2011 NFL Draft: Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Team Draft Retrospective

This article is part of a series that looks at each NFL team’s recent draft history, with the hope of extracting information about the way they think and the players they value. The analysis is limited to the past five drafts in the interest of relevance, and the first three rounds because that’s where most impact players are taken.

This entry will focus on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Draft History

In the past five years, the Buccaneers have taken the following players in the early rounds. Their positions and the rounds in which they were drafted are listed next to their names.

2006:   Davin Joseph, G (1)

            Jeremy Trueblood, OT (2)

            Maurice Stovall, WR (3)

2007:   Gaines Adams, DE (1)

            Arron Sears, G (2)

            Sabby Piscitelli, S (2)

            Quincy Black, LB (3)

2008:   Aqib Talib, CB (1)

            Dexter Jackson, WR (2)

            Jeremy Zuttah, G (3)

2009:   Josh Freeman, QB (1)

            Roy Miller, DT (3)

2010:   Gerald McCoy, DT (1)

            Brian Price, DT (2)

            Arrelious Benn, WR (2)

            Myron Lewis, CB (3)

Breakdown by Position

Here is the number of players the Buccaneers have drafted for each position:

Defensive tackle: 3

Guard: 3

Wide receiver: 3

Cornerback: 2

Defensive end: 1

Linebacker: 1

Offensive tackle: 1

Quarterback: 1

Safety: 1

Impact

Davin Joseph is a solid starting guard. Quincy Black is a good linebacker. Aqib Talib is one of the best young cornerbacks in the game, but he now faces legal problems. Josh Freeman was the steal of the 2009 first round; after throwing 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions in his first full year starting, he appears to be on the cusp of becoming an elite quarterback. Gerald McCoy and Brian Price have helped solidify Tampa Bay’s defense up the middle, and Arrelious Benn shows some promise as a target for Freeman.

Overall, the team is on the rise after some lean years. They may very well contend for a championship in a year or two.

Trends

The Buccaneers’ most striking draft tendency has been their affinity for guards. Most teams avoid the position altogether until the middle rounds, but Tampa Bay has chosen no less than three of them over this span. Interestingly, they took just one tackle. Unsurprisingly, their line is better at run blocking than pass protection.

They haven’t completely abandoned the needs of their quarterbacks, though. They’ve taken three receivers over this span.

The defensive line was largely ignored the first few years, but in 2009 and 2010 they bucked that trend and took three defensive tackles. The fact that they double dipped last year might suggest that they’re prone to drafting for need more than some other teams.

Tampa Bay has also invested in the secondary. They haven’t done so at linebacker, but they were already set there from past drafts.

2011 Outlook

Tampa Bay has put together an excellent nucleus of offensive skill players with Freeman, Benn, WR Mike Williams and RB LeGarrette Blount. Now it has to think about protecting its young QB and creating running lanes for Blount. Donald Penn is an excellent left tackle, but depending on what happens in free agency, the rest of the line may need help.

In the first round, they might take a hard look at guard Mike Pouncey (Florida) or tackles Derek Sherrod (Mississippi State) or Anthony Castonzo (BC). However, they can wait for a G or an RT, so they’re more likely to look to the second tier of linemen like tackles James Brewer (Indiana) and Jason Pinkston (Pittsburgh).

On the defensive side, the Buccaneers solidified the middle of their line, but don’t have much at end. Considering the importance of rushing the passer in an increasingly quarterback-driven league, he figures to be their No. 1 priority in the draft.

The team has commonly been linked to defensive ends Adrian Clayborn (Iowa) and Justin Houston (Georgia). Houston is probably the preferable option because of his pass rushing ability. Another intriguing possibility is Da’Quan Bowers (Clemson) falling to them. If the Buccaneers medical staff feels good about Bowers’ knee, it would be hard to pass up someone of his physical talent and upside.

Cornerback also figures to be a need. Between Aqib Talib’s legal troubles and Ronde Barber presumably nearing retirement, it’s time to start thinking about a replacement. Curtis Brown (Texas), Brandon Harris (Miami) and Ras-I Dowling (Virginia) could be there for the taking in the second round.