By: Carter Brantley
Bucs Report – Special to Sports Talk Florida
Training camp is getting ramped up, and for the Buccaneers there are still quite a few question marks across their rosters, both in the starting and backup capacities.
So, we’ll talk about the three most contested starting position battles for this Bucs roster and how they might shake out.
WR3
Is it the veteran Sterling Shephard, who has experience with Baker Mayfield from his Oklahoma Sooner days? Is it incumbent 2nd year speedster Trey Palmer, who had a fine rookie year for a 6th round pick but is likely looking to take a step forward? Or is it 3rd round pick and hot topic right now Jalen McMillan out of Washington?
Truthfully, I have no idea, as the Buccaneers have a new OC in Liam Coen who has his own vision for the offense, and Mike Evans and Chris Godwin are going to demand most of the attention anyways.
But, if I had to pick, I’d probably take McMillan simply because of his draft status, seeming talent level, and the fact that he’s likely going to eventually take Godwin’s place as the #2 option for the Bucs moving beyond this season.
IOL
I’m mostly referring to either guard spot, as rookie 1st rounder Graham Barton is going to be difficult to unseat at center, but with 2nd year man Cody Mauch and former Giant Ben Bredeson as the “likely” starters, it’ll be intriguing to see which of those two manages to hold onto that spot.
Mauch had his ups and downs last year after being picked in the 2nd round, and Bredeson was signed to a 1-year deal in the offseason to shore up the interior of this offensive line and likely compete for one of these guard spots, but neither is guaranteed either role. With Robert Hainsey and rookie Elijah Klein (who’s been thrown around as a hidden gem the Bucs could have uncovered in the 6th round in this past draft) in the wings, the Bucs have some decisions to make.
Is Hainsey anything more than a backup center, or does he make a push for one of those guard spots? Does Klein even stick around the active roster, or is he more of a practice squad guy?
OLB
Like the guard spot, you can pick either LOLB or ROLB and say they’re contended. JTS and rookie 2nd rounder Chris Braswell would seem to be the favorites, especially with Randy Gregory’s absence and uncertainty if he’s even going to play and Yaya Diaby’s unfortunate injury in training camp.
But, Anthony Nelson and undrafted free agent from last season Markees Watts could make some noise by having quality training camps and preseason looks. I wouldn’t count on either making a big impact and stealing Braswell or JTS’ spot, but it’s something to watch, especially with JTS getting his 5th year option declined and Braswell still not having played a down in the NFL.
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