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Buccaneers Round Table: Mid-Season Tampa Bay Draft Decision

By David Harrison

CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 30: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell holds up a jersey after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers chose Jameis Winston of the Florida State Seminoles
CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 30: NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell holds up a jersey after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers chose Jameis Winston of the Florida State Seminoles /
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Sean Eck

The Buccaneers have lost their previous four games and the season that started with playoff hopes and hype has quickly turned into a conversation for who they take with a Top-5 pick.

Saquon Barkley is a special kind of talent that can be transformative for an organization.  The Buccaneers have Doug Martin under contract for the next three seasons, but they should move on with his inconsistent performances and Barkley is who they should move onto for the future.

The four teams currently in front of the Buccaneers all have glaring holes at quarterback, and this is the draft that is supposed to be one of the best quarterback classes of all time.  It’s not unreasonable to think the first three picks will all be quarterbacks.  The Colts have their quarterback, but they also have more glaring holes than at the running back position opening up the chance for the Buccaneers to get the best rushing prospect in the draft.  Many wanted the Buccaneers to take a Runningback this year, and with the subpar performances by the current backs, this could be a reality come draft time.

Barkley is a man among boys in the college game right now being listed at 5’11 and 230lbs and running a sub 4.40 forty yard dash.  Currently, he has 1205 yards from scrimmage and 11 touchdowns.  He has shown improved hands catching 36 passes for 471 yards and has elite visions after the catch.   Over the first eight games of the season, he is averaging over 100 yards a contest on the ground and almost 60 yards per contest as a receiver.  This includes two games he ran for over 170 yards.   Over his three years in college, he has averaged 5.7 yards per rush and 9.8 yards per catch.

Watch for Barkley to be talked up as a potential #1 pick, but over the past decade, only four running backs have been selected inside the top 5 picks.  For the last two years in a row, a running back has been chosen inside the top 5 before that you have to go back to the 2012 NFL Draft and see Trent Richardson being drafted at #3 and then Darren McFadden at #4  in 2008.

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