Buccaneers: 5 players to watch at Reese’s Senior Bowl

The Buccaneers should still keep an eye on the Senior Bowl while preparing for the Super Bowl.

For the first time in years, the Buccaneers don’t have a ton of mock drafts floating around. The main focus for the Bucs right now is the Super Bowl; the draft can come later.

While most fans likely don’t want to move on to draft coverage yet, the Reese’s Senior Bowl is a different story. Every year, the nation’s top senior college football players meet to show off their skills before the Combine in front of the media.

During a regular season, this is usually just extra with the Combine several months away, but the Senior Bowl has grown in importance with a changing evaluation process.

Now, the Buccaneers will need to pay a close eye on the Senior Bowl this weekend to serve as a replacement for the loss of player coverage in the coming months, and Bucs fans can use this as an excellent opportunity to fill their football craving in the weekend before the Super Bowl.

The fans and organization alike should keep a close eye on the following players.

Player #1

Kylin Hill, RB, Mississippi State

The past few weeks have proven the Buccaneers still have question marks at running back. Ronald Jones and Leonard Fournette have been solid running the football, but their abilities as pass-catchers are severely lacking.

Jones has been unable to consistently catch all season, while Fournette tends to have his biggest drops in the worst moments. The Bucs desperately need a reliable option for Brady out of the backfield, and Kylin Hill could be the perfect combination of value and opportunity.

Hill was a stud with the Bulldogs when the offense was clicking. In 2019, Hill led the SEC with 242 rushing attempts for 1,350 yards on the ground. The Bucs don’t have the greatest need in this area for now, but a runner like this would still help the ground game.

Hill’s true selling point is his upside as a receiver. The Buccaneer lead back had 63 receptions during his final three seasons with Mississippi State for 593 yards. College running backs who show good hands early transition better to the NFL and Hill has been one of the most productive in this area of the bunch.

Hill is projected to fall somewhere on day two, which is the perfect area for the Buccaneers to invest a pick on a running back to pick up the slack in the offense. Anything higher than day two would be too much to invest, but the Buccaneers immediately have a great fit in the draft, and Hill is already starting to gain some buzz as a sleeper pick.