My hope is to get one player up each day this week for potential Round 1 picks, and then do the same thing next week for round 2, etc.  

Without further ado…

DT Peria Jerry – Ole Miss

The Buccaneers’ biggest weakness right now is at the defensive tackle position. While Head Coach Raheem Morris specifically spoke about how we are fine at the defensive tackle position, it seems kind of like smokescreen to me. Behind Chris Hovan and Ryan Sims, there isn’t much experience. Greg Peterson and Dre Moore, two players drafted in the last 3 years are slated to backup both defensive tackle positions. Peterson has never seen significant playing time, and Moore was on the Practice Squad all of last season.

Perry is a guy who can bring back the days of a Buccaneer interior pass rush. Unless running a 3-4 defense, pressuring the QB from the DT positions is essential to defensive success, and in my opinion, is the most important position on the field. Pressure from the interior helps free up serious pass rushers on the outside which open holes for linebackers and allows corners to not have to remain on an island for a prolonged period of time. Peria led the SEC, the best conference in football, with 18 tackles for loss last season.

NFL.com Draft Profile

Possesses rare burst off the snap, lateral quickness and a nose for the football. Emerged as one of the flashiest prospects at any position in the 2009 draft. A highly touted prep prospect, Jerry spent the 2004 season with Hargrave Military Academy before arriving at Mississippi. He broke out as a junior, earning second team All-SEC accolades by finishing with 58 tackles, including 14 tackles for loss. Often faced two blockers in 2008, when Jerry improved his play behind the line and led the SEC with 18 tackles for loss. He was a four-time SEC Defender of the Week as a senior, and raised his stock even more with a dominating week of practice at the Senior Bowl. He’s likely to be a top-20 pick in April.

 

Currently on the Roster - Gaines Adams, Chris Bradwell, Kevin Carter, Marques Douglas, Jovan Haye, Chris Hovan, Dre Moore, Greg Peterson, Ryan Sims, Greg White, Jimmy Wilkerson

Gauranteed Roster Spots – Gaines Adams

I know that it seems insane to only put 1 player out of 11 guys on the list for gauranteed spots, but I truly think the other 9 (Bradwell, no chance) are battling for the other 7 spots on the roster.  Adams had a tough first few games last year, but who wouldn’t facing the lines of Jamaal Brown, Walter Jones, and some other top tier LT’s in the NFL.  He finished the season with 6 sacks and 38 tackles, and to me, looked like a rising star down the stretch for us.  He brings a lot of Simeon Rice to the table, but in my opinion, has the chance to be a much better player in run support.  He apparently stopped eating junk food this past offseason and came to OTA’s looking and feeling in the best shape of his life.  A 10+ sack season seems like an easy goal. 

No Chance – Chris Bradwell

Battling for Spots – Kevin Carter, Marques Douglas, Jovan Haye, Chris Hovan, Dre Moore, Greg Peterson, Ryan Sims, Greg White, Jimmy Wilkerson

I believe we are essentially looking at 4 more ends making the roster,  and 3 more DT’s making the roster.  Kevin Carter appeared to fit perfectly into our defense last season.  He finished the season with 54 total tackles, 3 sacks and a fumble recovery.  He would seemingly be battling the other two hybrid players on our roster, Jimmy Wilkerson and Marques Douglas.  I would say that there is a distinct possibility that both Douglas and Carter end up making the final roster due to their versatility.  Douglas finished the season with 74 tackles with the Niners and 3 sacks.  He was playing a hybrid end spot in their 3-4 scheme so I would expect those tackle numbers to come down a bit, but he also has the ability to increase the sack numbers.  Wilkerson brings the same kind of versatility to the table as Carter and Douglas, but just has not been as productive in his career as the two aforementioned players.  Greg White would seem to have a good chance of making the team after his 8 sack season last year.  He has been angling hard for a new deal, so I would not rule out some kind of trade by the Bucs, being as though we are stacked at this position.  Him and Gaines on passing downs though, should be a formidable duo.  That leaves Jovan Haye, Chris Hovan, Ryan Sims, Dre Moore and Greg Peterson battling for 3 or 4 spots on the line.  Ryan Sims showed the ability to be a nice cog in the middle in his brief time on the field last season.  It would appear as an outside observer that we would be more inclined to take 2nd year player Greg Peterson, who I think has a bright future, or rookie Dre Moore (whom the Bucs were apparently ecstatic to get in the draft) over Sims, due to the fact that we spent draft picks on both of them.  To me it seems like our DT tandem of the future would be Peterson and Moore, with Moore playing the run stuffing role, and Peterson being mini-Sapp.  Jovan Haye and Chris Hovan should still be provided the opportunity to maintain their starting positions from a year ago.  Hovan almost always seems to be in the middle of big plays, and is a fearless player with good leadership qualities.  He can’t dance for shit, which he does during every timeout at RayJay, but nonetheless is a scary, productive player.  Haye finished the season with 88 tackles and 6 sacks, and was a true bright spot on our Dline last season.  Another guy wanting a new deal, or he would have been put on the Gauranteed Roster Spot list.

Starters – RE/Adams, DT/Hovan, DT/Haye, LE/Kevin Carter

Backups - RE/Greg White, DT/Peterson, DT/Moore, LE/Douglas

In Rod Coleman’s last 5 full seasons he has 46 sacks. 

• PP Take – I personally thought that this would be a player that the Bucs would surely target when he left the Raiders, due to Gruden and Allen’s familiarity with him, and the fact that he would be a perfect fit in our defense.  A rotation of Haye, Hovan, Peterson and Coleman would be a top tier unit. 

Alge Crumpler has averaged 45 receptions, 602 yards, and 5 touchdowns over his 7 years in the league.

• PP Take – TE is definately an area of concern for us with both Anthony Becht and Jeramy Stevans being unrestricted FA’s.   Gruden loves to run two TE sets, and current starter Alex Smith and Alge would be quite the tandem in the two TE package.