By John Sarianides
The Tampa Bay Bucs are en vogue in 2017. That’s right. The once fledgling franchise is a sexy pick to surprise teams in the NFC in 2017.
The excitement over this team is warranted. General manager Jason Licht has put together a talented roster. Tampa Bay has high end, young talent on both sides of the ball.
Quarterback Jameis Winston is a superstar in the making. He has the physical tools, leadership skills and charisma nesssary to be the face of a franchise.
Winston also has a terrific supporting cast. The Bucs have depth at running back with Doug Martin, Jacquizz Rodgers, rookie Jeremy McNichols and Charles Sims. Martin will miss the first four games due to suspension but Tampa has enough depth to survive his loss.
The additions of veteran wide receiver DeSean Jackson and tight end O.J Howard gives the Bucs two versatile weapons in the passing game that complement Mike Evans well. Evans has been the focal point of the Bucs passing game thus far in his career but now he has some help. Don’t expect much of a regression from Evans statistically. He will still be Winston’s go to guy.
The Bucs young offensive line will be counted on to improve and they should. The return of veteran guard J.R Sweezy should help the development of young guys like guard Ali Marpet and left tackle Donovan Smith.
Defensively, the Bucs have assembled a talented front seven led by all pro defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, linebacker Lavonte David and defensive end Noah Spence. Defensive coordinator Mike Smith is not a live and die by the blitz coach. He relies on his defensive line to get consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The Bucs will blitz but it will be situational pressure.
The cornerback tandem of Vernon Hargreaves and Brent Grimes is one of the best in the NFL. Both can be effective in man to man and zone coverage schemes. Veteran free safety J.J Wilcox will look to bring stability to a position that has been lacking in recent years.
Here are three keys for the 2017 Bucs.
1. Deploy All of Your Weapons Offensively: Jameis Winston has a lot of weapons at his disposal. The additions of DeSean Jackson and rookies O.J Howard, Chris Godwin and Jeremy McNichols gives Winston more talent to work with but it also means more mouthed to feed.
Luckily for Bucs fans, head coach Dirk Koetter is one of the best offensive coaches in the NFL. He will find a way to get his skill guys the ball.
2. The D Must Get to the Next Level: The Bucs have a lot of young talent on defense but that defense needs to take the next step and become a championship caliber unit. If this group plays at atop ten level, the Bucs will make the playoffs.
3. Meet Expectations: When you get picked to make the playoffs and are picked to do Hard Knocks, that means expectations are high. The young Bucs have to find a way to meet expectations
In the End: The NFC is loaded so it will be tough to make the playoffs as a wild card. The Bucs may have to win the NFC South if they want to make the playoffs. The talent is in place. Tampa Bay has to mature and prove they are a playoff team.