Would Bucs Take A Chance On Alex McCalister

Former Florida Gator Alex McCalister has been blessed with many athletic gifts but didn't live up to the hype during his time in Gainesville. McCalister has always been an underweight defensive end throughout his career at Florida, going in weighing only 212 lbs. He still is slightly underweight up to 245 lbs but thats still skinny on a 6 foot 6 frame. Given his cons would the Bucs take a chance on him late in the draft?

McCalister lit up the combine, running a 4.80 40, 4 second shuttle, 7.01 3 cone drill and with a mighty arm length of 36 inches. All those numbers mean that he is one lanky quick twitch athlete that happens to play the defensive end position. His body type resembles a lighter version of former failed project Michael Johnson who seemed to only blossom with defensive line coach Jay Hayes, who just happens to be with the buccaneers now. McCalister looks like just the athletic project that a coach like Hayes could fix up to be a real player in the NFL.

He also has a maturity issue that will have him fall farther in the draft as he was dismissed from the Gator team late in the season for violating team rules. If McCalister could be had in day 3 where teams take chances on players I see no reason why the bucs shouldn't take that chance with him. He isn't just an athlete as he does show good functional bend at the hips and stays low for such a tall defender. He has all the tools an edge rusher needs and just needs a great d-line coach to unlock him.