The long wait is over as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and other teams around the league are reporting for training camp today. Rookies are expected to be in the building today for the Bucs with veterans arriving tomorrow. Cleats are laced up and pads will be on and the road to the Super Bowl begins now.
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This will be our first opportunity to really see these rookies in a Buccaneers uniform. I know I will be watching them very closely throughout camp because this rookie class is expected to pay a crucial role this season. The Bucs first five draft picks are all expected to get significant playing time with clear roles they are expected to assume.
But is it really fair to expect so much from guys who have never taken an NFL snap? In short, it’s a little of yes and a little of no. In this series I will look at realistic expectations for each of the Buccaneers rookies this year
Graham Barton
I have no doubt that Graham Barton will win a starting job out of camp. He is just too athletic and too nasty of a run blocker to not impress once pads are on. It’s also a testament to how bad the interior offensive line was last year.
Despite elite physical tools and every indication that Barton is highly intelligent, we should all be ready for some growing pains from the first round pick out of Duke. That’s just the nature of moving to a bigger, faster, stronger league like the NFL. More than anything, it is part of his position change.
Barton played left tackle for a vast majority of his college career. And while he did play some center early on, it’s a position that he will essentially have to relearn from scratch. This means different techniques, movements, and hand placements which will all take time to master.
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In theory, this shouldn’t be a major concern. After all, General Manager Jason Licht has made a career of drafting college left tackles and moving them to the interior offensive line. Guys like Robert Hainsey, Alex Cappa and Ali Marpet all played tackle in college before moving inside at the pro level.Â
The Bucs have been very successful overall with this approach and there is no reason to think that they won’t be with Barton. However, let’s not forget the Buccaneers most recent attempt at this in last year’s second round pick in Cody Mauch. While I firmly believe that Mauch is ahead of schedule in terms of his development and is in for a great year, he had his fair share of struggles last season.
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Of course, this wouldn’t be an apples to apples comparison with Mauch and Barton. Mauch played at a much smaller school in North Dakota State, whereas Barton played at a power five school in the ACC. This means that Barton is more accustomed to playing against NFL level talent such as Alim McNeill and Braden Fiske.
This should lead to a smoother transition to the NFL. There won’t be the shame shock to the system and adjustment period that comes with matching up against NFL caliber athletes. So hopefully Barton can focus on just learning the technical points of his new position and not just trying to survive this elevated level of play.
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In short, Barton won’t be perfect. He will be beaten due to poor technique and at times just out muscled by more powerful players in a stronger league. However, no one should feel discouraged by that. By the end of the year he should be able to find his footing and the offensive line should be coming together with him at the heart as the Buccaneers are going into the playoffs.
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