October's Best Buccaneers

Lavonte David

46 tackels, five sacks, one interception and five passes defensed: Lavonte David is having one hell of a season. Those five sacks really stand out to me. The Bucs blitz a lot, but a weakside linebacker in a 4-3 defense is not supposed to be on pace for double digit sacks. Fun fact: if David makes it to ten sacks, he'll be the Bucs' first double-digit sack master since Simeon Rice.

Gerald McCoy

Newsflash: Gerald McCoy is one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL. He may even be the best now that Geno Atkins has gone down with an ACL injury, sadly. McCoy may have just two sacks this year, but he makes his presence felt in very different ways. The lack of sacks is as much the fault of the coaches and the rest of the defensive line, anyway.

It seems some local radio hosts are still whining about his production. Perhaps they're stuck with the narrative they created after the NFL combine and McCoy's disappointing bench press. Poppycock. McCoy has been destructive and selfless throughout this season, and is playing at an All-Pro level. If you're not satisfied with what McCoy's doing right now, you will never be satisfied with any player.

Donald Penn

Reports of Penn's demise are greatly exaggerated. Okay, maybe Penn hasn't truly been one of the best players of October, but he's certainly been a very solid presence on the left side of the offensive line. He looked like he was struggling in preseason, but he bounced back and is having a better season than he did last year. If he keeps up his play, he'll be a Buccaneer for at least one more season.

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