Plank Predictions: 2013 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Season Preview by The Pewter Plank Staff

Aug 24, 2013; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Miami Dolphins linebacker

(56) reacts after sacking Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback

(5) during the second half at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports

Which Bucs player is most likely to have a letdown season?

Marc Rogers – “Josh Freeman. As a Bucs fan I want him to exceed expectations and prove me wrong, but he has let me down too many times. ”

Luke Weber – “I hate to say this but I believe it will be Doug Martin. Teams are going to crowd the box and make Josh Freeman beat them. I am not saying that he will have a poor year statistically, but do not look for anything crazy. Hopefully he can prove me wrong.”

Ryan Terrana – “I have to go with Carl Nicks. The MSRA scare is something that shouldn’t be ignored as it is a life threatening disease, but I just have a feeling that the toe injury will linger and he might not ever be the player that we signed to be the highest paid guard in the league. Him going down shouldn’t have a huge impact on the offense, we played without him for 10 games last year, but him not playing at a Pro Bowl level would easily be a big letdown for me. ”

Ken Boehlke – “Leonard Johnson – The Buccaneers went out and got the best cornerback in the NFL. They also decided to cut ties with two former starters in Aqib Talib and Eric Wright. So that means Leonard Johnson will be expected to fill the highly important “not-Revis” cornerback position. I like Johnson, and I think he’s a solid player, but this is a letdown waiting to happen. Johnson will be targeted over and over again as teams throws away from Revis. Sadly, I expect him to let up a lot of big plays and probably a large sum of touchdowns. It’s not really fair, because someone has to fill that spot, I’m just not sure he’s ready for it.”

Michael Decker – “My fear is that it will be Da’Quan Bowers – the front office and coaching staff have such astronomical expectations of him. Michael Bennett was let go to clear room for him. He plays inside on passing downs and if the Bucs lose a DT, he may slide inside on every down. I just think that, for an unproven player who has had some health problems, this is a lot to ask.”

Leo Howell – “If he doesn’t start catching the football more reliably, we could see a disappointing season from Mike Williams. He has all the raw talent needed to be a great receiver, but he gives up on plays from time to time and doesn’t always have reliable hands on accurate passes.”

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