Buccaneers draft position takes center stage

It hurts to admit, but the Buccaneers playoff drought will continue. Now, it’s time to see where the Buccaneers will land in the 2019 NFL Draft.

The New Orleans Saints handed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the final blow to the Bucs’ playoff chances. While the Bucs have not been mathematically eliminated just yet, they would need a miracle to make the postseason.

According to the New York Times Playoff Simulator, even if Tampa Bay wins out, they have just an 11 percent chance to land a Wild Card spot.

Currently, the Bucs hold the eighth spot in next year’s draft. They sit ahead of all of the other 5-8 teams. (NYG, DET, CIN), due to their strength of schedule.

This isn’t to say that the Bucs should focus on the future or that the fan base should be rooting for the team to “tank.” It is just time to become aware of where Tampa Bay will be selecting in a few months.

If the Buccaneers go into a tailspin, they could end up with a top-five pick. But that doesn’t seem likely at the moment. With the Bucs defense continuing to improve down the stretch, the team should be competitive.

Tampa Bay still has a pair of teams in the middle of the playoff hunt in Baltimore and Dallas. The Bucs are more than capable of playing spoiler if their offense can perform on the road.

Winning a few games late in the season could send the Bucs into the middle of the first round.

As some teams try out new quarterbacks and get a head start on the coaching carousel, the Bucs will continue to start Jameis Winston.

Winston needs to play well for the rest of the season to guarantee his place on the roster next season. His long-term future is still in doubt, but his strong play of late should allow him to keep the starting job with, or without a new coaching staff.

Regardless of how Tampa Bay finishes out the season, their draft position will be one of the main talking points as Decembers winds down.