Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Top positional needs for the 2020 offseason
By Evan Bachman
A look at what positions the Tampa Bay Buccaneers should target in this offseason for free agency and the 2020 NFL draft in April.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are probably one of the more interesting teams in the entire NFL. The numbers say they have an outstanding offense, which finished tied for third in the league averaging 28.6 points per game, according to NFL.com.
However, their abysmal defense, which finished 29th in the league giving up 28.1 points per game, according to NFL.com held them back all season long. The thing is that the offense, or more specifically Jameis Winston, is responsible for constantly putting the defense in terrible spots throughout the 2019 season.
There may be a lot of hope lost amongst Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans and that’s reasonable considering they haven’t made the playoffs in over 10 years, but this a team that does have the potential to be maybe the best offense in the league they just need more consistent quarterback play.
Chris Godwin and Mike Evans are probably the best receiver duo in the league and Winston is one of the most talented quarterbacks in the league, but he’s just so inconsistent and his decision making is awful.
On the defensive side, they are weak in some places, especially when you consider some of their top defenders are free agents, but there is talent to work with. They’re solid at cornerback with Carlton Davis, Jamel Dean, and Sean Murphy-Bunting; good at linebacker with LaVonte David and Devin White; and good on the interior defensive line with Vita Vea and William Gholston.
They’re in a good spot to have a good offseason with almost $85 million in cap space, which is the third-most of any team in the league, according to Spotrac. Notable free agents include Jameis Winston, Shaquil Barrett, Demar Dotson, Jason Pierre-Paul, Carl Nassib, Ndamukong Suh and Peyton Barber. It may take a lot of money to re-sign their own guys, particularly Winston and Barrett, but if they want to make a big splash in free agency they can.