Calijah Kancey

Calijah Demetrius Kancey (born March 1, 2001) is an American professional football defensive tackle for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Pittsburgh Panthers, where he was named the 2022 ACC Defensive Football Player of the Year. Kancey was selected by the Buccaneers in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft.

Early life Kancey attended Miami Northwestern Senior High School in Miami, Florida. Over his final two seasons in high school he had over 200 tackles combined. He committed to the University of Pittsburgh to play college football.

College career Kancey played in one game his freshman year at Pittsburgh in 2019, the 2019 Quick Lane Bowl, and took a redshirt. In 2020, he played in 11 games and started the final four games of the season. He recorded 27 tackles and 1.5 sacks. As a 14-game starter in 2021, Kancey had 35 tackles and seven sacks and was named a third-team All-American by the Associated Press. He returned to Pittsburgh as a starter in 2022 where he was named a unanimous All-American. He finished the season with 31 tackles, 7.5 sacks, and 14.5 tackles for loss which lead the nation for interior defenders.

Professional career

Kancey was selected by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the 2023 NFL draft with the 19th overall pick. Kancey was named Defensive Rookie of the Month for November of the 2023 season.

After re-aggravating a calf injury during his debut in a week 1, 20–17 win over the Minnesota Vikings, Kancey played his first full NFL game in a week 6, 20–6 loss to the Detroit Lions, during which he recorded six quarterback pressures and his first career sack. He finished his rookie season with four sacks, 26 tackles, and one pass defended.

In his first career playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kancey recorded four tackles, a sack, a tackle for loss, helped contribute to a safety, and helped contribute to stopping not just one, but two Brotherly Shove attempts in the Buccaneers' Wild Card Round victory. The Buccaneers remain the only team to do so.

In the 2024 season, he recorded 28 tackles (22 solo), 7.5 sacks, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery in 12 games.

Kancey started Tampa Bay's first two games of the 2025 season, recording one tackle. On September 16, 2025, Kancey was diagnosed with a torn pectoral muscle, and was placed on injured reserve. He was activated on January 2, 2026 after missing 14 games.

On April 27, 2026, the Buccaneers exercised the fifth-year option on Kancey's contract.

NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high

Regular season