Tampa Bay Buccaneers Roster 2020 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Roster

Are we looking at an improved defense this year for the Bucs?

In short, yes. The Bucs took Devin White, a LB from LSU with the fifth overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He'll immediately be slotted into a starting spot, and will be expected to to be a huge contributor on defense. They nabbed Sean Bunting, A CB out of Central Michigan in the second round who will be competing for a starting spot. If nothing else, adding more competition to the secondary will only work in the Bucs' favor. A team that has a strong pass-rush could certainly benefit from having some guys in the backfield able to make plays on balls they force to be thrown. CB Jamal Dean was added in the third round of this past draft, who only adds more competition for a starting spot.

What can we expect from QB Jameis Winston this season?

Does anyone ever really know what to expect from Jameis Winston? Jameis is in the peculiar position of being a quarterback drafted first overall playing in the 5th and final year of his rookie deal not knowing what the future holds for him. He simply hasn't shown enough production for the Bucs to go all in on him yet. If he's ever going to, this is going to be the year. With a bright new head coach in Bruce Arians who has a history of turning QBs around, Winston will be out of excuses if he doesn't produce this year. With that looming in the back of his head, I predict that Winston has his strongest season yet. The stakes are high, yes, but for whatever reason, I trust that Winston will perform and get himself a nice extension.

What should we expect form TE O.J. Howard this season?

O.J. Howard has been talked about ever since he showcased his talents in the 2015 National Championship game where he put up 208 yard and two touchdowns against Clemson. Only since being drafted by the Bucs in 2017, he's missed 8 games. When he's on the field, there aren't many complaints. It's just a matter of making sure the young TE does stay on the field. That being said, even if he does stay healthy, there's a good chance he isn't used as as much of a weapon as he has been in the past two seasons. Newly acquired head coach Bruce Arians has a track record of not implementing TEs heavily into his offense and instead focusing mainly on WRs. He hasn't had a TE quite like Howard before, though, so we'll have to wait and see how Howard fits into Arians' offense this season.