Much of the focus on the Bucs upgrading their defensive line has been, understandably, that Tampa Bay finished last in the league in sacks last season, with just 22. But as Gerald McCoy pointed out several times in 2017, you can't get to the quarterback if you can't stop the run first, setting up predictable passing downs.

The Bucs were 23rd in run defense last year, allowing 117.5 yards per game, up only slightly from 2016, when they allowed 117.2. They were far worse against the pass in both seasons, so that run-defense ranking is probably still skewed positive. (Consider 2012, when the Bucs had the best run defense in the NFL at 82.5 yards a game. Looks good, until you see they had the worst pass defense in the league, allowing 297 yards per game through the air.)

So as we've mentioned, the Bucs traded for DE Jason Pierre-Paul and drafted DT Vita Vea in the first round. They signed DE Vinny Curry and DT Beau Allen from Philadelphia and DT Mitch Unrein from Chicago, giving them five new guys among their top eight defensive linemen. Brentson Buckner is in as the new defensive line coach. Add in a healthy Noah Spence and an improved Will Gholston, and there's a hugely improved cast to line up around McCoy.

Stopping the run is central to winning in the NFL: The Bucs were 5-1 when they held opponents under 100 yards last season and 0-10 when they didn't. Teams that can run the ball consistently control the line of scrimmage and can dictate the game. Making matters worse, the Bucs weren't that kind of team offensively last year.

Look at the first three games against the Saints and Falcons. New Orleans rushed for 151 (77 from Mark Ingram, 68 from Alvin Kamara) in a rout, Atlanta rushed for 148 (without Devonta Freeman) in a 34-20 win, and Atlanta rushed for 201 (most allowed by Bucs all year) in a 24-21 win. In the season finale, the Bucs held the Saints to 92 yards in a last-second win.

We bring all this up because that upgraded run defense will be tested, quite a bit, in the 2018 season. The first two games are against the Saints and Eagles, who finished third and fifth in the NFL in rushing last season, though Ingram will be suspended to give Tampa Bay a break in the opener.

The Bucs also face Dallas (second in rushing) and Carolina (fourth), so they have six games against teams that finished in the top five in rushing. On the other end of the spectrum, they have just three games against teams that finished in the bottom 10 in rushing last season.

Even those three should be much improved, as the Giants (26th) added Saquon Barkley in the draft and the Redskins (28th) added Derrius Guice. The Bengals (31st) look to be the easiest run game they'll face.

NJ.com ranked the top 12 backs in the league, with Pittsburgh's Le'Veon Bell atop the list. The Steelers come to Tampa in Week 3, with Jameis Winston still on suspension and a huge Monday night spotlight.