Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Are they as bad as their 2017 record indicates?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers very clearly have some work to do with their roster this off-season. That has already gotten underway with releases, re-signings and new additions. Is the team as far away from contending as its 2017 record might indicate? Not so fast.

The new league year started on Wednesday for all 32 teams, meaning everyone is back to 0-0. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers haven’t been as busy in the past week or so as some fans would like, with trades and early free agent moves happening elsewhere in the league. The first moves they made involved re-signing their own. General manager Jason Licht extended the contracts of Mike Evans, Cameron Brate, Adarius Glanton, Peyton Barber and most recently, Keith Tandy. A portion of the fan base took to social media after the moves with the same general gripe. It was “why are they so intent on keeping their 5-11 team together???” Oh, where to begin…

For starters, the guys that Licht wanted to keep together? They were not the reason that Tampa Bay only won five games a year ago. Evans is a top-five receiver in the NFL, Brate is a top tight end and signed at a great price and Barber emerged as a valuable running back toward the end of the season. Glanton is a solid depth piece and Tandy, when given a chance, has been good in the secondary.

But anyway, I digress. The second point to consider with the fans’ complaints about keeping these guys together is whether or not the 2017 Bucs were really as bad as their 5-11 record indicated. The short answer is no. Tampa Bay had, and still has, a roster that is too talented to lose that many games. Of course, there were plenty of shortcomings. The defensive line was atrocious and the secondary was inconsistent. On the other side of the ball, there were issues in the backfield. Even still, this shouldn’t have been a 5-11 team.

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The talent was there and so were the opportunities. The Bucs lost seven one-score games a year ago. If they win just three of those, they finish 8-8. No, Tampa Bay wasn’t a playoff team last year. But at the same time, it was much more competitive than 5-11. A five-point loss to the Patriots came as a result of Nick Folk‘s ineptitude. A late fumble by Adam Humphries led to a three-point loss to the Bills. Late defensive collapses hurt in a six-point overtime loss to the Packers and three-point loss to the Panthers. Those are just four.

Then, of course, there was the injury to Jameis Winston that impacted at least five games. Mix all of that together and you have a recipe for quite a few avoidable losses.

I know what’s coming. The “you are what your record says you are” crowd will be out in full force in response to this. And there’s obviously truth to that. The Bucs went 5-11 last year. There’s no getting around that. It’s a fact. But the Bucs weren’t your typical 5-11 team. Remember that this team went 9-7 and barely missed the playoffs two years ago. This roster doesn’t need a complete overhaul. There are needs in the trenches, the secondary and the backfield. Licht is working on it in free agency, but the draft still lies ahead. So, can we relax a little bit, Bucs fans? Our guys aren’t that far away.

Next: Buccaneers 2018 Free Agency Tracker

Be sure to follow along with The Pewter Plank as the free agency push continues throughout the week.