Jan 9, 2012; New Orleans, LA, USA; LSU Tigers cornerback Morris Claiborne (17) carries the ball during the first half of the 2012 BCS National Championship game against the Alabama Crimson Tide at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

I’m sure by now you’ve heard that the Buccaneers are probably going to take a corner with the 5th overall pick in this upcoming NFL draft, which starts on April 26. And you’ve also heard this name floating around: Morris Claiborne. So, if you’re not familiar with this name, my goal is to introduce you to Morris Claiborne, cornerback from Louisiana State University.

Floyd Reese, the former GM of the Tennessee Titans, once stated that ”the optimum height is about 5-11,” referring to the height for a cornerback in the NFL. Morris Claiborne fits the bill because he’s listed as 5’11″, 188 pounds. Reese contended that taller cornerbacks don’t normally make it in the NFL because they “tend to get hurt.” Claiborne is the top corner in the upcoming draft and here’s why:

Man Coverage: Claiborne is solid in man coverage mainly because of his quick feet. Moreover, Claiborne’s reach also allows him to press on the line, and he rarely gets behind when pressing because of that reach and those quick feet. However, he can be lazy at times, allowing the opposing receivers to throw a quick move on him. Many NFL receivers, such as Larry Fitzgerland and Calvin Johnson Jr. will have a significant height and weight advantage. Fitzgerland outweighs Claiborne by about 30 pounds.

Zone Coverage: I’ve noticed that Claiborne is a solid tackler, and that he doesn’t give up many yards after the catch, which is big in the NFL. The Buccaneers struggled immensely with tackling last season. Claiborne also doesn’t shy away from the contact, but at times takes bad angles. However, these are all things that can be worked on, of course. In the zone, many good quarterbacks will find the soft spot between the corner and the safety. Often times, Claiborne overestimates his closing speed and the receiver and quarterback will find that soft spot for an easy completion.

Intangibles: Morris Claiborne was a former receiver so he has good hands. However, he’s still learning the corner position. He might be overwhelmed at first in the NFL, but generally he’s got a tenacious, hard-working attitude. He’s got relatively good size for a corner, and long arms, which will help him with tackling, defending passes, and blitzing. Claiborne’s also good at shedding the blocker on running plays, so expect to see him in the backfield often. Claiborne’s skill set is rather similar to Patrick Peterson’s. His coverage skills might be comparable to those of Vontae Davis of the Miami Dolphins.

Final Word: The Minnesota Vikings have expressed their interest in drafting Claiborne with the 3rd overall pick. This just goes to show how teams have come to value corners in this new, pass-heavy NFL. The Pewter Plank reported yesterday that Ronde Barber will return for a 16th season, which is another reason why the Buccaneers may draft him. Barber could be an excellent mentor for Claiborne, someone that he can really learn from. Moreover, Aqib Talib’s status is still unknown, and adding Claiborne will give the Buccaneers at least two starting corners. One thing is for sure, the corner out of LSU will be heavily pursued by at least three teams come draft time.

 
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Alex Marvez of FoxSports broke the story via Twitter.

It’s not a sexy title — in fact it sound like a title Monty Python came up with but then again it seems like the Flying Circus is running the Bucss right now.

But Tampa has finally nailed down a head coach with NFL experience and veteran experience, albeit Davis’ NFL gig was a failed stint in Cleveland.

The Buccaneers have hired Butch Davis as the new Senior Assistant to the Defense. (Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-US PRESSWIRE)

Davis’ career would almost come to a bizarre Tim Burton circle as he’d be working for the guy he hired to run his defense at Miami in the early 2000′s. But that defense just happened to be one of the best to ever play on the same college football team in the history of the NCAA.

Davis started his career with former universoty of Miami coach Jimmy Johnson eventually becoming his defesive coordinator in Dallas. Davis then went to Miami before cashing in on his college success by accepting an NFL job. That job just happened to be the new head coach of the revived Cleveland Browns.

Davis failed in Cleveland and limped back into the college ranks coaching North Carolina to a respectable record. The main thing Davis did at North Carolina was recruit players that have been selected high in the NFL Draft. This bodes well for his development of the Buccaneers young players on defense.

There was much speculation that Davis would be hired by his former understudy Schiano as soon as Schiano was hired in Tampa.

Davis won’t be the defensive coordinator but he’s basically going to be Big Poppa to whoever assumes the role. But by being Big Poppa, he’s pretty much going to be running the defense which is a really good thing.

Once again the Buccaneers have a top 5 pick but for the first time since perhaps drafting Cadillac Williams in 2005, the Bucs are in a no-lose position at the fifth overall slot.

The Bucs are selecting fifth overall in a draft that features five lights out prospects. Even if Morris Claiborne is drafted before Tampa is on the clock, the Bucs will walk away with a piece that improves their team unless, of course, the Glazers try to do too much and fumble.

All these scenarios are assuming Andrew Luck goes first overall.

Scenario #1: Morris Claiborne

This is best case scenario where all the pieces fall in place and Morris Claiborne is on the board when the Bucs are on the clock. The fourth overall pick won’t even be done being announced and the Bucs will have their card in. Claiborne is without a doubt the numerbo uno guy on the Bucs board. But every time the Bucs have had a guy on their board that fills an immediate need, he’s been drafted right before their eyes (and selection). See: Calvin Johnson and Ndamakong Suh.

Scenario #2: Justin Blackmon

In scenario 2, Claiborne is gone (as he will be in all subsequent scenarios). But all is not lost. Tampa has four teams drafting ahead of them who all have their own needs and own agendas. In this scenario Claiborne goes second to the Rams and the Vikings go with their left tackle obsession in Matt Kalil leaving two guys on the board. The Browns take a sigh of relief that Robert Griffin III is still available at four and draft him.  This leaves the Bucs with Justin Blackmon from Oklahoma State. This isn’t the best case scenario but when you have an explosive wide out option to add to Mike Williams, Arrelious Benn and Preston Parker how is that a worst case scenario?

Scenario #3: Matt Kalil

This is the second best scenario for the Buccaneers if Claiborne is off the board when the are on the clock. Luck goes first to the Colts, trade with Cleveland who then takes Robert Griffin III and the Vikings cave into fans pressure and select Justin Blackmon third overall. This leaves St. Louis to draft Claiborne at four allowing Matt Kalil, arguably the best offensive tackle prospect since Jake Long to fall to Tampa at five. This would allow the Bucs to phase out (or just use money by cutting DOnald Penn and eating his salary) and then allowing Kalil to bookend Davin Joseph and Jeremy Trueblood in protecting Josh Freeman. It’s a long shot but it’s almost a better pick then Claiborne if you consider Josh Freeman the absolute, end all be all future of the franchise. This could be a scenario where the Bucs get Claiborne if St. Louis take Kalil.

Scenario #4: Robert Griffin III

This is probably the messiest, close thing to worst case (and most improbable) scenario for the Bucs. In this scenario, Luck goes first, the Rams take Claiborne second Minnesota goes with Blackmon or Kalil and the Browns feel comfortable with Colt McCoy and draft Blackmon or vise versa. Some variation of the aforementioned pick selection would transpire and leave the Bucs in a soggy place. This would be a situation where the Bucs  are left with Robert Griffin III and puts them in an obvious trade down spot. I shouldn’t really call it a worst case scenario — it’s just the Meg Ryan pick of the bunch. It’s not sexy but it’s better then settling for worse and can be very beneficial. Cleveland is the hot team to get RGIII but if they pass, Washington will want him and they pick sixth. The only real trade the Bucs could make is with Jacksonville but they might not yet decide to jump ship on Blaine Gabbert. Miami picks eighth and may want to trade with Tampa but beyond that it’s a crap shoot. The only team outside the Top 10 that would think about trading with Tampa if RGIII is available is possibly Seattle. Washington won’t trade up with Tampa because they know the Bucs won’t take a quarterback. This would be the least exciting of the scenarios and would fit perfectly with the anti-climactic atmosphere that is hovering over Tampa at the moment. The Bucs wouldn’t lose with this scenario because they could easily get two number ones and a package of late round picks.