Vita Vea
Tampa Bay BuccaneersModel Score
How good he is at what he is supposed to be doing, out of 100. Not a projection of what he will do next, and not a read on his contract. Median is about 70, and a 95 is rare. How it is built →
Season Stats · 17 games
Draft & College
He went about where consensus had him.
Covers the college seasons in our data, which does not always reach back to a player's first year.
Comps
STM Take
Two Pro Bowls (2022, 2023) plus Super Bowl LV ring plus the 2023 tier 1 (#8) STTM peak establishes Vea as a top-15 interior defender at peak. The Washington Pac-12 pedigree plus the 12th overall draft slot plus eight years of Buccaneers anchor reps gives him the structural late-prime résumé. The 2026 question is whether Vea returns to tier 2-3 territory or whether the structural age-31 decline reasserts.
Vea came out of Washington as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 1st-round pick (12th overall) in 2018 after earning 2017 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year honors. He has made two Pro Bowls (2022, 2023) and won Super Bowl LV anchoring the Buccaneers' interior. His STTM career runs tier 4 (#25) in 2021, tier 2 (#13) in 2022 Pro Bowl, tier 1 (#8) peak in 2023, tier 3 (#21) in 2024, and tier 4 (#27) in 2025.
Strengths
- Two Pro Bowls (2022, 2023) plus Super Bowl LV ring plus 2023 tier 1 (#8) STTM peak establishes a top-10 IDL ceiling at peak.
- Eight years of NFL starter reps at age 31 plus the structural Buccaneers anchor role gives him real veteran market value.
Concerns
- Two-year decline from tier 1 (#8) in 2023 to tier 4 (#27) in 2025 confirms the structural late-prime decline is real.
- Tampa Bay's broader defensive identity transition (multiple coordinators) compresses the structural support around Vea's continued production.
What to watch: Whether Vea returns to tier 3 or better in 2026 plus earns his third Pro Bowl, the threshold for confirming the late-prime ceiling is sustained.