It is mock draft season, and our FanSided sister site NFL Spin Zone dropped another one today that had the Tampa Bay Buccaneers landing Jawaan Taylor.
In a mock draft posted by NFL Spin Zone’s Randy Gurzi, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select offensive Jawaan Taylor out of Florida. In our 7-round mock last week, Taylor landed with the Bucs as well as he looks to be a realistic target for Jason Licht and his team.
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The 6’5, 330 pound offensive tackle is a Florida native, and would make sense for the Bucs, who are likely to tag Donovan Smith, but look to be on the verge of making Demar Dotson a cap casualty. Taylor has been generating a lot of buzz and vaulting up draft boards, finding himself as the number one ranked tackle according to many draft experts. He was a three year starter for the Gators and Mike McGlinchey proved last year that right tackles can too be worthy of an early first round pick.
While the team controls the first round with the potential to negotiate that pick with a quarterback needy team LINK, if they stay put, Taylor is a quality prospect for the team to consider bringing in and playing at right tackle right away. Opposite the 25-year-old Smith, the Bucs could bookend their offensive line for years to come and give Jameis Winston, or whomever their quarterback will be long term protection off of the edges.
While the Buccaneers could potentially trade the fifth overall pick or pursue help on the defensive side of the ball, considering all three levels needs help, Taylor would help Tampa Bay lock up the tackle position for years to come. Look for Taylor to the Bucs at five to continue to gather steam as the pre-draft process continues.