With all the attention going to obvious needs like receiver, safety, running back and kick returner, several other positions of need for the Buccaneers have been left out of the discussion.
Here at the Pewter Plank we like to be as inclusive as possible, so when I noticed that three specific positions for the Buccaneers were being ignored I knew I had to speak (write) up. Since the clock ticked zero in week 17 against Carolina, the focus among all Buccaneer observers has been squarely aimed on wide receiver, and understandably so. Safety comes in at a close second, followed by some mix of running back, kick returner and offensive line. Almost every mock out there paints a similar picture. However, bubbling under the surface are other issues that need attending to in the near future.
These probably aren’t the positions that the Bucs will be spending first round picks on (though there are a few exceptions that we’ll discuss), or veterans that will be given substantial contracts. Heck, the Buccaneers may even decide that they simply don’t have the resources to address them this off-season. Still, they’re issues that could become suddenly apparent in the event of an injury and the Bucs would do well to be aware of them.
We’ll go over these potential quiet killers and look at some cheap ways that the Buccaneers could fix them or band-aid them for the 2017 season.
Defensive tackle
I’m a bit surprised how little attention the defensive tackle position has gotten over the last two years. While Gerald McCoy has been terrific as always, the quality of play next to him at nose-tackle has been inconsistent and at times non-existent. Clinton McDonald and Akeem Spence have been the two primary tackles playing with McCoy, with defensive ends Will Gholston and Robert Ayers moving inside and contributing at times. While they’ve shown flashes of being a quality group, a combination of injuries and poor play have left a lot to be desired.
Given Gerald McCoy’s injury history this fire seems particularly dangerous. We’ve seen the Buccaneer defense hit absolute rock bottom without their All-Pro tackle in the line-up, so making sure that they have adequate depth here is especially important.
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The Bucs have some flexibility in their decision making with Akeem Spence and Clinton MacDonald both free agents. They can choose to bump defensive tackle up the priority list and move on from both, or they can re-sign them both to team-friendly contracts and keep things together. While it’d be exciting to see the Bucs pursue a big time nose tackle like Dontari Poe, the likely scenario is bringing back Spence and McDonald.
The Buccaneers value their locker room cohesion, and both Spence and McDonald are important parts of that. Re-signing Spence proves to younger Bucs that the team is focused on drafting and developing their own players, while McDonald has a well known leadership role among the players. The team can continue to have Robert Ayers and Will Gholston (provided he’s re-signed) help get interior production and put defensive tackle on the back-burner for one more season.
The wild-card player to consider here is Calais Campbell. The nine year veteran is still playing at an extremely high level and, given the relative need and Jason Licht’s history in Arizona, could be the type of player the Bucs make a surprise splurge on.
Tight End
The Buccaneers learned the hard way last season what their offense looks like without Cameron Brate. After enjoying a breakout season to the tune of 57 catches, 660 yards and 8 touchdowns, Brate was injured early in the Buccaneers’ week 16 match-up with New Orleans. With Brate out of the line-up Brandon Myers, Luke Stocker and Alan Cross were unable to pick up the slack; we even saw Myers miss a potential touchdown that Brate surely would have hauled in.
Even if we go into the settings and turn off injuries like Madden, tight end remains a position of need. Dirk Koetter’s offense relies heavily on tight ends and many times last season he deployed lineups with all three of Cam Brate, Luke Stocker and Brandon Myers in them. Before Austin Sefarian-Jenkins got popped for a DUI the Bucs were planning on featuring Jenkins as the primary run-blocking tight end with Brate as the pass catcher and Luke Stocker as a hybrid full-back.
With Brandon Myers set to be a free agent, the Buccaneers will have no choice but to at least patch the position. Martellus Bennett, Jared Cook, Jermaine Gresham and Dion Sims are all available veterans that the Buccaneers could have some interest in, though they’ll be looking for someone that can block in order to allow Cameron Brate more flexibility as a pass catcher.
The extraordinary depth of tight end talent in this draft is going to tempt Jason Licht to make one his now infamous bold picks from out of left field. O.J. Howard, David Njoku, Evan Enram and Jake Butt are all extremely talented in their own ways and players that could be sneaky candidates to be mid-round, or in the case of Howard or Njoku, potentially first round picks for the Bucs.
Cornerback
Of the three positions here, cornerback is strongest, and least likely to be meddled with this off-season. Even still, there’s a lot of uncertainty around this group heading towards the 2017 season. As a group the corners were solid in 2016, but not spectacular aside from Brent Grimes.
Grimes turned in one of the best seasons of his excellent career, knocking away a league-leading 24 passes and collecting four interceptions. Rookie Vernon Hargreaves had well documented struggles throughout most of the season but showed some signs of life down the stretch. Jude Adjei-Barimah was suspended for four games late last season, but the Buccaneers seem to like his prospects going forward. With Ryan Smith changing from safety to corner and Josh Robinson a special teams ace that the team would like to re-sign, it seems like the group is largely going to be kept in tact for next season.
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Beyond next season however, the crystal ball is blank. Brent Grimes will be another year older and a free agent, and if Vernon Hargreaves struggles again the team could be completely without any promising cornerbacks. Dre Kirkpatrick, Stephon Gilmore and Morris Claiborne are all young free agents available that, if the Buccaneers are feeling proactive, could be brought in as the heir-apparent to Brent Grimes. Also keep an eye on the later rounds of the draft, as the Bucs could look for a project to mold.