The draft is over, and none of the players in any draft class have played a down for their respective teams. That being said, it’s never soon enough for way-too-early grades, and many experts and pundits have done just that.
Most of them praised the explosiveness and speed that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers added to the team, but wondered if the undersized players they drafted or the lack of an offensive tackle in the class will drag it down overall.
Take a look at how writers around the web graded Tampa Bay’s draft class below:
USA TODAY Network
NFL.com praised Tampa Bay’s focus on athletic prospects.
Kancey brings versatility, explosiveness and underrated leverage to the Bucs’ defensive line. Trading up for Mauch to fill in at guard made sense because he can also slide outside if the team needs him there. Diaby’s an athletic work in progress who must reach his potential to justify the mid-third-round selection. Dennis attacks the backfield and the ball with reckless abandon, as does Ramirez from the edge. Durham is a nice replacement for Cameron Brate, and Palmer gives the team a deep speed option if he’s able to clean up his drops. Tampa Bay needs to sign some offensive linemen after the draft.
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Sporting News believed that Tampa Bay should have picked a quarterback during the draft.
The Buccaneers filled plenty of needs on both sides of the ball, but outside of the great start with Kancey and Mauch to fill voids on their offensive and defensive line, they underwhelmed with GM Jason Licht’s first post-Tom Brady draft. Two glaring omissions from the class is a QB (given just about everyone else took one) and another running back.
Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports
CBS Sports particularly praised the selection of OG Cody Mauch,
First-round defensive tackle Calijah Kancey is a player who can really amp up their interior pass rush. Playing next to Vita Vea, he is the perfect complement. I liked that pick. Mauch is a nice second-round choice. Keep an eye on fifth-round pick SirVocea Dennis, a linebacker from Pittsburgh. [Sixth]-round receiver Trey Palmer can fly. This was a draft based on speed. They got faster.
Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
USA TODAY was less than enthused about the team focusing on the defensive side of the ball.
Given QB Tom Brady’s retirement, the defensive lean was surprising … unless HC Todd Bowles was…
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