SR’s Latest 2024 Bucs Draft Scoop

But the two times Licht has drafted outside the top 20 the results haven’t been great. Outside linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (No. 32 overall, 2021) was the Bucs’ first-round pick the year after winning the Super Bowl and hasn’t had more than five sacks in any season yet. Defensive tackle Logan Hall (No. 33 overall, 2022) was the team’s top pick at the start of the second round after trading down and has underwhelmed.

In fact, the Bucs felt like they whiffed on Hall after just one season, and that prompted the team to spend another top pick Kancey last year as a result.

So with the Bucs draft upon us, it’s time for me to dish out some inside scoop and analysis for our Pewter Report readers.

Let’s stay on topic with defensive tackle to kick things off, shall we?

Bucs Draft Plans Include Selecting A Defensive Tackle Early

I found it interesting back in early March that the Bucs used four of the team’s 45 formal visits at the NFL Scouting Combine on defensive tackles. With Tampa Bay spending three top picks on Vita Vea (2018), Logan Hall (2022) and Calijah Kancey (2023) it just seemed odd that the Bucs would formally interview four defensive tackles in Indy – Florida State’s Braden Fiske, Clemson’s Ruke Orhorhoro, Michigan’s Kris Jenkins and Texas A&M’s McKinnley Jackson.

That’s as many defensive tackle formal interviews as the team used on edge rushers, cornerbacks and quarterbacks (four), and more than the team used on inside linebackers, safeties and tight ends (three). Tampa Bay used 10 formal visits on offensive linemen and just two formal visits on running backs.

The Bucs also brought in Texas’ Byron Murphy II, who is considered to be a top 20 pick, in addition to Orhorhoro for Top 30 visits. The guess here is that Tampa Bay also visited with Illinois’ Johnny Newton, a St. Petersburg native and a first-round prospect, either on a local pro day visit or via Zoom. He’s too good not to interview.

So why is adding another defensive tackle so important to the Bucs? It starts with positional value. Defensive tackles are the closest defender to the quarterback at every snap. While having great edge rushers is important to a team’s pass rush, nothing is more disruptive to a quarterback than immediate pressure right up the middle, right in his face.

I spent a good chunk of last Friday’s SR’s Fab 5 column detailing why Jason Licht and Todd Bowles are interested in selecting a defensive tackle early in the draft. I’ll add more here.

There is growing concern about Vea’s weight as he gets older. Vea is now 29 and has had several calf, foot and toe injuries over the last couple of seasons, in addition to a groin injury last year.

Vea’s listed weight on the Bucs roster is 347 pounds, but it’s really closer to 360 – and sometimes beyond. All of that weight has caused some soft tissue injuries and foot pain. As a result, Vea has missed five games over the past two seasons and his lower body injuries have limited his effectiveness when he’s played through the pain.

Kancey also missed four games due to a calf injury last year. Although at 286 pounds and age 22, he doesn’t have the same increased risk for injury that Vea does.

But when Vea or Kancey missed a game last year and the other played, when the healthy defensive tackle needed a breather, Tampa Bay was forced to play Hall next to either reserve nose tackle Greg Gaines, aging reserve defensive tackle Will Gholston or Mike Greene, who spent his first two seasons on the team’s practice squad. As a result, the Bucs’ run defense and interior pass rush suffered until either Kancey or Vea – whichever player was healthy that week – returned for the next series.

Luckily the Bucs weren’t without Vea and Kancey for the same game.

Remember that Vea broke his ankle during the fifth game of the season in 2020 and Licht had to scramble to trade for Jets defensive tackle Steve McLendon to add depth. McLendon played a vital role next to Ndamukong Suh, rotating in with Gholston and Rakeem Nunez-Roches during Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl season. Licht and Bowles know that good defensive tackles don’t grow on trees and there aren’t any saviors on the street during the season if a team needs one – hence the trade for McLendon.

That’s probably one of the reasons why Tampa Bay re-signed Gholston – even at age 33. And it’s one of the reasons why you’ll likely see the Bucs draft a defensive tackle early – possibly in the first or second round – this year.

But which one?

It’s doubtful Murphy lasts until No. 26, but the Buccaneers did their due diligence and brought him in for a Top 30 visit just in case. Drafting Newton that late in the first round would be absolutely ideal, and an insane value at No. 26, as he’s got top-15 talent.

Pewter Report has Orhorhoro as our early Bucs Best Bet, perhaps in the second round if the team addresses another need at No. 26 if Murphy and Newton are off the board.

Bucs Aren’t As Interested In Darius Robinson As Has Been Reported

Tony Pauline of Sportskeeda.com has been covering the NFL Draft for decades and reported earlier this week that the Bucs may be interested in Missouri defensive tackle Darius Robinson. This is what Pauline reported.

Where will Darius Robinson of Missouri end up in the draft? Sources tell me the bottom third of Round 1 and emphasize it would be a shock if he’s not selected during the initial 32 picks. The Arizona Cardinals presently have two selections during the final 10 of the initial frame and could use one on Robinson. Though the Cardinals signed three defensive linemen in free agency, the contract for Bilal Nichols would not prevent them from drafting Robinson.

The San Francisco 49ers are also mentioned as a perfect fit for Robinson, and the team has some interest in the defensive lineman. Ditto the Tampa Bay Bucs, who could select him with the 26th pick as they feel he’s a perfect fit for their scheme.

As much as I like and respect Pauline, whom I’ve known for years, Robinson isn’t high on the Bucs’ board. They didn’t interview him at the NFL Scouting Combine nor did they bring him in for a Top 30 visit.

Now the same could be said about Calijah Kancey last year, as the Bucs went into stealth mode. But that won’t be the case this year with Robinson. He’s a high-cut, long-legged defensive tackle who doesn’t play with great pad level to be effective in the interior. And after running a disappointing 4.95 in the 40-yard dash, he’s too slow-footed to be an edge rusher in Tampa Bay.

In fact, I would guess that Florida State’s Braden Fiske is higher on their defensive tackle board than Robinson. The Bucs had a formal interview with him at the NFL Scouting Combine. I could see Fiske being the pick at No. 26 over Robinson if many highly-rated players are off the board when Tampa Bay is on the clock – and if the team can’t trade down.

I rattled off four sleeper picks for the Bucs at No. 26 in last Friday’s SR’s Fab 5 – Illinois defensive tackle Johhny Newton, Western Michigan edge rusher Marshawn Kneeland, Michigan cornerback Mike Sainristil and Georgia wide receiver Ladd McConkey. I probably should have included Fiske, who could be the No. 3 defensive tackle on Tampa Bay’s draft board given his elite athletic profile and RAS (Relative Athletic Score). He ran an eye-opening 4.78 in the 40-yard dash in Indy at 6-foot-4, 292 pounds and had a 33.5-inch vertical.

Will Jackson Powers-Johnson Make It To No. 26? And Would The Bucs Pass On Him?

One thing that Tony Pauline may be correct about is Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson being an option for the Bucs at No. 26. Pewter Report has the All-American snapper going to Tampa Bay in our final 2024 7-Round Bucs Mock Draft.

While some media mock drafts have Powers-Johnson being selected by Seattle at No. 16, by Pittsburgh at No. 20, by Miami at No. 21 or by Dallas at No. 24, he is a center and only has one year’s worth of experience playing that position. And centers typically don’t get drafted highly.

Here is what Pauline wrote about Powers-Johnson.

It seems Powers-Johnson’s draft stock may be cooling a bit, though some contend that he did not deserve the mid-first round grades many, including yours truly, handed him several months ago. Right now, it looks like the former Oregon junior will come off the board anywhere from the bottom third of Round 1 to the 40th selection.

The Dallas Cowboys desperately need a center and the team has interest in Powers-Johnson. I’m told the two sides hit it off when JPJ was in Dallas for an official 30 visit. The Green Bay Packers have also done a lot of work on the offensive lineman.

If the Cowboys opt for another offensive lineman – perhaps Duke’s Graham Barton, who could play guard or center, or perhaps an offensive tackle – Powers-Johnson could slide all the way down to Tampa Bay at No. 26. Especially if Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean is on the board for Green Bay at No. 25. It would be fascinating to see if the Bucs passed on the chance to draft Ryan Jensen 2.0 for another player, especially if a highly-graded edge rusher like Laiatu Latu or Jared Verse is there or a stud defensive tackle like Johnny Newton is still on the board.

Powers-Johnson also has a bit of a medical concern, supposedly with concussions and possibly a hip injury. He did have to miss the rest of the Senior Bowl practices after injuring his hamstring during Monday’s practice, which he dominated. But the 6-foot-3, 323-pounder healed up enough to run the 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine a month later.

Notably, Powers-Johnson isn’t even a first-round pick in the final mock draft of NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah or Peter Schrager or The Athletic’s Dane Brugler – and all three have Tampa Bay passing on him at No. 26.

Prospects We Haven’t Talked About Much

There are a few draft prospects that have been linked to the Bucs – and one that hasn’t – that Pewter Report really has not talked about yet – or written about. So let’s discuss why we haven’t.

Penn State OLB Chop Robinson

The speedy Nittany Lions pass rusher has the burst that Todd Bowles would love off the edge. He’s been mocked to the Bucs a bunch because he ran a sizzling 4.48 in the 40-yard dash in Indy at 254 pounds. Robinson did have a formal interview with the Bucs during the NFL Scouting Combine, but it’s hard to imagine Jason Licht getting suckered again with an athletic edge rusher without much sack production.

He finished his three-year career at Penn State with just 11.5 sacks and only four last year. There should be more sack production and tackles for less for as good of an athlete as Robinson is. Robinson has trouble finishing a la Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, and could be JTS 2.0. There’s also the chance he’s not even around at No. 26 because some other team has been enamored by his athletic upside.

Florida State OLB Jared Verse

NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah has Verse sliding to Tampa Bay at No. 26. The Bucs did bring Verse in for a Top 30 visit, so they’ve done their due diligence. If he does make it to the Bucs it’s because he wound up being the fourth edge rusher off the board behind Alabama’s Dallas Turner, UCLA’s Laiatu Latu and Penn State’s Chop Robinson. Plus as many as five quarterbacks and seven offensive tackles would have to be off the board to cause Verse to plummet.

With 29.5 tackles for loss over the past two years for the Seminoles and nine sacks in each of the past two seasons, the Bucs have to take Verse at No. 26 if he’s there, right? He was viewed as a top 15 pick had he come out in last year’s draft and his stock really hasn’t dipped after another great season at Florida State.

UCLA OLB Laiatu Latu

Latu shouldn’t be available at No. 26. Like FSU’s Jared Verse, he’s too good of a pass rusher. Yet both Peter Schrager and Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network have Latu slipping past Tampa Bay and getting selected by Arizona at No. 27 (Jeremiah) and Buffalo at No. 28 (Schrager). That would be crazy if that happened, and the only way it does is if some medical concerns about Latu’s neck scare off teams inside the top 20.

Armed with an array of ways to beat offensive tackles, Latu recorded 23.5 sacks, 34 tackles for loss, five forced fumbles, two interceptions and recovered a fumble in two years at UCLA. He won’t make it to No. 26, will he? The Bucs couldn’t pass up that production, could they?

Iowa CB Cooper DeJean

Pewter Report hasn’t written or talked about DeJean because it’s hard to fathom he makes it to No. 26. Especially with Green Bay, which needs help in the secondary, picking one spot ahead at No. 25. A lot of mock drafts have the Packers taking DeJean, but if he falls to the Bucs at No. 26 they have to consider him for a couple of reasons.

Tampa Bay’s secondary needs more takeaways, and DeJean had seven interceptions over the past two years, including three pick-sixes in 2022. DeJean has the ideal size to play outside cornerback at 6-foot-1, 203 pounds, and the Bucs love Iowa defensive backs. DeJean has great instincts for zone coverage and is also an accomplished punt returner with a 13.1-yard average and a punt return TD on his resumé.

Alabama CB Kool-Aid McKinstry

The Bucs brought in McKinstry for a Top 30 visit. Perhaps it was doing their due diligence. Maybe it was a smokescreen. Pewter Report does not think Tampa Bay will go cornerback in the first round. Not with Jamel Dean entering a big year as CB1 and the team being thrilled that Zyon McCollum has cracked the starting lineup. Tampa Bay added veteran Bryce Hall as someone to challenge McCollum, and at worst be CB3.

McKinstry is under 6 feet tall, and I have it on good authority that after the Vernon Hargreaves III debacle in 2016, the Bucs will never spend a premium pick on an outside cornerback under 6 feet. McKinstry isn’t big, nor is overly fast at just under 4.5. And he lacks ball skills with just two interceptions in three years at Alabama. Hard pass.

Clemson CB Nate Wiggins

The Bucs did have a formal interview with Wiggins at the NFL Scouting Combine. And why not? He’s 6-foot-1 and ran a blistering 4.28. Todd Bowles likes tall, fast, athletic cornerbacks. Look no further than 6-foot-2, 200-pound Zyon McCollum, who ran a 4.33, and 6-foot-1, 205-pound Jamel Dean, who ran a 4.3.

But Wiggins is rail thin at 173 pounds. Despite being 6-foot-1, it’s mostly because he has a long neck, as he has relatively short arms at 30.5 inches in length. I’m guessing the Bucs brass requested that formal meeting with Wiggins to see just how skinny he was, and now that they’ve found out they’ll pass on him in the first round. He’s been mocked to the Bucs a bunch, but we can’t see it happening.

Arizona OL Jordan Morgan

Bucs general manager Jason Licht has made a habit of finding NFL guards out of converted college left tackles due to their athleticism. Morgan, who played left tackle at Arizona, is viewed by some as the second-best guard prospect in the draft behind Duke’s Graham Barton. Tampa Bay did have a formal interview with Morgan in Indianapolis, so they have shown some interest.

But some teams view Morgan as a left tackle because he’s more of a finesse player. He just seems to lack the nastiness on tape that Jason Licht likes in his offensive linemen. Maybe we’re wrong about Morgan. We took a stab at the Bucs drafting a tackle and moving him inside when Pewter Report went with Oklahoma right tackle Tyler Guyton in the fourth edition of our mock draft in early April.

West Virginia C Zach Frazier

There has been hardly any buzz about the Bucs having an interest in Frazier. To our knowledge, Tampa Bay did not meet with the West Virginia center at the NFL Scouting Combine – not even an informal meeting – nor did the team bring him in for a Top 30 visit. Yet Pewter Report has only identified 17 out of the team’s Top 30 visits, including a pair of other centers in Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson, a projected first-rounder, and Wisconsin’s Tanor Bortonlini, a mid-round pick.

The first round seems too rich for Frazier, especially at No. 26. He seems more like a second-prospect, especially given his short, 32-inch arms and a 6-foot-3, 313-pound frame that is already maxed out. This pick would be surprising if it happened. Kansas’ Dominick Puni might even be a better center candidate on Day 2 than Frazier in the long run.

Pewter Report’s Bucs Best Bets Recap

Pewter Report has had quite a bit of success in forecasting Bucs picks in recent years with our Bucs Best Bets selections where we pick two players at each position (if Tampa Bay were to select one) – one in the first three rounds and one on Day 3. It’s a fun exercise for our staff and for fans, and Pewter Report has the best track record of any media outlet in correctly nailing who Tampa Bay drafts.

Pewter Report had tight end O.J. Howard and wide receiver Chris Godwin as Bucs Best Bets back in 2017, along with defensive tackle Vita Vea, offensive lineman Alex Cappa and wide receiver Justin Watson in 2018. Inside linebacker Devin White and cornerback Jamel Dean were Bucs Best Bets the following year in 2019.

After whiffing in 2020, which was tough to forecast due to COVID-19 wiping out pro days and Top 30 visits after the NFL Scouting Combine, Pewter Report hit on Bucs Best Bets such as outside linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka and quarterback Kyle Trask in 2021. Then accurately predicted another pair in defensive tackle Logan Hall and tight end Cade Otton in 2022 before nailing a record four with guard Cody Mauch, outside linebacker YaYa Diaby, tight end Payne Durham and wide receiver Trey Palmer in 2023.

Last year will be tough to beat, but here’s our best shot for 2024.

QB Rounds 1-3: South Carolina’s Spencer Rattler
QB Rounds 4-7: Tulane’s Michael Pratt

RB Rounds 1-3: USC’s MarShawn Lloyd
RB Rounds 4-7: Georgia’s Kendall Milton

WR Rounds 1-3: Florida State’s Keon Coleman
WR Rounds 4-7: Virginia’s Malik Washington

TE Rounds 1-3: Kansas State’s Ben Sinnott
TE Rounds 4-7: Illinois’ Tip Reiman

OT Rounds 1-3: Oklahoma’s Tyler Guyton
OT Rounds 4-7: Kansas’ Dominick Puni

G Rounds 1-3: Duke’s Graham Barton
G Rounds 4-7: Boston College’s Christian Mahogany

C Rounds 1-3: Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson
C Rounds 4-7: Wisconsin’s Tanor Bortolini

OLB Rounds 1-3: Western Michigan’s Marshawn Kneeland
OLB Rounds 4-7: Colorado State’s Mo Kamara

DT Rounds 1-3: Clemson’s Ruke Orhorhoro
DT Rounds 4-7: Auburn’s Marcus Harris

ILB Rounds 1-3: Kentucky’s Trevin Wallace
ILB Rounds 4-7: North Carolina’s Cedric Gray

CB Rounds 1-3: Michigan’s Mike Sainristil
CB Rounds 4-7: Arkansas’ Dwight McGlothern

S Rounds 1-3: Georgia’s Tykee Smith
S Rounds 4-7: Air Force’s Trey Taylor

The LIVE Pewter Report Draft Show Starts Thursday Night At 7pm ET

The annual Pewter Report Draft Show returns for the 2024 NFL Draft. Pewter Report’s three-day live-streaming coverage of the Bucs draft happens on the PewterReportTV channel and is energized by CELSIUS, the official energy drink of Pewter Report. The event kicks off at 7:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, April 25 – one hour before the official start of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Hosts Scott Reynolds and Matt Matera will be broadcasting live all three days from the Bucs’ team headquarters at the AdventHealth Training Center. Other members of the Pewter Report staff, including Adam Slivon, Bailey Adams and Josh Queipo will also be making on-air appearances to offer up their insight and analysis as the Bucs make their selections.

And the PR staff will also be interacting with Bucs fans and answering questions in 20 hours of coverage over three days.

Pewter Report 2024 Draft Show Schedule On PewterReportTV on YouTube

Thursday, April 25 – 7:00 p.m. ET (picks begin at 8:00 p.m. ET)
Friday, April 26 – 6:00 p.m. ET (picks begins at 7:00 p.m. ET)
Saturday, April 37 – 11:00 a.m. ET (picks begins at noon ET)

The Pewter Report staff will also be having live reactions and analysis from the Todd Bowles and Jason Licht press conferences that happen throughout the three-day event. As well as a reaction to the team’s first-round pick from Friday’s press conference.

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