With his team down 27-13 in the third quarter on Sunday in Cincinnati, rookie inside linebacker Josiah Trotter ignited the Buccaneers' defense and awakened the Tampa Bay fans in attendance. From third-and-five, Trotter mugged the A-gap, down at the line of scrimmage. Post-snap, Trotter dropped into coverage and fixated his eyes on Bengals' quarterback Joe Burrow. Burrow locked on Andrei Iosivas and went to deliver the football to his target but did not see Trotter side-shuffling. The rookie undercut the Cincinnati receiver and raced to the end zone on a 38-yard return for a touchdown. He brought the Bucs to within seven points, galvanizing the squad in enemy territory.
"I just thank God for that," said Trotter. "I knew what I could do coming into the draft, but at the end of the day I knew in the meantime I could show everybody that I can cover people. Now I've got to do it next week, I've got to make more plays, more things I can still clean up in the passing game, but just thank God I was able to go out there and play, trust my instincts, and ultimately get a pick and help my team out."
Coming out of Missouri in the draft, Trotter was highly touted for his physical disposition and ability to diagnose against the run. He effectively filled gaps as a downhill thumper but the question mark invariably linked to the Mike linebacker was his coverage skills and route recognition. Against the Bengals in the season opener, Trotter silenced the doubters by feeling the route and anticipating where Burrow was going with the football.
Overall, Trotter posted a sack, a team-high 10 tackles (two for loss) and a pick-six. He became the first player in franchise history to record an interception return for a touchdown in his NFL debut and joins T.J. Watt as the only two NFL players over the last decade to have recorded a sack, an interception and five-plus tackles in their debut as a rookie. In Week One, Trotter showcased his multi-faceted skillset, including a timely blitz off a pierced gap, smooth strides in pursuit, ferocious strikes as a tackler and awareness on the gridiron. In his first game action, Trotter set the tone.
"It's a good play on his part," described Todd Bowles. "It's a play he blew from practice, he learned from it, and made a play from there. He made some good plays for us in the run. Obviously, there are some things he still has to learn and get better at, but you know, you can tell he's a gamer, just seeing him get that play and help us get back in the game."
