5 star players Buccaneers missed out on drafting since 2015

3. T.J. Watt, 2017

The 2017 Bucs' defense was the absolute worst unit in all of football that season, giving up over 6,000 yards on the year. Had they decided to take a chance on Wisconsin pass rusher T.J. Watt in the first round, maybe that number could have been lower.

Sure, the Bucs had a lot of problems on that defense and they would not have all been fixed simply by drafting Watt. Not to mention, Watt isn't a true defensive end but more so an outside linebacker or edge type. Still, the Bucs would have figured out a way to deploy Watt within that defense. Once they saw what he could do, they might have even adjusted their entire scheme around Watt's strength.

The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Watt in the first round at pick no. 30 overall. Meanwhile, the Bucs took tight end O.J. Howard at no. 19, who was recently cut in the middle of Raiders training camp. Yikes.

At one point, Howard was looked at as a unicorn at the tight end position, but never quite caught on as a pro. On the flip side, Watt is now an NFL Defensive Player of the Year and one of the most feared pass rushers in all of football.