Tampa Bay has plenty of needs

http://www.buccaneerslockerroom.com/authentic-o.-j.-howard-jersey , and Dane Brugler of The Athletic has nearly all of them being addressed in his latest seven-round mock."Even after making some moves in free agency, the Buccaneers have some needs left to address in the 2019 NFL Draft. Draft weekend isn’t far off, which means the mocks are flowing through rapidly these days. In a full seven-round mock for The Athletic, Dane Brugler has Tampa Bay addressing seven different positions with seven picks. Let’s break down Brugler’s mock pick-by-pick.Round 1, Pick 5: Devin White, LB, LSUOf course, the idea of this pick isn’t groundbreaking. There’s been a debate about the Bucs potentially picking Devin White for months. The debate seems to be around the idea that a linebacker shouldn’t go top five because the value isn’t right. Others think Michigan linebacker Devin Bush is just a better prospect and can be drafted later in the first round. Regardless, picking White would address a huge position of need. With Kwon Alexander now in San Francisco and Kendell Beckwith’s future still pretty uncertain, the Bucs could use some linebacker help. Lavonte David is still a stud, and Tampa Bay brought in Shaquil Barrett for help on the outside. But the inside is a question mark. White is a playmaker, one that would be an instant help to Todd Bowles’ defense. Round 2, Pick 39: Josh Jacobs, RB, AlabamaRemember that insane mock draft that had the Bucs selecting Josh Jacobs with the No. 5 overall pick in the draft? Again, remember that ridiculous mock draft that had the Bucs selecting running back Josh Jacobs with the NO. 5 OVERALL PICK IN THE DRAFT? I can’t get over it. Anyway, this is a bit better. I’m still not sure the need for a new running back in Tampa Bay is as dire as everyone seems to believe. Peyton Barber is more than capable of being the No. 1 running back, and there’s still time for Ronald Jones II to bounce back. With depth like Andre Ellington and Shaun Wilson, the Bucs seem set. However, adding Jacobs — a supremely talented back with both size and skill — would give Bruce Arians a ridiculous stable of backs to work with. I just don’t know that the team spends this high of a pick on a running back in 2019. Round 3, Pick 70: Zach Allen, DL, Boston CollegeComing away with Zach Allen in the third round would be sweet for Tampa Bay, especially with the need for young pass-rushers. Allen’s draft profile on NFL.com tabs him as someone with a chance to become an NFL starter, noting his effort, smarts and strength. Plus, under his “weaknesses” section, Lance Zierlein says Allen is “caught somewhere between 4-3 and 3-4 defensive end spots.” That doesn’t sound like much of a bad thing, especially with the Bucs planning to run a variety of looks. A base 3-4 scheme has been talked about, but the coaching staff has repeatedly said there will be a number of unique looks on the defensive side of the ball. Drafting Allen Womens M.J. Stewart Jersey , who appears versatile in that regard, would add to the already-intriguing pass rush that includes Jason Pierre-Paul, Carl Nassib and Shaquil Barrett. Throw in an improved Noah Spence and you’ve got yourself a strong group.Round 4, Pick 107: Kendall Sheffield, CB, Ohio StateTampa Bay seems content with Carlton Davis and Vernon Hargreaves III as the starting outside corners in 2019, which means the front office could wait a bit in the draft before addressing the cornerback position. Kendall Sheffield could fit what the Bucs are looking for. He has a lot of developing to do, but his ceiling is high. With the outside corner positions pretty much set — plus Ryan Smith as a nice depth guy — the team can afford to take a chance on Sheffield in the fourth round. If the coaching staff could take his quickness and build up the technique to go with it, he could become a key contributor down the line. Round 5, Pick 145: Darius Slayton, WR, AuburnEven with the losses of DeSean Jackson and Adam Humphries, Tampa Bay has some depth at receiver. Behind the top two — Mike Evans and Chris Godwin — there’s Breshad Perriman, Justin Watson, Bobo Wilson and Sergio Bailey. Despite that, a late-round pick on a receiver makes sense. Darius Slayton, who put up back-to-back 600-yard, five-touchdown seasons in his final two years with Auburn, wouldn’t be a bad choice. Slayton put those numbers up despite the Tigers’ offense being average in 2018. The 6-foot-1 receiver runs a sub-4.4 40-yard dash, which definitely makes him an appealing prospect. Picks in the fifth round or later are usually gambles anyway, so grabbing Slayton and seeing how he develops and fits with Jameis Winston would be a great idea. Round 6, Pick 208: Mike Bell, FS, Fresno StateWith the safety position already being crowded as it is, the Bucs would be wise to hold off on adding safety help. As mentioned above, the later rounds are for gambles, so selecting Mike Bell fits with that. He was a productive free safety at Fresno State, with size and athleticism being key. However, there are holes in his game. There’s no risk with taking him at this stage of the draft, especially with a pick you got in a trade. Round 7 Noah Spence Jersey , Pick 215: Calvin Anderson, OT/G, TexasThis is where I have a bit of a problem. The Bucs waiting until the seventh round to address the offensive line would feel very underwhelming. The center and the left side of the line are set, but the right side is questionable at best. Earl Watford and Alex Cappa are supposed to be fighting for the right guard position, while Demar Dotson is still holding down the right tackle position. Watford and Cappa are relative unknowns. Watford has been more of a depth guy in his career, and Cappa’s first bit of NFL action showed he had some work to do before he could be a professional starter. And Dotson, as good as he has been for the Bucs in the past, is aging. His health certainly guaranteed, and neither is his consistency. So with that many questions on the entire right side of the line, how could Tampa Bay possibly wait until the final round to add another guard or tackle? As for Calvin Anderson, he could turn into a nice talent at the NFL level, but as a seventh-rounder, who really knows?What do you think of this mock, Bucs fans? Did Brugler get it right? As we inch closer and closer to draft weekend, sound off in the comments below. The Buccaneers dropped their third straight game on Sunday, falling 34-29 to the Falcons. Through five games, Tampa Bay’s rookies aren’t coming along as quickly as the team likely hoped. Let’s get going with this week’s rookie recap.RB Ronald Jones IIThis is a frustrating rookie class through five games, that’s for sure. Second-rounder Ronald Jones has undoubtedly been a part of that. The former USC running back was selected, presumably, to be a big part of the offense this year. Tampa Bay entered the year with a projected two-back rotation between Peyton Barber and Jones. But for whatever reason, Jones hasn’t caught on. His poor preseason was apparently deeper than his on-field struggles, as he was held inactive for the first three games. And in the two games he has been active, the coaches are still limiting their use of him.Jones played 12 snaps (18 percent) on offense and seven (24 percent) on special teams. Whether it’s because of a playbook issue, not having the right situation to implement him, or just that he’s flat-out not ready, the Bucs don’t seem to be comfortable with Jones getting a lot of action. He got one carry for three yards and caught all three of his targets for 16 yards on Sunday. The fact that he was successful in his looks as a pass-catcher is certainly good to see, but we’ll have to wait and see if it leads to Tampa Bay getting him more involved.CB M.J. Stewart, S Jordan WhiteheadThis is where a shift in evaluation comes, as far as I’m concerned. Throughout the first four games, a lot of the focus was on the fact that M.J. Stewart Deone Bucannon Jersey White , Carlton Davis and Jordan Whitehead were getting significant playing time and working their way through the NFL learning curve. But as the broadcast team talked about during Sunday’s loss in Atlanta, it’s been six weeks of the regular season. The “youth in the secondary” excuse doesn’t last forever. Davis was out with an injury this week, but Stewart and Whitehead played a part in the secondary’s hideous effort against the Falcons. Matt Ryan completed 75.6 percent of his passes and didn’t turn the ball over once. On multiple occasions, it was Stewart getting beat in coverage. There was miscommunication all over for these guys, which is where the broadcast team spent a lot of its focus. Whether the scheme is an issue or not, it’s still up to the players to execute what the coaches put in place. This defense clearly hasn’t done that this season. Not only that, but the exciting flashes we saw from the rookie defensive backs early on in the season seemed to have gone away.On the plus side, Whitehead played 67 snaps (100 percent) on defense, showing durability and reliability in a very thin safety group. Stewart played 39 snaps (58 percent). Moving forward, the Bucs need their young secondary to pick things up. With defensive coordinator Mike Smith gone, maybe we’ll see some improvement from the young guns. Hope isn’t lost, obviously. These guys are in a tough position this year. They still have plenty of talent and potential, but it isn’t translating just yet. With interim coordinator Mark Duffner having a more aggressive style, we might see more press coverage and a game plan that suits the strengths of these rookies better. There’s raw talent in these guys that Tampa Bay certainly hopes to see sooner rather than later. DT Vita VeaFirst-round pick Vita Vea played 28 snaps (42 percent) in his second career game, picking up his first career tackle in the process. The Washington product is a unique case. He’s talented and freakishly strong, eating up blocks effectively and pushing his men around consistently when he gets in the game. But watching him push guys around doesn’t mean much when the defense as a whole is giving up chunk plays and 30-plus points per game. There will forever be an argument as to whether or not someone with Vea’s role should have been drafted in the top 15, especially with needs at safety and elsewhere. For what his role is, though, he’s doing a solid job in his limited snaps.With Gerald McCoy’s status uncertain due to an injury suffered on Sunday, Vea could find himself getting more opportunities. He has yet to have a big splash play in his first two games, but he is getting some really strong push in the middle of the line. The Falcons ran for just 70 yards against the Bucs, who have the No. 5 run defense in the league. Vea played a part in that effort this week and he’ll likely play an even bigger part in it going forward. There’s plenty to like about the big man, but there will be many in the fan base that will never like that he was taken with the No. 12 pick. And that’s a reasonable opinion to have. Regardless, he’s on the team now and from early looks, he’s playing his role well.The best of the restCarton Davis was out on Sunday, dealing with injuries to his groin and back... Justin Watson was once again active, playing six snaps (nine percent) on offense and 19 (66 percent) on special teams, coming up with a tackle... Jack Cichy played 19 snaps (66 percent) on special teams... Alex Cappa and Shaun Wilson were both inactive this week.