Previewing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Offensive Depth Chart
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have slowly been building a team under the direction of Lovie Smith that can get them back to the kind of trajectory we once saw when Josh Freeman was actually playing good football with guys like Doug Martin and Vincent Jackson establishing themselves as star players in this league.
That seems like a lifetime ago, but it was five years ago that Freeman threw 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions, and the Buccaneers seemed to have something exceptional brewing.
The following season (2011) Freeman threw 16 touchdowns compared to just 22 interceptions, making fantasy football idiots like me look stupid for taking the entire Bucs roster. That being said, don’t count that idea as such a dumb one anymore.
Five years after Freeman’s breakout season, things have undergone a major change in Tampa Bay, and top pick Jameis Winston is now leading the show with a star-studded cast of weapons around him.
Jameis Winston
Winston is the key to everything for the Buccaneers. We all saw last season at Florida State a little bit of a regression it felt like in Winston’s decision making, both on and off the field. I’m going to focus on the field, because as of right now, there’s nothing off the field causing distractions for Jameis.
He has received comparisons to Ben Roethlisberger, which I think are pretty lofty but I’m okay with it. Winston, like Big Ben, does a great job of absorbing hits and while he’s not the most athletic quarterback, he can make plays with his feet.
I think from a perspective of putting up big numbers this season, expectations should be tempered a bit for Winston but as many have already pointed out, he’s going from his top receivers at Florida State being Nick O’Leary and Rashad Greene to the Buccaneers, who have one of the best 1-2 punches at receiver in the league.
Mike Evans
Dec 28, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans (13) reacts after he scored a touchdown against the New Orleans Saints during the second quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Evans had a phenomenal rookie season for the Bucs, catching 68 passes for 1,051 yards and 12 touchdowns in 15 games. I recall in his freshman year at Florida State, Jameis Winston really enjoyed a lot of success throwing to a massive receiver in Kelvin Benjamin, who bailed him out of plenty of bad throws.
As a rookie in the NFL, Winston’s going to get bailed out plenty by his star receiver group, but this player right here is going to give him particular success and added confidence.
Evans was a top 10 pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, and for good reason. He’s a huge target at 6-foot-5, 231 pounds, and he came out of the Texas A&M program as just a redshirt sophomore. The sky is still the limit and while playing with a rookie QB could force a bit of a statistical regression (in theory), Evans could also theoretically become Winston’s favorite target quickly and put up huge numbers.
Especially if the Bucs are playing from behind and need to throw a lot late in games.
I think Evans is in line for a humongous season.
Vincent Jackson
Nov 30, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Vincent Jackson (83) catches a pass in front of Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Terence Newman (23) in the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports
Jackson’s not getting any younger, and perhaps trending downward, but after somehow scraping together a fourth consecutive season with 1,000 receiving yards (barely) he might have one or two more really solid years left in him.
At worst, if Mike Evans is receiving the bulk of attention, the 6-5 230 pound Jackson is not the type of guy you want to leave in one-on-one situations.
I think Jameis Winston will develop a great chemistry with Jackson, and he could be in line for at least triple the amount of touchdowns as he had last year, which was only two. Obviously, the number of years Jackson has left in his playing career has diminished, but with Winston now at quarterback, he might have a little burst of pep in his step and I think he could be a really good #2 option for this offense again.
Austin Seferian-Jenkins
Sep 7, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins (87) runs after a catch against the Carolina Panthers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports
Playing in only nine games, the second round pick out of Washington caught just 22 passes, two of which went for touchdowns. Seferian-Jenkins, otherwise known as ASJ, is a massive 6-5 262 pound tight end with excellent ball skills and the ability to be a complete mismatch.
When you think about the fact that Tampa Bay now has Mike Evans, Vincent Jackson, and ASJ all at 6-5 and 230-260 pounds, the options are endless for Jameis Winston to have success as a rookie. Now that both Evans and ASJ have had a year to adjust to the speed in the NFL, I fully expect this to be a breakout year for the second year tight end.
He can be a terror in the red zone for opposing teams, but if Winston is able to stay upright (another big question here), which player do you double cover, if anyone?
Jenkins, like Vincent Jackson, could be seeing a lot of favorable matchups this season.
Running Backs — Doug Martin, Bobby Rainey, Charles Sims, Mike James
Dec 28, 2014; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Doug Martin (22) runs past New Orleans Saints free safety Pierre Warren (42) during the second quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Doug Martin is in a contract year, the Bucs didn’t draft another running back, and the passing game should flourish.
What more could he ask for?
This is the time for Martin to re-establish himself as one of the top backs in the NFL, which he did with a phenomenal rookie season in 2012. With two straight years of poor numbers, and only 17/32 possible games played, it’s time to put up or shut up for this young back.
If Martin can’t establish himself as the featured back in Tampa Bay, they made a really nice pick last year in the big, speedy Charles Sims, who is a one-cut and go runner. He could be a featured back in the NFL, but he missed a lot of last year due to injury.
Can he stay healthy?
Bobby Rainey and Mike James are nice backups.
OVERALL
This is an exciting group of young players. If Doug Martin or Charles Sims can emerge as a thousand yard back this year, Jameis Winston will enjoy a very successful rookie season and possibly rookie of the year honors.
At worst, this team might pop up on the Red Zone channel a lot this season, so they’ll be a lot of fun to watch.