In 2014, the Bucs offensive line was atrocious as it gave up 52 sacks, and didn't generate any running room for their running backs. The Bucs starting 5 was LT Anthony Collins, LG Logan Mankins, C Evan Smith, RG Patrick Omameh, RT Demar Dotson which looks decent on paper but it wasn't. Collins was an complete flop as he was constantly beat like someone stole something from him, plus Mankins and Omameh were overpowered consistently leading to quick inside pressure on too many plays. This led to an offensive ranking of 29th in scoring(17.3) and 30th in yards which is just pathetic.
Enter 2015, where Jason Licht realized his mistakes and quickly cut the dead weight in Collins who didn't play in 2015. Licht knew for the 2015 NFL draft that offensive line would be a position of strength and he could at least get one starter there. After drafting Jameis Winston, Licht decided to a get a blindside protector with the 34th overall pick in which he took dancing bear Donovan Smith out of Penn State. However, Licht wasn't done yet as later in the second round, he traded up with the Colts to select G Ali Marpet out of Hobart College. After those two picks, the Bucs offensive line had already improved drastically because of how bad the players they were replacing were. Jason Licht was thrilled about Marpet, comparing him to a young Logan Mankins.
Both were outstanding in 2015 for rookies as Smith was pretty good as a blindside protector for Jameis, and Marpet was just a road grater in the run game. I think both have pro bowl potential as both just need to work on their consistency and technique. They helped an offense reach new heights as it had the 5th rushing attack and only allowed 25 sacks which was 4th fewest which is an gigantic improvement from the previous year. I can see both make giant leaps in their games and take this Bucs offensive line to new levels. One thing is for sure, Jason Licht knows how to pick offensive lineman and like coach Koetter said "We hit the jackpot with those two".
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