So pull up a chair and a glass of your favorite beverage, cuz this post is long as hell. Let's talk ball.
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First round
With the 26th pick in the NFL draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Jackson Powers-Johnson (JPJ), Center, Oregon.
Most mock drafts I see seem to pigeonhole the Buccaneer's first round selection into one of two spots, either at interior offensive line or edge rusher. Occasionally I will see a contrarian say the Bucs should select a receiver with their top pick, but given the current state of our roster and the fact that we resigned Mike Evans, I see that as unlikely at best, regardless of Chris Godwin's future with the team after this season is over.
Regardless, I think that those are indeed our two biggest holes looking at our roster today. Our interior trio last season was... subpar to say the least. Cody Mauch I give a pass to because he was a rookie, but Hainsey is/was a JAG and the JAGs we had next to him at left guard were active liabilities. Especially given our love affair with an interior run game that frequently went nowhere, adding talent to that interior so that Rashaad White and his friends have room to roam would be ideal, while also giving Baker a clean pocket to step up in.
But then we look across the ball at Edge and see not much. Yaya did well and all but he was just a rookie and hit the wall as the season went on. Shaq Barrett is gone to Miami. Anthony Nelson provides decent reps in a backup role but he's nothing special, and JTS is one more bad season from busttown. They need a talent infusion.
I think that if one of the top four consensus top edge rushers (Laiatu Latu, Jared Verse, Dallas Turner, and Chop Robinson in some order) drops, the Bucs absolutely pull the trigger and grab whomever fell to #26 overall. However, I anticipate that all four of those guys will be gone in the first 20 picks, and the dropoff in Edge talent after those aforementioned foursome is quite steep, so steep in fact that reaching into that next tier of guys at #26 overall could be rightly labeled as GM'ing malpractice. And given that our other largest need has plenty of talent at offensive line projected to be there around the end of the first round, this pick ultimately boils down to one question; which offensive linemen would the Bucs like the most? And the Bucs it seems are in agreement with me; of the 30 formal meetings they had to use at the combine, a third of them were spent with offensive linemen.
There's plenty of talent to choose from in this draft for offensive linemen. Joe Alt, Olumuyiwa Fashanu, JC Latham, and Taliese Fuaga are all likely gone by the time #26 rolls around, and pointedly we didn't talk to any of them because I think Licht and Bowles didn't want to waste their time. So who are the next guys? Troy Fautanu outta Washington would be a decent choice, but he makes his bread with choppy feet in space, far more naturally suited to be a tackle than a guard or center where we would put him. Both Amarius Mims from Georgia and Tyler Guyton from Oklathoma are 6'8" behemoths who were built in a lab to play right tackle and would lose every leverage battle on the interior they get into. Graham Barton is a solid player who can play a ton of spots, and he's a definite alternative here.
But come on now. Jackson Powers-Johnson, all 6'4" and 328lb of him, the reigning Rimington trophy winner as the best center in college football is RIGHT THERE. Rumors are that the Bucs love Jackson Powers-Johnson, and I can see why. Unanimous All-American from every media outlet, semi-finalist for the Outland Trophy as the best lineman in college football, team captain, all-around good dude, squeaky clean off the field. Jackson is excellent in pass protection, as the man allowed a grand total of ONE pressure on 471 pass blocking snaps last season and zero sacks. But what if I told you he's even better as a run blocker, because boy-howdy this guy beats the fuck outta people. Jackson is atypically powerful for a center, and once he latches onto a defender they are not going to be making the play. JPJ has experience calling protections, he's scheme versatile within both zone and power schemes, he can probably play guard if you want him to, he moves incredibly well for his size, and his hands are HEAVY in both phases. He also beat the piss out of everyone he faced at the Senior Bowl, looking like a man among boys. Perhaps the wildest thing is that Jackson is nowhere near his ceiling, as he's just 21 years old with only 16 collegiate starts to his name, one of which was at defensive tackle as a freshman.
If I were to nitpick him, JPJ doesn't have great length (but most centers don't so who cares), he's top-heavy in his build, he plays too upright with poor knee bend, and he has way too many false starts for any center to credibly have. But that's all quibbling; I haven't enjoyed watching an interior offensive line prospect this much since Quenton Nelson seven years ago.
There is a problem with this spot though, and that's three teams in a row that pick before us. The Steelers (20th overall pick) and Dolphins (21st overall) both need help on the interior of their offensive lines, and Jason Kelce just hung up his spurs for the Eagles (22th overall). There are rumors that the Bucs could trade up to secure JPJ, and it would be to leapfrog those other teams. Normally I am loathe to give up what's likely a mid-round pick to move up for an offensive lineman, but it worked out well when Licht sent the 49ers a fourth round selection to move up one spot for Tristan Wirfs, so if he wants to do it again I am okay with that.
Now here's some good old-fashioned offensive line play for you to watch. The first is a breakdown of his play in general, the second is versus Utah this year, the third game is against national runners-up Washington. Look for #58 in white.
Jackson breakdown:
Jackson vs Utah:
Jackson vs Washington:
Alternative picks: Graham Barton, OL, Duke. Keon Coleman, WR, Florida State. Laiatu Latu, Edge, UCLA. Chop Robinson, Edge, Penn State. Brian Thomas, WR, LSU. Jared Verse, Edge, FSU.
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Second round
With the 57th pick in the NFL draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Kamari Lassiter, Cornerback, Georgia.
For better or worse, Carlton Davis and the 847 snaps he gave us this past year are gone and in Detroit. Jamel Dean is incredibly expensive, can't stay healthy, and about to turn 28. Zyon McCollum is just a pup and Christian Izien is even more so. We need help at cornerback and we need it badly, not just this season but to help futureproof the roster.
Enter Kamari Lassiter. Kamari was one of the best cornerbacks in college football this last season. He started every game for Georgia over the last two years, taking a ton of snaps at left cornerback but showing that he can play all over the secondary. Last season, Kamari allowed a paltry 136 passing yards in coverage, and a completion percentage of just 38.5%, which was the second-best percentage in the country. Simply put, if Kamari is on you, the ball is NOT completed, full stop. He has excellent feet, good instincts, a willingness to tackle and support the run, and schematic versatility with a proven adeptness to play multiple styles of coverage.
Okay, I hear you say, then why is he here at the end of the second round? Lots of stuff, really. There are concerns about his long speed, which is why he didn't run at the combine. He ran a 4.50 at Georgia's pro day, which would have tied him for 19th best amongst his cornerback peers. He's not tall at 5'11", he's not particularly stout at 186lb. And he doesn't get tons of turnovers of PBUs, with one career pick in three collegiate seasons (shoulda had more but his hands are bad) and a paltry 14 pass breakups.
But don't get it twisted. Kamari is seemingly always in phase with the guys that he's covering, sticky in the best of ways, and that's the top thing I look for when I scout cornerbacks. He reminds me a little bit of Trent McDuffie in that way, and I think the Bucs' brass had him for a formal Combine interview for a reason. And let's not forget; Todd Bowles' son Troy plays linebacker for Georgia, and I know he's seen a ton of Kamari's work firsthand.
Kamari is not a flashy cornerback and I doubt he will ever even lead his team in interceptions much less the league, but I think he's an excellent football player who offers bread-and-butter cornerback play to whomever drafts him. Year one I think Kamari competes for snaps at both slot and outside corner spots, maybe even winning a job there, and offers coverage ability on every special team. The season after, I think that Kamari could very well could be CB1 or CB2 or the starting nickel.
Kamari highlights:
Kamari vs Ole Miss:
Kamari vs Missouri:
Alternative picks: Cooper Beebe, OG, Kansas State. Javon Bullard, S, Georgia. Chris Braswell, Edge, Alabama. Edgerrin Cooper, LB, Texas A&M. Junior Colson, LB, Michigan. Blake Corum, RB, Michigan. Kyree Jackson, CB, Oregon. Marshawn Kneeland, Edge, Western Michigan. Kamari Lassiter, CB, Georgia. TJ Tampa, CB, Iowa State. Jeremiah Trotter Jr, LB, Clemson. Bralen Trice, Edge, Washington. Payton Wilson, LB, NC State.
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Third round
With the 89th pick in the NFL draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Adisa Isaac, Edge, Penn State.
As previously mentioned in the first round pick discussion, this edge class is rather top-heavy, with the top four guys being way above their peers before there's a big drop in talent. And while we would all love to get a true every-down pass rushing threat, a perennial Pro Bowler type, after those four dudes are gone I don't know if there is one. Moreover, as of late Bowles seems to prefer a strong rotation, so at the very least I think we need to leave the draft with another talented young rusher who can contribute to that rotation against the run and the pass. And I've got to tell ya, watching most of these guys doesn't make me excited.
But you know who's pretty good at just about everything? Adisa Isaac, edge rusher from Penn State. Adisa is 6'4" and 247lb. This team captain does everything pretty well but nothing at an elite level. Adisa can play with his hand in the dirt or in a two-point stance but doesn't favor either one. He flashes while rushing the passer but doesn't make you pick your jaw up off the floor. He can defend the run but he isn't going to keep offensive coordinators up at night scheming up new wrinkles. He has good burst but not great, good length but not massive, good hands but not fantastic. He has a pretty good speed rush, an effective rip, and does well to convert speed-to-power, but he doesn't have anything elite. His techniques versus the run and pass are alright but they aren't overwhelming. He has decent balance and flexibility but neither are elite. His athletic testing numbers are respectable all around but again, nothing stupendous. His effort and pursuit are admirable, but he doesn't get hustle sacks at the end of a rep because of it. Adisa had 7.5 sacks last year and nearly 40 tackles, which again is respectable, but he wasn't even the most dangerous edge rusher on his team. Oh, and I forgot to mention that he tore his Achilles' a few years ago, which when combined with all of the above I think is going to make him fall to the third round.
I can hear the boo-birds already. If this guy is so mid, why the hell should we draft him in the third or indeed at all? I would advocate for Adisa because I think his flashes are glimpses into what he can be moving forward if he becomes more consistent. Give him a series of better rush plans, some polishing of his correctable technical flaws, and I think eventually you can see a plus starter. What he needs is a place to refine his craft, where he can get experience as a 3-4 rush backer who can contribute to a rotation as he learns what to do and when to do it.
Adisa highlights:
Adisa vs Ohio State:
Adisa vs Michigan:
Alternative picks for picks 89 and 92: Braelon Allen, RB, Wisconsin. Cedric Gray, ILB, North Carolina. MarShawn Lloyd, RB, USC. Mason McCormick, OG, South Dakota State. Jalen McMillan, WR, Washington. Andru Phillips, CB, Kentucky. Michael Pratt, QB, Tulane. Spencer Rattler, QB, South Carolina. Mike Sainristil, CB, Michigan. Tykee Smith, S, Georgia. Javon Solomon, Edge, Troy.
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With the 92nd pick in the NFL draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Trey Benson, Running Back, Florida State.
Rashaad White needs a friend, a real RB2 who is a threat on interior and outside runs, a guy with good vision and lateral movement who can make his own bread and break arm tackles and hit home runs. Maybe a guy from a Florida school, throw a bone to the old fanbase.
I love Trey Benson. Watch the man play, I mean how can you not? He's super fast with a 4.39 40-yard dash at the combine, and he plays that fast on grass. Not only was that an impressive time, but he ran that at 6'0" and 216lb, which is a crazy combo of speed and size. Trey plays like he measures and times; a big-and-strong speedster who CAN make those lateral moves if he needs to, but prefers to run by you and through you instead. Trey ran for nearly 1000 yards both this year and last for a total of 23 rushing touchdowns for around 6 yards per carry. Not a lot of tread on his proverbial tires, just a hair over 300 collegiate carries. Trey wasn't used much as a receiver from what I saw, but he actually shows some moxie catching the ball from what I saw. He has the size to be a better pass blocker if he puts the work in, giving him third down potential. Yes, he has a very strong injury history, but that was years ago when he was still a backup at Oregon in 2020, and his film and burst since then have been evident. Yes, he needs to do a better job of protecting himself and picking his battles, but his aggressive style are inspirational.
We haven't had a tough runner in awhile. Trey is tough as they come. Overcame two torn knee ligaments, two torn meniscuses, and another torn tendon to regain his speed and explosion. At least from my non-FSU fan perspective, I think it's fair to say that Trey Benson and Keon Coleman carried FSU's offense to that undefeated regular season. For too long, Tampa Bay's run game has been too finesse and pedestrian. What we need is someone fast and gritty who can get create explosion runs by either running past or through second level defenders. What we need is someone tough. And Trey Benson is, and I mean this as a compliment of the highest order, a tough motherfucker.
Trey highlights:
Trey vs Miami:
Trey vs Clemson:
Alternative picks: See above, there's 11 guys there and it's only three spots before this one. Use the same list.
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Fourth round
With the 125th pick in the NFL draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Jaylin Simpson, Safety, Auburn.
We are all happy that Jordan Whitehead is back, and Antoine Winfield is presumably going to be signing a big contract extension in the foreseeable future, so one could reasonably posit that our starting safety spots are locked up for the foreseeable future. But Jordan Whitehead only signed a two-year deal, so there's a non-zero chance that his signing is just a Band-Aid and we are going to need to find a serviceable safety to fill his spot sooner rather than later. And maybe Antoine gets fed up by the tag and we can't reach a deal with him and he walks to greener pastures as our hearts collectively break. Our backup safeties are Kaevon Merriweather and some guy I've never heard of named Richard LeCounte III. To say that we are paper thin at the position is an understatement, and safety might have arguably the worst depth on the roster. And we all know that Bowles prefers to run three-safety looks on defense if he has the horses to run those schemes, and I don't think it's controversial to say that we don't have that third horse.
Ladies and Gentlemen, say hello to Jaylin Simpson, the proverbial third horse. Jaylin is a 6'0", 179lb safety with corner experience out of the Auburn. He is fast (4.45 40-time), he has hops (39.5" vert and 11'1" broad jumps), he has ball skills (6 picks in the last two years and 7 PBUs), and he allows a very low QB rating when targeted (51.0). Jaylin however is VERY light in the ass, and sometimes he takes tackling angles that make you squirm, but he shows the willingness to throw his nose in the grinder that make me think he can work out long-term at safety. He's a bit of a cornerback/safety tweener ya see, and I think he plays pretty solid ball at safety, which is where I'd put him.
What Jaylin needs are protein shakes and a good weightlifting program and refining of his craft and time to do it and veteran mentors to show him how and a coaching staff with surprising success at developing defensive backs. What he needs is Tampa Bay.
Jaylin highlights:
Jaylin versus LSU:
Alternative picks: Austin Booker, Edge, Kansas. Tanor Bortolini, C, Wisconsin. Ray Davis, RB, Kentucky. Tommy Eichenberg, LB, Ohio State. Audric Estime, RB, Notre Dame. Bucky Irving, RB, Oregon. DJ James, CB, Auburn.
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Sixth round
With the 220th pick in the NFL draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Nathaniel Watson, MLB, Mississippi State.
The only off-ball linebacker who the Bucs had an official meeting with at the combine projected to be a late-rounder is this guy, Nathaniel Watson out of Mississippi State. Nathaniel is 6'2" and 233lb, not very fast with a 4.63 40-time but not terribly slow either. He can't jump for shit which tells me he isn't athletically explosive.
What he does is rack up stats; in the last three seasons against SEC competition, Nathaniel has 333 tackles, 31 TFLs, 21 sacks, and a trio of forced fumbles. Impressive stuff, especially this last year when he had 10 sacks. Many of those are assisted tackles though -- this last year for example he had 102 assists and just 35 solos, so one rightly wonders if he's the second coming of Barrett Ruud. One could argue that if we sped up his mental just a fraction of a second faster though, he'd convert those assists into solos, but I digress. On film Nathaniel looks okay. He's an in-box thumper who when he finds the ball can close on it and bring the pile to the ground. On passing downs he is best used as a spy, and he has skills as a blitzer when asked to do so.
Where I get grumpy with him are his skills in space, which are bad. He immediately abandons his technique as soon as he's in open grass. His backpedal evaporates, he doesn't come to balance or breakdown with open field tackles. He's either thinking too much or far too little, and I think sitting him down with film could very much elucidate his overall picture as a prospect.
I can see why we interviewed him. In a perfect world, Watson could be in the running to replace Devin White's starting spot, and he would have a role on every special teams unit on the team. Would drafting him be somewhat redundant given that KJ Britt and SirVocea Dennis can provide similar play? Maybe. Would he give us inexpensive depth and be well worth his sixth round draft status? Sure.
Nathaniel highlights:
Alternative picks: Erick All, TE, Iowa. Michael Barrett, MLB, Michigan. Jordan Davis, QB, Florida State. Frank Gore Jr, RB, Southern Miss. Kalen King, CB, Penn State. Grayson Murphy, Edge, UCLA.
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Seventh Round
With the 246th pick in the NFL draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Louis Rees-Zammit, RB/WR/PR/KR, Wales.
Mdb, eat your heart out.
Louis Rees-Zammit is a 6'3", 194lb Welsh rugby player, who previously was a wing/full-back (read: fast perimeter player). Louis was one of the better rugby players in the world, and left his sport at 23 years old to come to America to try to play in the NFL, having learned the game at his father's knee who played professional American football in Europe. It was always Louis' dream to play in the NFL, but he grew up in rugby country, so he took the next best thing. Louis has never played a competitive down of professional American football in a game. He is currently training at the International Player Pathway Program to learn the game. You may have heard of that program, where the NFL takes talented international athletes and teaches them to play football at the professional level. The IPPP has only had one guy from their program be drafted in their history -- some guy named Jordan Mailata.
So why should the Bucs draft this ruddy-faced Welshman who presumably has little-to-no idea what he's doing? To put it bluntly, the dude is fast. The IPPP has their combine-equivalent in two days on 3/20, so Louis' official 40 time is still pending, but the dude's 24.2 mph at the Rugby World Cup last year is VERY impressive. For reference, the fastest a player ran in the NFL last season was Tyreek Hill in week 5, when his top speed hit 22.01 mph. Tyreek did it in pads and a helmet, but still. If Louis' football speed can be anything close to his rugby speed, I would draft him in a heartbeat.
Is he a running back? Is he a wide receiver? Punt returner? Kick returner? Who knows. What I would tell you is that I would do my damndest to teach him the game over the next several years and get the ball in his hands, because you can't teach those kind of feet. And as a rugby player, he isn't some twiglet either. Dude can and will run you over.
Best case scenario, we have a discount Deebo Samuel. Worst case, we threw another seventh round pick in the dumpster. Quick history check; here's a list of every seventh-rounder Jason Licht has ever made for the Tampa Bay Bucs: Andre Anthony, Chris Wilcox, Grant Stuard, Chapelle Russell, Raymond Calais, Terry Beckner Jr, Stevie Tu'ukolovatu, and Joey Iosefa. They have made a combined zero offensive and defensive starts.
Here's hoping Louis makes good.
Here's some sweet rugby action. Enjoy:
Alternative picks: Who Cares?
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To sum up:
- In the first round we get Jackson Powers-Johnson, a likely ten-year starter at center at a huge positional need.
- In the second round we select Kamari Lassiter, a borderline starting cornerback who gets spot duty at the very least this season before taking on a larger role next year.
- The third round blesses us with Adisa Isaac at OLB and Trey Benson at RB, both of whom get major rotational reps as they get their NFL beaks wet.
- The fourth round provides us with Jaylin Simpson, who on day 1 is our third-best safety, safeguard against injury, and gives Bowles his third-down third-safety chess piece.
- The sixth round sees the Bucs add Nathaniel Watson, who helps ease the loss of Devin White.
- The seventh round brings us Louis Rees-Zammit, a ballcarrier with blazing speed and an uncertain future, who if we can teach to run in pads holding a football instead of a footie, could be quite something.
Of note, all the above guys are quite fast for their positions except for Kamari Lassiter, who plays far quicker than he times, so our team speed would have increased by quite a bit.
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Thoughts? Reactions? Feedback welcome as always.
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Links to previous years
2022- http://www.itsabucslife.com/viewtopic.php?t=712
2017-2021 - All dead links now
