Tampa Bay Buccaneers Roster 2018 Buccaneers Roster

Roster Moves in 2018 Enough?

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers enter the 2018 season dealing with the aftermath of another controversy centered on starting QB Jameis Winston. Winston, the former number 1 overall pick in the 2015 draft, will be suspended for the first three games of the season as a result of an incident involving a female Uber driver. Without their signal caller for the first three games, the Buccaneers will have to tread water to have any chance of finding a playoff spot in a competitive NFC South division.

2017 Review

The 2017 season was a disappointing one for Tampa Bay. Following a 2016 campaign that saw them post a winning record at 9-7 and barely miss the playoffs, the Buccaneers were a trendy pick to take the next step and make the postseason. Instead, Tampa saw their defense take a big step backward to a bottom third unit, while their offense was plagued by inconsistency on route to a 5-11 season. Winston wasn’t able to ascend to the next level of a top 10 QB, leaving some in Tampa to doubt whether he’ll ever make that leap.

NFL Draft Moves

While much of the focus on 2017 was on Winston and the offense, defense is where Tampa really fell apart last year. And the Bucs addressed defense in the draft, taking mammoth DT Vita Vea in round 1, two corners in the second round, a safety in the fourth and a LB in the sixth. They also picked up explosive USC RB Ronald Jones II to bolster the offense. Vita Vea is the gem of the draft class, a giant of a man and a first game starter who will solidify the middle of the defense against the run. The Bucs are hoping that Vea and their second and third round secondary reinforcements will overhaul a defense in sore need of improvement.

2018 Free Agency

Like with the draft, the Bucs focused on defense with their 2018 free agent signings. They didn’t swing for the fences with any of the premier players, instead focusing on adding depth and solid veteran pieces. Vinny Curry, Mitch Unrein, Keith Tandy and Beau Allen aren’t going to start in Pro Bowls, but their depth will help a depleted unit. While most of their focus was on defense, the Bucs’ biggest signing was on the offensive side of the ball, where they made former Ravens center Ryan Jensen the highest paid center in the league.

Offensive Roster

The big question for Tampa is this: How will they get by without Winston to start the season, and what can Winston produce when he returns? Veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick looks to be the likely starter, and he’ll need to make the most of a passing attack headlined by Mike Evans. Once Winston returns, the Bucs need him to continue his growth into a top tier QB to have a realistic chance of making the playoffs. Meanwhile, the Tampa running game put up an anemic 3.5 yards per carry last year, and they’ll be hoping to improve this year. They believe that the precense of Ryan Jensen in the interior O-Line combined with the breakaway threat of Ronald Jones II can revitalize the unit.

Defensive Roster

While there’s relative continuity on the offensive side of the ball, the defense will look completely different in 2018. Tampa will hope that an infusion of highly drafted rookies alongside a number of veteran depth pieces can solidify a unit that underperformed in 2017. With the addition of Vita Vea, the Bucs now have an intriguing tandem with veteran start Gerald McCoy, and they’ll be hoping that their front four can win battles that trickle down into better performance in the linebacking corps and secondary. The story grabbing all the headlines is the turmoil with Jameis Winston, and his performance will be one of the keys of Tampa’s 2018 season. But just as important will the how well the new-look defense can improve on their 2017 performance. If the Bucs can be stout defensively and get a little more production from the running game, they’ll put Winston in a better position to lead the team to a better outcome in 2018.