Bucs’ Tristan Wirfs is blocking out the noise

TAMPA — It takes a lot for the smile to run away from Tristan Wirfs’ face. The Bucs’ Pro Bowl right tackle not only may have the most ability on the team, he leads the locker room in affability as well.

However, nothing irritates Wirfs more than hearing the season-long suggestion that the strong men on the offensive line are the weakest link of the team.

“That was tough hearing that narrative for a long time,” Wirfs said, his eyebrows narrowing. “Like I said throughout the whole season, I trust all these guys with my life. I come to work with them every day, and I love them to death. I know the work we put in every day. We try to block out the noise to an extent, but everything gets back to you.”

Wirfs has been able to block the most fearsome pass rushers in the NFL, but he struggles to contain the persistent blame game that says the Bucs would be better if not for poor blocking.

To be fair, Tampa Bay was forced to rebuild its offensive line in the offseason. Guard Ali Marpet unexpectedly quit the game at age 28. Guard Alex Cappa signed with the Bengals as a free agent. Center Ryan Jensen suffered a significant knee injury on the second day of training camp and returned to practice only last week.

The result has been a dramatic reduction in points for the Bucs, from averaging more than 30 per game the previous three seasons to ranking 24th this season entering Saturday with 18.5. The Bucs saw their touchdowns diminish from 56 to 29.

“We had guys leave,” Wirfs said matter-of-factly. “I was trying my best to be a leader in that room and be a guy all those guys could turn to or to lean on. I’m glad to shoulder everything for them, so I love it.”

The best at his position

Nobody on the Bucs has bigger shoulders than Wirfs, a 6-foot-5, 320-pound 2020 first-round pick from Iowa.

Wirfs, who turns 24 this month, and his sister, Kaylia, 21, were raised by a single mother, Sara, who has worked for Target in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, since she was 16. He was a tremendous athlete and a state championship wrestler in high school.

He allowed only one sack as a rookie and was selected to his second straight Pro Bowl this year. When he was named All-Pro last season, a distinction reserved for the best player at his position in both conferences, Wirfs wasn’t even sure what the honor meant.

“I remember Jensen coming up to me and having a little conversation with me. Then Tom (Brady) did, too,” Wirfs said. “I was like, ‘What is this about?’ But it was a really special honor.”

Now the Bucs need even more from Wirfs. Not just on the field, but off.

With Jensen focusing on recovering from his knee injury, there has been a leadership void on the offensive line that Wirfs has been willing to fill.

“He’s become more vocal,” coach Todd Bowles said. “I would be surprised if he wasn’t named a captain next year.”

Outside linebacker Anthony Nelson was a teammate of Wirfs’ at Iowa. He remembers the 18-year-old man-child who arrived in the Hawkeyes’ weight room.

“He stepped in and improved every day,” Nelson said. “He came in and played at such a high level, but he also worked to get better every day, and that’s what I saw in college, too. He came in as a talented guy and then kept getting better, and you’re like, ‘Man, this guy doesn’t stop.’ "

Finding new ways to contribute

Wirfs has had his share of adversity, too.

He said he had never been injured enough to miss a game at any level of football until he suffered an ankle sprain in the Bucs’ wild-card win over the Eagles last year and was forced to sit out the division-round game against the Rams. His backup, Josh Wells, left the Rams game with an injury. The result was that Brady was hit 15 times in that game, including nine times by outside linebacker Von Miller.

“That was terrible,” Wirfs said. “That was the first time I ever missed a game in high school or anything. That sucked. I will never forget that.”

Wirfs was reminded of it again a few weeks ago when he suffered another sprained ankle in an overtime loss at Cleveland. He worried it might end his season.

“I was trying to compare to last year, how last year my ankle felt,” Wirfs said. “There were some things that were really similar and there were things that were different, so I had no idea. I was like, ‘Oh shoot.’ Then they told me it wasn’t broken, so I thought, ‘Good. That’s the biggest thing.’ I figured if nothing is broken, I will be OK.”

Injured players spend so much time with trainers and in rehabilitation, they don’t always get to attend practice or meetings. The feeling of isolation is inescapable.

“I think for everyone, being hurt, you feel so disconnected,” Wirfs said. “You’re in here peeking through the window watching them practice. … You do your best to still be around, push up the younger guys, do whatever. Just doing your best to be around. But it does suck.”

Wirfs returned after three weeks. He aggravated the injury in his first game back, two weeks ago at Arizona, but has continued to play.

When he was unable to help on the field, he became more vocal in meetings and on the sideline.

“When I was hurt, I did my best to be more of a leader this year,” Wirfs said.

He was expected to start against the Falcons today and would have to lead again. Donovan Smith is out with a foot injury, so the Bucs are down to their third left tackle, Brandon Walton. Wirfs would shoulder even more of the responsibility as the lone bright spot for the offensive line.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a guy come in like that,” said offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, a former quarterback who played nine seasons in the NFL. “Obviously, there’s been some great tackles in this league that I wasn’t around, so I haven’t been able to see everything, but (Wirfs) was this way when he walked through the door.

“It’s tough to really beat what he’s already done, though, right? You go through a 16- (or) 17-game season and you don’t give up sacks and don’t give up pressures, that’s unheard of. … To have a guy like Tristan on that side that you can just say, ‘Hey, he handles that guy, you don’t have to think about him.’ It’s unique, man.”

Contact Rick Stroud at rstroud@tampabay.com. Follow @NFLSTROUD.

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