2016 NFL offseason: Tampa Bay Buccaneers needs
By John Buhler
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are coming off a 6-10 2015 season with the No. 9 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. What can Tampa do to help themselves in the offseason?
For an NFL franchise that hasn’t made the NFC Playoffs since firing Super Bowl-winning head coach Jon Gruden at the end of the 2008 season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are gearing up to towards fielding a playoff-caliber team in 2016 under newly promoted head coach Dirk Koetter.
Tampa Bay went 6-10 in the 2015 NFL season, tripling their win total from the year before. However, six wins wasn’t enough to keep former head coach Lovie Smith in Tampa Bay for a third year of the antiquated Tampa 2 defense he decided to run as a defensive-minded head coach.
The Glazer Family made one of the better offseason coaching decisions by replacing Smith from within. Koetter was the offensive coordinator for the Buccaneers in the 2015 NFL season after three great years with the division rival Atlanta Falcons in the NFC South. Under Koetter’s leadership and highly successful Air Coryell attack, rookie franchise quarterback Jameis Winston showed a thirst for learning and thriving in Koetter’s passing offense.
Koetter’s promotion allowed him to bring with him to Tampa Bay his former head coach in Mike Smith, formerly of the Falcons, to become his new defensive coordinator. Smith is the winningest coach in Falcons history and has been a great defensive coach for both the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars organizations.
Tampa Bay seems to be trending in the right direction on the offensive side of the ball with the Winston/Koetter partnership, two great vertical receiving threats in Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson, and a perennial Pro Bowl running back in Doug Martin.
The Buccaneers are certainly poised to win at a high level as a franchise with an improved coaching staff and arguably its most high-octane offense in the franchise’s 40-plus year history. While the Buccaneers do play in an incredibly competitive division in the NFC South with the Falcons, the Carolina Panthers, and the New Orleans Saints, Tampa Bay is one of about four teams in the NFC to miss the playoffs in 2015 that could find themselves back there in 2016.
For that to happen, the Buccaneers will need to have a strong offseason both in free agency and the NFL Draft. Tampa has shown in recent years a proclivity to overspending in free agency to try to rebuild that way (Darrelle Revis, Dashon Goldson, Alterraun Verner), but may want to focus on doing well in the 2016 NFL Draft, one that has the Buccaneers picking at No. 9 overall.
Tampa Bay needs to massively overhaul their secondary this offseason. The team still has All-Pro talent in the front seven in defensive tackle Gerald McCoy and linebacker Lavonte David. Look for Tampa Bay to go with a cornerback at No. 9 in the 2016 NFL Draft. Players to keep an eye on there are Clemson’s Mackensie Alexander, Florida’s Vernon Hargreaves, III, and Florida State’s Jalen Ramsey. Tampa may even trade up to get a corner they like this year as they have a full slate of seven draft picks to work with.
The Buccaneers have 18 players that were on their 2015 roster heading for free agency including Martin, running back Bobby Rainey, and defensive tackle Henry Melton. Tampa Bay will probably end up re-signing Martin this offseason, as they aren’t going to find a suitable Pro Bowl caliber replacement for him in 2016.
Regardless, the Buccaneers do need to consider what they want to do at running back. In Atlanta, the running game evaporated under Koetter when Michael Turner’s skill set rapidly diminished in 2012 and his replacement, Steven Jackson, was a shell of his former self in the Red and Black in 2013 and 2014. Tampa needs to put a huge focus on the running game this offseason to give the offense more balance and Winston a better opportunity to learn and grow in year two.
If the Buccaneers aren’t going to re-sign Martin, they could look at signing Alfred Morris of the Washington Redskins, C.J. Anderson of the Denver Broncos, or Bilal Powell of the New York Jets. All three of those backs still seem to have some tread on their tires and could be good players in Koetter’s offense.
Should Melton walk, Tampa Bay might consider bringing in Terrance Knighton of the Redskins, Haloti Ngata of the Detroit Lions, or Nick Fairley of the Los Angeles Rams. Could one of those three become a strong complimentary player on the defensive of the Buccaneers’ defensive line alongside the perennial Pro Bowler McCoy?
To upgrade the secondary in free agency, Tampa Bay may inquire about either Eric Weddle of the San Diego Chargers or former Falcon William Moore. Tampa will need more than just a rookie to bolster that defensive backfield. Weddle has been a multi-time Pro Bowler with the Chargers and Moore was drafted by defensive coordinator Smith with the Falcons out the University of Missouri in 2009 in the second round.
Overall, the Buccaneers have more good going for them than bad. They are close to getting back to relevancy in the NFC, and with another good draft, smart acquisitions in free agency, and growth with their current roster under a revamped coaching staff, Tampa Bay could shock the NFC and earn a Wild Card berth in 2016 if certain things go in their favor during the season.