Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Post-Senior Bowl 7-Round 2020 NFL mock draft

After finishing the 2019 season with some promising play, could a good draft vault the Tampa Bay Buccaneers into playoff contention?

Just one year ago, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were picking fifth overall in the draft and were hopeful for improvements under new head coach, Bruce Arians. It’s safe to say that those improvements people hoped for came to fruition. After finishing 7-9, the Buccaneers are picking 14th in the 2020 NFL Draft and it’s clear to see that the new coaching staff has brought a new culture to Tampa Bay.

Bruce Arians, Todd Bowles and Byron Leftwich came into Tampa with a young, inexperienced team. The Bucs started the season 2-6 and appeared to be heading towards another bad year. However, they went on to win five of their next six games and would end up finishing 7-9. After a promising end of the season, Bucs fans are excited for the offseason and are ready to see how their team improves.

The best way to build teams is through the draft, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have done it quite well. Their best players on offense, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, are only 26 and 23-years-old. On defense, their entire secondary is filled with first and second-year players. The draft is always a time of year Bucs fans look forward to, and it finally seems like it could make a difference.

Note: This mock draft was made with The Draft Network’s Mock Draft Simulator

The Bucs would like to land one of the top tier tackles, Jedrick Wills, Tristan Wirfs, or Andrew Thomas, but Mekhi Becton isn’t a bad consolation prize. A mountain of a man, Becton is listed at 6-7, 369-pounds. As a player, he doesn’t disappoint.

The first thing that stands out about Becton is his mobility. People his size shouldn’t be allowed to move the way he does. What isn’t surprising is his power. There have been multiple examples of Becton forklifting pass rushers regularly. The blend of mobility and power and size makes for a unique player.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a need at offensive tackle. Currently, the two started offensive tackles on the Bucs are Demar Dotson and Donovan Smith. Demar Dotson is 34-years-old and has been declining in play each year.

Donovan Smith, a former second-round pick from Penn State, has been disappointing, he had a very poor year in 2019; the other big problem with Smith is his contract. He signed a three-year, $41.5 Million dollar deal before the season and he has not shown anything to make that contract worth it.

As it seems more and more likely that the Bucs stick with Jameis Winston for another year, the least you could do to help him is get him some protection. Ali Marpet, Ryan Jensen, and Alex Cappa have been solid on the interior, but the tackle position needs an upgrade. Mekhi Becton should be able to step into a starting role immediately and will finally bring some stability to the tackle position for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.