TAMPA, FL - AUGUST 26: Linebacker Jeff Knox #50 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the preseason game against the Cleveland Browns at Raymond James Stadium on August 26, 2017, in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers lost 13-9. (photo by Matt May/Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
“Tampa 2” describes not only a defensive scheme but also the latest move in the NFL career of Jeff Knox Jr.
The former Saskatchewan Roughriders linebacker is preparing for his second go-round in as many years with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who signed him to a free-agent contract Tuesday.
“It felt like a good fit to go back,” Knox, 25, said from his off-season home in Baltimore. “Last time, I walked in there with a knee injury and a groin injury — I was coming off two surgeries — so I was a little bit behind on everything.
“I sat out of OTAs (organized team activities) and rookie mini-camp, so I didn’t get a good shot to catch up with everybody else. I was playing catch-up when I got to camp and I still did OK. I’m going in there healthy this time and I feel like I know the system.”
Knox, a product of California University of Pennsylvania, initially signed with Saskatchewan in May of 2015 and spent the next two CFL campaigns with the Roughriders.
In 2015, he set a single-season franchise record with 114 tackles en route to being the team’s nominee for three CFL awards (most outstanding player, most outstanding defensive player and most outstanding rookie). He subsequently was named a West Division all-star.
Saskatchewan granted Knox his release in January of 2017 — one month before he was to become a free agent — so that he could sign with the Bucs. He went to training camp with Tampa Bay and played in three pre-season games, but was released in September.
Knox then returned to the Roughriders and played eight regular-season games, recording 23 tackles, seven special-teams stops and one sack. He added four tackles and two special-teams takedowns over Saskatchewan’s two playoff games.
Knox was due to become a free agent this coming Tuesday, but the Roughriders released him Jan. 31 so that he could again pursue an NFL opportunity. Once again, that opportunity was presented by the Buccaneers, who signed him to a two-year contract.
He wants to make the most of his second chance.
“You’ve always got something to prove when you get released,” said Knox, who also had off-season workouts with the New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens. “For those guys (in Tampa Bay) to give me a shot to come back and to feel like I’m good enough to play there, that’s one of my main things.
“I’m a guy who’s passionate and who loves to compete, so it’s another opportunity to showcase myself on the same team with a familiar system.”
He also can derive some motivation from last season’s turn of events.
“(Getting cut) is nothing that I can take back — it happened — so to go back and be able to compete again is special,” Knox said. “I know a lot of guys don’t get those opportunities.”
This opportunity once again means an end to his CFL career; whether it’s a temporary halt or a permanent one remains to be seen.
Knox played 43 regular-season games with the Roughriders, recording 202 tackles, 37 special-teams stops, two sacks and one interception. His connection with Saskatchewan, the organization, his teammates and the members of Rider Nation made his decision to sign elsewhere a difficult one.
“It’s never easy to leave,” Knox said. “But (Tampa) is a lot closer to where my family is and that’s one of the biggest things — the travelling and my family being close by.
“I know it’s not ideal to continue to chase a dream because eventually it’s going to run out. But I am only 25, I’ve still got a lot of time left and I’m going to use this chance to try to make that happen.”
The Buccaneers are to begin their off-season workout programs April 16, with training camp to open in mid-July. They’ll set their final roster Sept. 1, by which point the CFL will be in Week 12 of its regular season.
Knox noted he has been inundated with messages of support from Roughriders fans, but some people have gone online and suggested that Saskatchewan should bid farewell to a player who twice now has left the Green and White to try his luck in the NFL.
Knox had a message for those people.
“I’m grateful that the Riders gave me a shot, and I’ll always be grateful for that,” he said. “But growing up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and playing football all my life, my dream was always to play in the NFL. If somebody’s mad at me for chasing my dreams and trying to make a better life for my family, that’s their opinion and I can’t change that.”
