The Tampa Bay Buccaneers might be one of the best teams in the NFC but injuries have definitely been a talking point and something to monitor as we creep closer to the trade deadline. At this point, we should all be expecting the Bucs not to make just one move but several to improve this roster and give them the best possible chance at a trip to Super Bowl 60 in February.
While the Bucs have a ton of injuries at wide receiver, they could also use some help at tight end. This isn't necessarily a knock on Cade Otton, who has tallied 132 yards in the Bucs' last two games, but to say that help is needed there would be an understatement. Otton's backups, Payne Durham and Devin Culp, have a combined zero catches.
This could be where trading for Browns Pro Bowl tight end David Njoku could make a whole lot of sense for Tampa. According to Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports, Njoku should be available ahead of the trade deadline.
"The Browns won their second game of the season and did it without injured TE David Njoku. Cleveland may get used to playing without him as teams will have interest in Njoku, a first-round pick in 2017. The 29-year-old Njoku, a 2023 Pro Bowler, is in the final year of a contract and would cost a team less than $1 million on the cap to deal for him. Rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr. has led the team in receiving yards the past two games."
Browns TE David Njoku could be perfect trade target for Bucs
Baker Mayfield is having an MVP-caliber season and Jason Licht needs to give him as much help as possible to ensure that this kind of season doesn't end in heartbreak for the Bucs. Njoku would not only be an excellent addition to this Bucs offense and give them another threat at tight end but he and Mayfield played together in Cleveland when the now Bucs star quarterback was still slinging the pigskin for the Browns.
Njoku had his second-most receiving yards with Mayfield as his quarterback, totaling 639 receiving yards and four touchdowns in 2018 (Mayfield's rookie year). Reuniting them could not only help Mayfield elevate his game and cement himself as the MVP of the season but it could give the Bucs the depth they need at tight end moving forward. It'd also give Njoku a chance to play for a winning team and potentially play in a Super Bowl, an opportunity he's not going to get in Cleveland.
We've learned to trust Licht when it comes to the moves he makes for this team but there's no debating that Njoku could make an immediate impact with this team. Go big or go home, as the cool kids say.