Buccaneers still need more competition in wide receiver room

It may seem counterintuitive with so many bodies in the wide receiver room competing for roles, but the Buccaneers still need more new faces for competition.

Going after a wide receiver on the free agent market at this point for the Buccaneers might come as a surprise to some fans.

The unit is set with plenty of guys that have contributed over the past few seasons and newcomer Russell Gage, so why would the Bucs feel like they still need more options in camp to fight for a role?

Well, the wide receiver room is not as strong as it looks. Mike Evans and Chris Godwin are excellent. No one on the planet would deny that. But the guys outside of this duo are a bit less proven.

Gage was one of the biggest signings this offseason that will excite a lot of people, but it is hard to tell how he will be in that third role until we actually seem him play. When you add in other guys that have already played that third role at certain points like Breshad Perriman, Scotty Miller, and Tyler Johnson, you open the door for a bit of uncertainty.

That uncertainty is only complicated by depth players that have been anything but consistent over the past few years. Miller, Johnson, and even Perriman have been great at points. However, when the Bucs needed just one of the three to step up during the playoffs, all were missing.

All of these guys could find their stride at the same time and give Tampa the best wide receiver room in the league in 2022, but they could also struggle again and leave Evans, Godwin, and Gage on an island.

In reality, the Bucs need to operate off of the most recent information they have and that says you still need more bodies to compete. Signing more guys at the position would just lead to more cuts down the road, but it is hard to say that Tampa needs to sit where they’re at after we saw how that went last season.

There is a time for betting on the upside of the guys you already know. This is not that time. Let them win their jobs, or let a new face shake things up.

Want to write about the Buccaneers? Apply below!

Want your voice heard? Join the The Pewter Plank team!

Write for us!