Buccaneers: How to Replace the Production of Vincent Jackson
A Call to the Desert
The loss of Vincent Jackson was a devastating one. Not because of production, seeing as how Jackson was having his worst statistical year as a Buc, but from a veteran and leadership perspective. The Buccaneers are not going to be able to replace that in 2016.
That being said, they have to find a way to add a weapon to this offense to help this year. There aren’t any Pro Bowl receivers walking the streets that will come in and help right now. It’s not happening. Roddy White isn’t the answer as he would provide little to no increase in production we were seeing out of VJax.
So what do they do?
It makes some sense for Jason Licht to call up his buddies in Arizona and try to see if they can work a deal for Michael Floyd. Although Bruce Arians loves running high-octane passing offenses, the road to success in Arizona now goes through David Johnson and it appears Floyd is the forgotten man. John Brown is an emerging star and the ultimate complimentary piece to Larry Fitzgerald.
Floyd will be a free agent next year, so the price wouldn’t be steep. Combining him with Mike Evans could be the start of a formidable duo in Tampa Bay, assuming they could get a new contract worked out and Floyd stays longer than just the 2016 season. If they were able to get him for a conditional late round pick, it’s fair to say the Bucs would not likely find the caliber of receiver Floyd is on day three of the 2017 NFL draft.
Licht has been masterful and moving up and down in the draft, so losing one pick in October doesn’t mean he won’t recoup that pick – maybe more – come draft weekend. It’s a risk that could reap huge rewards and gives Jameis Winston a legitimate threat opposite Evans, which will only create more opportunities for Evans moving forward.