Buccaneers 2018 Draft class needs to finish season on high note

After a tough start, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2018 Draft class needs to finish strong.

First impressions matter and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie class hasn’t made a strong one.

The new crop has garnered significant playing time, but it hasn’t translated to much success. From the high draft picks to the back end of the class, Bucs rookies have undergone their fair share of struggles.

General manager Jason Licht’s first selection of Vita Vea was a head-scratcher at the time. The Bucs had former All-Pro Gerald McCoy on the roster. Tampa Bay also signed a pair of veteran tackles to compliment him.

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Still, Licht pulled the trigger on the Vea, and he hasn’t gotten off to the start that many had hoped. Vea went down early in training camp with a calf injury. He missed all of training camp and missed out on essential reps.

Already off on the wrong foot, it has taken Vea almost the entire season to catch back up. He played in eight games so far this season and had gotten back up to speed. In Sunday’s win over the San Francisco 49ers, Vea played well in spurts.

Vea played less than 20 snaps, but he managed two tackles for loss and a sack on the day. He looked like he did at Washington. Dominating his matchup and causing quarterbacks and running backs to escape to the outside.

The Derwin James vs. Vea debate will never end for Tampa Bay fans. The Rookie of the Year candidate is making noise with the Los Angeles Chargers. However, Vea finally showed how special a player he can be. He will rarely make flashy plays like a safety, but he can be a dominant run stopper.

Whether Vea was the right pick or not remains to be seen, but he needs to finish off 2018 strong and show the fan base why he was worth a first-round selection.

Although the Buccaneers didn’t select a defensive back in the first round, they decided to snag a pair of them in the second. Tampa picked Carlton Davis and M.J. Stewart to bring youth into their defensive backfield. In their first seasons, they have received massive amounts of playing time.

Davis has started at outside cornerback for the entire year. He has faced some of the NFL’s best receivers in the league. So far this season, Davis has been by now the most impressive rookie on the team.

The same cannot be said for Stewart. Injuries have played a role of late, but Stewart cannot stick with receivers in the slot. Stewart’s 55.8 coverage grade according to Pro Football Focus is well below the league average. In seven games, Stewart was targeted 40 times, allowing 34 receptions.

The biggest disappointment of the 2018 class was another second-round pick, Ronald Jones. Expected to take over as the team’s lead back before the season, Jones began the season as a healthy scratch, not quite ready to contribute.

Jones struggled in the preseason, but no one could have imagined him as the team’s fourth running back, sitting behind undrafted rookie Shaun Wilson on the depth chart.

Even when Jones finally earned playing time, he struggled. In four games, Jones rushed 19 times for just 42 yards, a 2.2 yards per carry clip. Jones hasn’t played since Week 8 as injuries derailed him for a month or so.

However, Jones was healthy this past Sunday and was yet again a healthy scratch. For a player picked at the top of the second-round he needs to find a way to get back onto the field and end his rookie season off right. The fan base needs some optimism surrounding his future.

Even third-round pick Alex Cappa hasn’t been able to see the field much. He earned his first NFL reps against the 49ers, and he had issues at right guard.

There’s no reason to think that these players are busts or lost causes. They are just beginning their careers, but a strong finish this season could create momentum heading into a pivotal offseason of development.

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