Buccaneers fans, we are preparing to head into the heart of the NFL offseason. The NFL combine is over and free agency starts in less than a week. It’s the time of year when the Buccaneers are really fine tuning their offseason plans.
Of course this includes the NFL draft as well as free agency. Deciding what positions to fill with veteran free agents and what positions to attack in the draft is extremely important. Some positions are deeper and more talented than others and some are relatively thin this year. Maximizing value is the goal in both of these processes.
Fortunately, there is a lot of depth at the positions where the Bucs are the weakest. Some of that is in the draft and some is in free agency. General Manager Jason Licht will have to bring in impact players in both to put the franchise in position to win their third Super Bowl this year.
The only question now is where the Bucs should spend their money and where they should invest their draft picks. And while I might not be one of the best General Managers in the NFL like Licht is, I still had a few ideas on the topic. Here is my ideal Buccaneers offseason.
Free AgencyÂ
According to Pewter Report’s brilliant cap analyst Joshua Queipo, the Buccaneers can create quite a bit of cap space this offseason. A combination of restructuring specific contracts, cutting some players and extending other players can open up a lot of money to use this year. This could land in the ballpark of approximately $65 million in free money.
For the full break down you can view Joshua’s video here.
Let’s say for argument’s sake that the Buccaneers will have $50 million in cap space to play with and that Lavonte David and Chris Godwin are both re-signed. With that money, there are three meaningful free agents who I’d like the Bucs to target.Â
Dre Greenlaw – Linebacker
Even if the Bucs bring back Lavonte David, their linebacker room needs to get better this offseason. Despite missing most of the 2024 season due to an Achillies injury suffered in Super Bowl 58, Greenlaw will be one of the best linebackers on the market. According to Spotrac he is expected to make just under $7 million per year on his coming contract.Â
Going into his age 28 season, there is reason to believe that Greenlaw will bounce back to his pre-injury form. He’s always been a fast, physical player who has shown a high level of ability in coverage. He’s a well rounded, three down player who can be the heart of the Bucs defense.
Assuming his medicals check out, I would be willing to go above projected market value here. What Greenlaw could bring to this defense, specifically in terms of coverage over the middle, would be incredibly valuable. If the Bucs were to bring him in on a 3 year, $25 million contract then I think that would be a home run signing that could be essential to their defense.
Paulson Adebo – Cornerback
You might be familiar with Adebo from his time with the New Orleans Saints. The 6’1 and 195 lbs cornerback had 10 interceptions and averaged 83 tackles per 17 games in his first four seasons. Now at 25 years old, he is heading towards the free agent market and the Saints are in such a bad spot financially that there is little they can do to stop it.Â
Adebo is at his best in zone coverage. This is where the Buccaneers have shifted, so it would be an excellent fit for what they want to do. He’s also always been known for his playmaking and could add some more interceptions to a defense that is starving for them.Â
This could be an opportunity for the Bucs to buy low on an up and coming player. Last year Adebo had 10 pass deflections in just seven games after having 18 pass deflections the year before. Now coming off a broken femur he is expected to get about $11 millions per season. Going into his age 26 season, I would be comfortable offering him a three or even a four year contract.Â
Azeez Ojulari – Edge
The Buccaneers are in need of a pass rusher. Todd Bowles and Jason Licht made it no secret that they want to be able to get more pressure with just four rushers. This means upgrading the outside linebacker room with someone who can get after the quarterback.
I don’t believe that there is one clear answer to this problem in free agency, but there are players who can help the situation. And while I like players like Josh Sweat and Harold Landry to fill this spot, the price might not line up. Getting a player who was part of someone else’s rotation and expanding their role might be the most effective way to go.Â
That brings us to Ojulari. The 24 year old pass rusher has started just 17 games over the last three seasons and was moved to the bench last year after the New York Giants traded for Brian Burns. Perhaps that rotational role revitalized him because he had 6.0 sacks which was the most since his rookie season.Â
Draft
With free agency addressed, I look toward the draft and what impact players can be added. This process is always incredibly unpredictable because it involves 32 different teams and 32 different sets of evaluation processes. It’s anybody’s guess who will be available for the Bucs when they are finally on the clock.Â
With that said, we can make educated guesses based on team need and player evaluation. There are many simulators out there to help make this process easier. Here is my draft strategy based on this free agency approach.Â
19) Mike Green, Edge, Marshall
There is every football reason as to why this makes sense. The Bucs need a pass rusher; Green led college football in sacks with 17.0. Bucs love Senior Bowl players; Green was the big star at the Senior Bowl. And while we are yet to see a true work out from Green, he put up an impressive 28 reps on the bench press and looks like the idea fit in this defense.
There are some questions regarding some off field issues that happened when he was at Virginia a few years ago. The Buccaneers met with Green at the combine to try and get to know his character and potentially get some answers. However, if his interview checks out and there is no concern legally with him, then this is a perfect football fit.Â
53) Jayden Higgins, Wide Receiver, Iowa State
The glory days of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin can’t last forever. And while we are all enjoying these two careers while we can, it’s also time to start looking towards the future. We started seeing this last year when the team drafted wide receiver Jalen McMillan out of Washington.
With McMillan being more of a slot weapon, the Bucs are still in need of that outside playmaker who can do some of the things that Evans can do. Higgins is very much cut from the same cloth.Â
At 6’4 and 215 lbs, Higgins ran a 4.47 40 yard dash and can jump out of the gym. He has very good hands and thrives at stopping routes and beating opponents deep (very much like Evans does). This could be the recreation of the twin towns that the Bucs had when Evans was a rookie playing alongside Vincent Jackson.Â
84) Andrew Mukuba, Safety, Texas
Mukuba is a name that hasn’t been matched with the Bucs as often as I would like, but he’s a great fit. At 5’11 and 186 lbs he’s a free safety with range and ball skills. The results verify this with his 4.46 40 yard dash time and his 5 interceptions last season.
This would also be a great addition in terms of the Bucs run defense. Mukuba is one of the most physical defensive backs in this draft, despite his smaller frame. He will make ball carriers feel his presence and provide a very well rounded safety to the back end.
120) Jamaree Caldwell, Nose Tackle, Oregon
If you love space eating nose tackles then this is the player for you. Caldwell is built like a bowling ball at 6’2 and 331 lbs. If opponents try to run the ball directly at him then they are going to have a difficult time finding success.
However, he’s also very fluid and can move down the line of scrimmage. This is a skill that star nose tackle Vita Vea also possesses. It allows these powerful run stuffers to blow up outside zone runs and really shut down the running game.
It also helps both in terms of pass rush. Although Caldwell had 0 sacks last season, he had 6.5 the year prior when he played at Houston. I believe he has potential in this area and would be a great backup behind Vea as a run defender.Â
158) Jonas Sanker, Safety, Virginia
Continuing to boost the depth in the secondary, I like Sanker on day three. He led the ACC in solo tackles in each of the last two seasons. At 6’0 and 206 lbs he has great potential as a box safety in the NFL.
He’s also someone who the Bucs met formally with at the Combine and attended the Senior Bowl. We know that these are both strong indicators that a player is on the Buccaneers radar. After impressive workouts, I’m sure Licht would love to pick him up as a role player and special teams ace.Â
237) Nick Martin, Linebacker, Oklahoma State
Nick Martin is a player who doesn’t seem to be getting much love in the pre-draft process. This doesn’t make sense to me because all he does is fly around and make tackles. Sure, he’s a bit undersized at 5’11 and 220 lbs, but athletically he’s as good as anyone.
This is another player who was at the Senior Bowl and who the Bucs met formally with at the Combine. An excellent depth player behind and special teams player.
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