One of the horror stories of previous drafts will return this Sunday as Mark Barron will visit Raymond James Stadium as a member of the Los Angeles Rams. Barron, who was the Seventh overall pick in the 2012 draft, was traded in 2014 to the Rams for a fourth and sixth-round draft pick. Barron said he felt ‘disrespected’ by the Bucs after the trade and wants to show Tampa they were wrong in getting rid of him.
Former Bucs General Manager Mark Dominik drafted Barron to help cover former Saints Tight End Jimmy Graham and ironically both are out of the division. Graham is now a Seahawk so both players now play in the NFC West. With this selection, Tampa chose to pass over Luke Kuechly one of the top middle linebackers in the league, and Bucs fans can only imagine a linebacker group with Lavonte David and Kuechly roaming together.
This draft is a forgettable one as Barron has not become the star that usually comes at his draft selection. In fact, Pro Football Focus only listed Barron as the 66th best safety the year he was traded, and it should be noted the Bucs pass defense was the league worst in his rookie year and there was little improvement over the next few years.
Barron may have felt ‘disrespected’ and ‘blindsided’ by the trade, however, fans will think of the missed opportunity of not drafting Kuechly more than wishing Mark Barron was still a part of the Bucs secondary.
