Buccaneers Draft Day Decisions

As the 2016 NFL draft combine shuts down we have already seen signs of awesomeness from players that we didn't expect it from. We do understand that these drills usually don't translate to field production, but sometimes the drills are small glimpses of what the possibilities could be in the future. BucNation is back and forth on whether we should go offense first or defense first.

Considering we went mainly offense in the 2015 draft it would seem that defense is the way to go. Drafting at the 9th spot will not leave us with many of the main picks that we've been scouting for. It's believed that Ramsey, VH3, Bosa, and Spence could already be scooped up before it's our turn. So what do we do? Who do we draft? Here are three players that we believe will get the job done and fill the void we need regardless what draft spot they are projected and valued at.

Deforest Buckner 6'7" 290 DE (Oregon) finishes the 2015 season with 45 solo tackles, 38 assists, 17 tackles for loss, and 10.5 sacks. Buckner was named the 2015 Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year. By adding him to our DL would add massive size and strength to an already tough line (11th against the run only giving up 1,606yds). At 6'7" he can definitely help with slants by keeping his hands up and blocking the passing lanes. We also need help with our pass rush and we feel that Buckner can add needed pressure and collapse the pocket. He's not much of an edge rusher so we see a lot of DL/LB stunts in the future if we draft him.

Tyvis Powell 6'2" 210 S (Ohio State) is a top consideration at the safety position for some teams. His clutch time play has been noted by many. Running a 4.47 will give our secondary the size and speed we need to go up against the top WRs in our division. He finished with 8 INTs in his 3 year career at Ohio State. With most of our force on defense coming from the linebackers and defensive line positions, Powell will get a chance to learn on the job without fearing the deep ball coming 75% of the time.

Xavien Howard 6'0" 201 CB (Baylor) is a corner that we feel has what it takes to play at a high level in the NFL. He has practiced against a high powered offense in his two year career at Baylor. He tallied 37 tackles, 5 INTs and 9 pass break ups (31st in the country). It's said that one of his weaknesses is he's too physical for his own good. We'll take that.

We at BucNation Firing Cannons feel that these 3 players will make a strong and immediate impact to our defense if our targeted players aren't on the board.


Who do you think will help improve our team's production?

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