The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are facing a daunting offseason, with a challenging salary cap situation, the retirement of Tom Brady, and a long list of key free agents on both sides of the ball.
That means the Bucs will have to get immediate contributions from their rookie class this year, nailing as many picks in the 2023 NFL draft as possible to help reload the roster.
With Senior Bowl week officially in the books, here’s an updated look at how all seven rounds of this year’s draft could play out for the Bucs:
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The Bucs are set to lose two of their top three corners (Jamel Dean, Sean Murphy-Bunting), as well as three of their top four safeties (Mike Edwards, Logan Ryan, Keanu Neal) to free agency. Why not spend their top pick on a player who can line up at corner on the outside, in the slot, or on the back end? Branch did all of that at a high level in Nick Saban’s defense, and would be a perfect fit for Todd Bowles’ scheme.
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Injuries tanked the Bucs’ interior offensive line before the 2022 season even began, but Nick Leverett, Aaron Stinnie, Robert Hainsey and Luke Goedeke should give them solid depth alongside Ryan Jensen and Shaq Mason next year. The bigger need should be at tackle, where Donovan Smith could be a salary cap casualty, and Tampa Bay’s depth is much thinner. Duncan backed up his solid film with a strong week at the Senior Bowl, and has both the talent and polish to start Day 1 at left tackle.
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Joe Tryon-Shoyinka has shown flashes of potential over his two seasons in Tampa Bay, but not enough consistency, especially when it comes to setting the edge as a run defender. Shaq Barrett just turned 30, and will be coming off a torn Achilles, and Anthony Nelson is a free agent. Carter is talented enough to be a second-round pick, but a deep EDGE class could push him down the board. If he makes it to the Bucs’ pick, he could be a huge steal.
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Lavonte David’s contract is up after this year, and even if he returns, he turns 33 in January. There’s not much in terms of proven depth behind David and Devin White, so they have to reload this unit in the offseason. Winters had a strong week of practice at the Senior Bowl, and his skill set would pair well with Todd Bowles’ defense.
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