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Former Philadelphia Eagles center and “Monday Night Countdown” co-host Jason Kelce.

We don’t have to use our imaginations to understand why blocking the 6-foot-3, 350-pound Tampa Bay Buccaneers defenseman Vita Vea isn’t all that fun.

The difficulty of blocking Vea was comically put into perspective by former Philadelphia Eagles center and six-time NFL All-Pro Jason Kelce on September 13 during an appearance on The Ryen Russillo Podcast.

Russillo and Kelce were discussing his decision to retire after 13 seasons in the NFL when Vea’s name came up.

“(I quit) because of knees that guys like Vita Vea wouldn’t lock anymore,” Kelce said. “And elbows that just kept popping and getting stuck in certain positions.”

Kelce is likely to be a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer when he becomes eligible to be inducted in 2030. He is also widely regarded as one of the best centers in NFL history. In his first season of retirement, he will be part of ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown pregame crew in 2024.

The weekly podcast that Kelce hosts with his brother, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, sold the rights to Amazon’s Wondery for a reported $100 million in August 2024.

Vea is dominant nose tackle for Buccaneers

If anyone can attest to how good Vea has been for the Buccaneers, it’s Kelce, who has spent the past six seasons directly competing for the 2018 first-round pick.

It was the Buccaneers and Vea who ended Kelce’s NFL career in the NFC Wild Card Game following the 2023 season, defeating the Eagles 32-9.

In 2024, the Buccaneers will get a slimmed-down, focused version of Vea, who was down to 347 pounds in June according to The Athletic’s Dan Pompei but now finally confirmed he’s been closer to 367 pounds for some time.

“Vita Vea could be better than ever in 2024,” Pompei wrote. “At 29, the seven-year veteran enters the sweet spot of his career with a new look after losing significant weight during the off-season while training with former teammate Ndamukong Suh. Vea is listed at 347 (he claims this is his current weight) but was likely closer to 367.”

Vea also plays for big money. He signed a four-year, $71 million contract extension in March 2022 and is expected to earn $16 million (2024), $17 million (2025) and $18 million (2025) over the next three seasons.

Injuries and weight seem to be linked in Vea’s case

Vea was selected 12th overall in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Washington after winning the Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year title in 2017. However, injuries have been a recurring problem throughout his career.

Through six NFL seasons, Vea has played in every regular-season game for the Buccaneers just once, in 2019. He also played in 16 of 17 games in 2021, the only year he was selected to the Pro Bowl. He played in a career-low five games in 2020 but returned for the playoffs and was a key part of the Buccaneers’ run to the Super Bowl.

Vea’s path to a healthier version of himself may have been encouraged by his play over the last two seasons. He has career-highs for sacks over the last two seasons, with 6.5 in 2022 and 5.5 in 2023, and had a career-high 43 tackles in 2023 despite missing two games. He also had a career-high 2 forced fumbles in 2023.

Tony Adame covers the NFL for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington Commanders and Denver Broncos. A veteran sportswriter and editor since 2004, his work has been featured in Stadium Talk, Yardbarker, NW Florida Daily News and Pensacola News Journal. More about Tony Adame