on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints. Before the injury, Huggins had played in three games this season for the Buccaneers.
