Buccaneers land two key pieces for Baker Mayfield in latest 7-round Mock Draft
By Brad Smith
Round 3, Pick 92: Kingsley Suamataia, OT/BYU
This past season, the Buccaneers' offensive line was subpar, to say the least. Per Sports Reference, Tampa Bay's offensive line gave up 40 sacks, 112 pressures, 37 hurries, and 35 quarterback hits, while giving quarterback Baker Mayfield an average of 2.4 seconds in the pocket.
Outside of superstar left tackle Tristan Wirfs, players rotated in and out of the other four positions on the line. While some of those players are still early into their NFL careers, such as right guard Cody Mauch and right tackle Luke Goedeke, others were aging veterans who simply played poorly in 2023.
With 27-year-old tackle Justin Skule, 29-year-old guard Aaron Stinnie and 31-year-old guard Matt Feiler all rotating on the offensive line, depth is a major need. In free agency, Tampa Bay signed Philadelphia's Sua Opeta and New York's Ben Bredeson to contracts, and is expected to add another offensive lineman in the draft.
Three picks after taking Wilson, the Buccaneers add Suamataia, a physically dominating two-year starter at BYU. Originally at Oregon, Suamataia transferred to BYU for the 2022 season, and didnt allow a sack in 361 pass block snaps while starting in 12 of 13 games, equating to a 75.6
With that, Suamataia entered with the 2023 season as the nation's sixth-highest graded offensive tackle by Pro Football Focus, and was named to the Preseason All-Big 12 Second Team. Playing in 644 snaps in 11 games, Suamataia allowed two sacks and finished the year with a 67.5 PPF grade.
At 6'6" and 315 pounds, Suamataia is efficient in pass protection, utilizing a combination of quick, strategic hand movements to disrupt defenders. Coupled with exceptional burst and quickness, and Suamataia easily reached second-level targets with precision and force. On day two, Suamataia would be a dream target for Tampa Bay to draft.