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NFL Mock Draft: Bucs pull off three trades in 7-round prediction

By Josh Hill

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - DECEMBER 31: Deuce Vaughn #22 of the Kansas State Wildcats is tackled by Brian Branch #14 of the Alabama Crimson Tide during the first quarter of the Allstate Sugar Bowl at Caesars Superdome on December 31, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - DECEMBER 31: Deuce Vaughn #22 of the Kansas State Wildcats is tackled by Brian Branch #14 of the Alabama Crimson Tide during the first quarter of the Allstate Sugar Bowl at Caesars Superdome on December 31, 2022 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /
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STARKVILLE, MISSISSIPPI – NOVEMBER 12: Stetson Bennett #13 of the Georgia Bulldogs throws the ball against the Mississippi State Bulldogs during a game at Davis Wade Stadium on November 12, 2022 in Starkville, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
STARKVILLE, MISSISSIPPI – NOVEMBER 12: Stetson Bennett #13 of the Georgia Bulldogs throws the ball against the Mississippi State Bulldogs during a game at Davis Wade Stadium on November 12, 2022 in Starkville, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

Round 6

179. player. 814. Pick Analysis. QB. Stetson Bennett IV. Scouting Report. Georgia

For all that was made about the Bucs trading up to draft Tom Brady’s replacement earlier this offseason, it seems the conversation has regressed back to the mean — and back to reality.

There was zero chance Tampa Bay was going to mortgage its future the way it would need to in order to move up from No. 19 to the Top 2 picks. It was much more likely that they’d wait to see if someone fell to them, either on the first day or the last.

Hendon Hooker has been on the radar recently, and he ended up getting drafted by the Browns in Round 3 in this mock. This pick would have been Houston quarterback Clayton Tune, but Washington grabbed him in the fifth round a few picks ahead of where Tampa Bay was picking. If that scenario plays out in real life, it could be one in which the Bucs trade up to land him as his stock is rising and there seems to be an interest from the team.

But the Bucs will likely walk away from this draft with a rookie quarterback, just not the type that was originally predicted. If the team is going to take a late-round flier on a quarterback, they can do worse than Stetson Bennett.

Translating enormous college success like Bennett had to the NFL is tough, especially when a guy like him isn’t projected as a top quarterback in his class. He feels like Eric Crouch, Ken Dorsey, or Chris Weinke, where he’ll be a very notable name still available on Saturday afternoon but whose cache doesn’t totally carry over to the pros.

Then again, his whole narrative has been getting counted out only to soar to championship heights. Nobody that the Bucs draft this late is realistically going to be looked at as an immediate starter, so why not have Bennett come to camp and see what happens?

It could be a case where he beats out Kyle Trask and makes the team as Baker Mayfield’s backup, which wouldn’t be the craziest thing in the world.

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