Last Year:

Record: 9-7

Offense: 22.1 (18th)

Defense: 23.1 (15th)

Offseason: 

Key Acquisitions: WR. Desean Jackson, DT. Chris Baker, S. JJ Wilcox

Key Losses: WR. Vincent Jackson, LB. Darryl Smith, S. Bradley McDougald

 Breakdown

Offense:

The Bucs got a little better in the passing game in 2016 thanks to QB Jamies Winston showing some improvement in his second year. Winston has star potential thanks to his big arm talent and athletic ability but if he is going to take his game to the next level he needs to cut the interceptions down. One thing that would help Winston is better health at the RB position. Their two top backs Doug Martin and Charles Sims both missed half the season which left the team without much of a run game. The combination of the two was very effective the previous year in 2015 and if they can stay healthy the Bucs can have a more balanced attack this season. One player Winston was able to count on last season was his top receiver Mike Evans who established himself as one of the best receivers in the game last season. The Bucs were very aggressive in the offseason adding even more weapons for the offense by signing free agent deep threat Desean Jackson who is the perfect compliment to a big possession receiver like Evans and should benefit from Winston’s big arm. The team also used a first round pick on OJ Howard who was the best TE in the draft even though they already had a good TE in Cameron Brate who played well last year. I expect but to get significant playing time. Adam Humphries was a nice surprise in his second season a year ago and will return as the primary slot receiver. He’s a nice route runner and now with even better weapons to take attention off him should be free’d up to make even more plays. The Bucs were a below average group on the offensive line in 2016 and made no major moves in the offseason with that group. However, they should be improved from guard J.R. Sweezy coming off IR and finally playing a game for them. He was one of their biggest free agent signings of 2016 but never saw the field last season. Of the other four starters two were pretty good and two were not. Their other guard Ali Marpet and RT Demar Dotson both played well last season and if they maintain that level of play that should at least give Tampa three lineman they can rely on. However, it would really help Winston and the entire offense if Donovan Smith was not one of the worst starting left tackles in the NFL. He is running out of time to prove he should have that job. The Bucs are also weak at center where Joe Hawley was far from impressive last season. Overall with new weapons, better health at RB, more improvement from Winston and the return of Sweezy I expect the Buccaneers to be a lot better offensively this season.

Defense:

After finishing 26th in points allowed back in 2015 the Bucs made major strides on defense in 2016 finishing 15th. Their free agent pick ups of Robert Ayers and Brent Grimes payed immediate dividends as both proved their worth with strong seasons. The Bucs are hoping for good fortune from this year’s defensive free agents as well. Primarily defensive tackle Chris Baker, who was brought in to help a run defense that really struggled a year ago. Gerald McCoy has been an elite interior pass rusher for years and will team inside with Baker as their styles should compliment each other as Baker is more of a run stopper and McCoy is more of a pass rusher. For the first time in years the Bucs got quality defensive end play. Ayers was very good and their second round pick Noah Spence flashed a lot of potential in his first season and should be even better in year two. The Bucs have very good cover linebackers in Lavonte David and Kwon Alexander but both had down years playing the run. I expect them to play just as well in the passing game while also picking it up vs the run in 2017. When the team goes to it’s 4-3 look it is unclear who the starting strong side backer will be but three guys appear to be in the running. Two third year guys in Devante Bond and Cameron Lynch that have not played much and their third round pick Kendell Beckwith all will be looking to compete for that spot. The Bucs were a disaster in 2015 at corner which is why the resurgence of Grimes was huge for them. After being cut and written off by the Dolphins Grimes went slightly north up state and found new life looking like the Grimes of old. Starting opposite of Grimes will be Vernon Hargreaves, the team’s first round pick last year, who took his lumps as a rookie but also showed promise and should be better in his second year. Second year undrafted free agent Javian Elliott is the current projected starter at nickel corner. He does not have a ton of experience and will have to prove himself throughout camp and preseason. The safety position was hit and miss last year as in hit with the departed Bradley Bradley McDougald and Keith Tandy and miss with Chris Conte. Tandy was a pleasant surprise last year having the best year of his career with four interceptions and only five starts. He received high marks in both the pass and run game from pro football focus and appears to be the impact safety this defense needed. Next to him will be free agent pick up JJ Wilcox who though inconsistent at times played well for the Cowboys a year ago. Overall the Bucs have all they need to be a decent defense and that is all they will need to be with all the firepower they have on offense now.