Buccaneers: Four veterans that should see a rise in their statistics in 2017

Cameron Brate

One of our writers, Brian DeFeo, likes to paraphrase a famous slogan and say “Make the Bucs Brate Again!” One could argue that is exactly what happened in 2016. Last year, Brate came out with his best performance, posting 57 catches for 660 yards. His eight receiving touchdowns tied him for the league lead at tight end. Cameron Brate has already taken a giant leap forward.

However, this may not be it for him. New heights should be coming for the youngster. We already know that Jameis Winston throws to the people he is most comfortable with. See Mike Evans and his NFL-leading 173 targets in 2016. Brate came on last year and became a trusted ally for Winston, and it has carried over. Look at what Trevor Sikkema of Pewter Report had to say from OTAs:

"•Brate and Winston’s chemistry is going to be tough to dethrone. Even if rookie O.J. Howard gets comfortable and shows his flashes of talent during training camp, it might be more difficult than we thought to see him as a solidified first team player, but in a good way. Brate and Winston look comfortable together."

That would make one believe that Brate may see a decent increase in targets this season. Now, is O.J. Howard, among others, going to contribute as well? Sure. But as Trevor said, chemistry is hard to dethrone. Winston is not going to immediately have a new player become a favorite target. He will lean on the players he knows best. Howard will help open lanes for Brate, and Brate could eclipse his numbers from 2016.