The final week of football is upon us and I am excited and saddened at the same time. The Super Bowl will be great, but it will signal the end of another year of football. After Sunday the draft order will be almost finalized (two coin flips remain). I will continue to analyze one team every week on potential draft strategies. . Last week, I examined the Browns, which means its time to look at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Keep an eye out for your favorite team and feel free to leave comments below.
One of the biggest upsets, as an entire team this year was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Josh Freeman, Mike Williams, and LeGarrette Blount all had slumps this year. I blame a significant portion of this slump on the play calling as the Bucs abandoned the run far too early in most games. Nevertheless, Greg Schiano is the new head coach, and that opens up almost any position to be selected at the #5 spot.
Justin Blackmon
Mike Williams was a huge let down this past year and Freeman needs more weapons on offense. Blackmon is the clear top receiver in this year’s class and will not make it out of the top ten I’m not a huge fan of Blackmon going this high but I would certainly understand it.
Trent Richardson
Like Williams, LeGarrette Blount had a huge sophomore slump. The Bucs o line was weak and didn’t open enough holes. That said, Blount does not have good enough hands to be in on third down, which limits him. Richardson is the clear number one back and could be a dynamic weapon to take some pressure off of Freemen. I think Richardson and Tampa Bay would be a match made in heaven and help the Bucs get back to contending for the playoffs.
Morris Claiborne
The Bucs secondary is awful and that is not an exaggeration. Aqib Talib is one mistake away from missing 8-16 games with a suspension. Ronde Barber is past his prime and is playing more of a Ray Lewis, leader type, role. The Bucs will definitely address their secondary in the draft; the question is when. Claiborne is extremely talented and can lock down one side of the field. Would be an easy plug and play pick here.
Jonathan Martin/Riley Reiff
As I mentioned earlier, the Bucs O line struggled to open holes and protect Freemen. Their line is aging and I expect the Bucs to add some youth through the draft. With Kalil likely off the board at this point, Martin and Reiff are the likely tackle picks here. Martin is a better pass blocker and Reiff is a stronger player in the run. All comes down to what the new coach wants in a left tackle.
The Bucs need help at almost every position except quarterback and defensive line. I expect coach Schiano to stick with Freeman, as he has proved he can succeed in the NFL. The question becomes, can he rally this team, which disappointed so much after walking in with high expectations. Next week, I will take a look at next wildcard (and my personal favorite) team, the Redskins.