Much has been made of Buccaneers’ GM Jason Licht’s performance. Some good, some bad and some head scratchers.
The trades, the draft picks and of course free agency have all been hit or miss under Licht’s tenure as the Buccaneers GM, a tenure that has led to a 27-53 record and not one single postseason appearance.
In a recent article written by Steven Ruiz of USAToday.com that graded the league’s GM’s performance had Buccaneers GM Jason Licht listed as the 31st worst/best GM out of 32 teams. Ruiz didn’t hold back on his assessment of GM Licht,
“Seriously, how does Jason Licht still have this job? He’s spent a TON of money in free agency and those moves have not paid off. He’s also botched most of his first-round picks, which have been near or in the top-10. And, oh yeah, he’s drafted TWO kickers! He justified this year’s pick by claiming that kicker is one of the most important positions on the roster. Let that sink in.”
Let’s pump the brakes a little on the first-round picks being botched and take a look at the first-round picks under Licht:
– 2014 Mike Evans-
Mike Evans is definitely not a bust, in fact he is arguably a top-5 player at his position.
– 2015 Jameis Winston-
Winston has shown signs of being a franchise QB. His propensity to commit turnovers coupled with some off field issues cast doubts if he was the right choice. Let’s call this pick “A work in progress” instead of “botched.”
– 2016 Vernon Hargreaves-
Hargreaves has had a rocky start to say the least. Many will say he hasn’t been used correctly, and that’s fair. If new DC Todd Bowles can get Hargreaves turned around, then this pick can’t be considered a “botched pick”. But as of now it is.
– 2017 OJ Howard-
Howard by most accounts was a steal for the Buccaneers. He has shown flashes of brilliance with his time in Tampa. This pick in no-way could be called a “botched pick.”
– 2018 Vita Vea-
Vea, while a surprise pick in most peoples eyes, showed alot of promise in the latter half of the season. “Brute strength” is what comes to mind, not “botched pick.”
– 2019 Devin White-
White is obviously an unknown at this point. With that said you’d be hard pressed to find anyone attributing the “botched pick” status to him.
The drafting of two kickers is something I’m not willing to defend. Licht defended these moves by claiming the kicker is one of the most important positions on the field. I can make an argument for both sides of this. The fact remains though that he’s actually spent three draft picks drafting two kickers. One of which isn’t even in the league currently.
Where Jason Licht has made his biggest mistakes is in free agency. The list is quite long and much less impressive. Chris Baker, TJ Ward, Anthony Collins, Michael Johnson, Clinton McDonald, Bruce Carter, JR Sweezy, Robert Ayers, Vinny Curry and Mitch Unrein to name just a few. This is in my opinion where Licht has failed miserably.
Giving Jason Licht a ranking of 31st is fair, the reasoning behind it may be flawed. The claim of first-round “botched picks” just doesn’t hold water. The drafting of the two kickers is a bad move regardless of what becomes of recently drafted Matt Gay. Licht’s free agent signing failures are the big problem here. Those combined with the kickers being drafted justifies this ranking, well and the 27-53 record.