Former Pitt defensive tackle Calijah Kancey has made strides in his first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, winning NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month honors for November.
Kancey led all rookies in the NFL with seven tackles for loss, two more than any other rookie and four more than any other rookie on Tampa Bay. His seven tackles for loss also tied for the league lead, his 14 pressures ranked second best amongst all rookies and his four quarterback hits tied for second most for rookies.
The Buccaneers drafted Kancey with the No. 19 pick in the First Round of the 2023 draft. He made it back-to-back First Round selections for Pitt, with the Pittsburgh Steelers drafting former quarterback Kenny Pickett with the No. 20 pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. He also became the highest selected Pitt player in the NFL Draft since the St. Louis Rams drafted former defensive tackle Aaron Donald with the No. 13 pick in 2014.
After missing three of the first four games of 2023 through injury, Kancey has played in the past seven games for the Buccaneers. He has made 14 tackles (10 solo), eight tackles for loss, eight quarterback hits, 3.0 sacks and one pass defended as a rookie.
Kancey earned 2022 ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors and was a two-time All-American (just the 13th player in program history to earn unanimous honors in 2022) during his time at Pitt.
He racked up 31 tackles (17 solo), 14.5 tackles for loss, the most of any defensive tackle in the FBS, and 7.5 sacks in 11 games in 2022. In his Pitt career, through just three seasons, Kancey recorded 91 tackles (52 solo), 34.5 tackles for loss, 16 sacks, three pass breakups and a forced fumble.
Kancey joins New England Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez and Seattle Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon as the three players who have earned NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month honors in 2023.
