The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made the smart pick Friday night in the second-round when they chose to select S Antoine Winfield Jr.
There was certainly some speculation concerning what the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would do with their second-round pick.
The Buccaneers, holding the No. 45 overall pick, had several positional needs to address, but they chose to make the smart move.
One of the major holes on the 2019 roster was the defensive backfield. The Buccaneers elected to take S Antoine Winfield Jr. (Minnesota) as a guy who can come in and shore-up the secondary.
Second-Round Draft Grade: Antoine Winfield Jr. (Safety)
Antoine Winfield Jr. was one of the best safeties in this 2020 NFL Draft class. Though he’s not the biggest safety, he is a perfect free-safety player who has great athleticism, a quick twitch and explosiveness.
When looking at Winfield Jr.’s film early in the draft process, I thought he looked like a guy who could come in and compete for a starting job and would absolutely be a perfect piece to shore up that backend.
He’s not quite as physical as Grant Delpit (LSU), who was taken at pick No. 44, but he shows greater athleticism.
Winfield Jr. has the speed to recover and that’s going to be needed more and more in this age of the NFL. That’s especially true playing in the NFC South against quarterbacks like Drew Brees and Matt Ryan.
Winfield Jr. is going to make this safety group better and he has the ability to earn a starting position from Day 1. As a matter of fact, I would expect him to play starter-level snaps before the end of the season.
Grade: A
It was certainly tempting for Jason Licht to go running back in the second-round, but instead he stuck to his guns and made the analytical pick. Winfield Jr. is going to help that defense get to the next level and it’s all because of the smart move made by the Buccaneers GM and administration.