Hargreaves to Start at Nickel?

Bucs rookie corner Vernon Hargreaves is ready to show his skills in the NFL, and that might be at the nickel/slot corner position to start off his career. Coach Koetter feels Hargreaves can be a perfect fit at the inside position, but can play outside as well. Due to the Bucs depth at cornerback, Hargreaves best chance to play in 2016 could be at Nickel which is ok because defenses are in nickel/sub packages over 60% of the time.

“Well, his quickness and how good of a tackler he is (make him suited to play inside)," Koetter said. “We’re going to start him off both inside and outside. We’re – both with the vets and the rooks – trying to find that perfect nickel and he’s one of the guys we’re looking at for sure.”

Koetter is spot on in his analysis of Hargreaves as his versatility is there for the Bucs to use him in multiple ways. However to make things easier for him. starting at nickle could be the best spot for him, and will also allow Hargreaves to maximize his ability on special teams coverage as well.

 “I’m excited for (playing nickel),” Hargreaves said. I want to play wherever I can play, wherever I fit in. It’s perfect for me.”

It's amazing how much different the secondary is going to look with now having Grimes, Banks, Verner, and Hargreaves. On paper it looks strong, hopefully it plays that way on the field.

What Will The Bucs Do With Alterraun Verner?

Now that the Bucs have a new found depth at the cornerback position with the addition of Vernon Hargreaves in the draft, what will the Bucs do with high priced Alterraun Verner? Many Bucs fans are pushing to cut Verner since he is due 6.75 million this year, yet only 2 million of it is guaranteed. In my opinion that is a pointless move.

The Bucs have roughly 14 million still remaining in cap space this year and can still look to sign or trade for other high priced players, so the fact of his contract shouldn't matter. Verner is also a past pro bowler who knows what it takes to play at a high level and now is reunited with his old CB's coach from the Titans who made him that pro bowl corner. Another point to note is by looking at the current corners the Bucs have collected all look very similar to Verner in stature, as they all are smaller and quick in space.

Just because he has a high price tag doesn't mean he can't fit somewhere on this roster. If the Bucs have the luxury of cap space then use it. Let him play until that cap number needs to be fixed but until then let iron sharpen iron and let him compete with all of our corners.

Bucs Are Listening to Jameis

Shortly after the Bucs got destroyed by the Panthers in the last game of the 2015 season, Qb Jameis Winston had a message for the team and the front office. It was real simple, get me guys with chips on their shoulder and players that want to be Buccaneers. So the Bucs front office is doing what Jameis wanted by getting players that a chip or edge to them which is what you want on your football team. It started in free agency with adding Brent Grimes, Robert Ayers, JR Sweezy, and Daryl Smith all of whom have been doubted in their careers and play with a chip on their shoulder.

Then this past weekend, The Bucs added 7 players in the draft that all have major chips on their shoulders due to outside criticism, or past circumstances. Just look at the Bucs two first selections in Vernon Hargreaves and Noah Spence, both faced critics all throughout this process and have to believe they are going to want to prove everyone wrong. Especially, Noah Spence who felt he deserved to go first round and now will work that much harder to proved the teams wrong who passed on him.

The main point is it is good to see the Bucs are listening to their franchise Qb, who ask for more guys with an edge and that truly love the game and want to win at all costs. This franchise is heading in the right direction with Jameis in the fore front.

2016 Could be a Career Year For Gerald McCoy

Bucs defensive tackle Gerald McCoy gets a lot of crictism from fans, but say what you want the guy produces every year, works very hard, and continues to be one of the best defensive tackles in the game. He does this despite having a new defensive line coach every year or new scheme showing he is an elite talent. Tons of undeserved criticism came his way last year, but fans don't realize he was playing with one good arm as the other had a torn labrum, displaying his love for the game. McCoy is entering his seventh season, and now fully healthy, 2016 could be his best season to date.

McCoy's best season was in 2013 where he had 50 tackles, and 9.5 sacks in which the Bucs used a aggressive attacking style defense under former head coach Greg Schiano. Well this season under defensive coordinator Mike Smith, the Bucs will play a attacking style defense in which means more blitzing and letting the d-line get up field and attack. This is what McCoy does best which is using that elite first step and being a force in the backfield.

The best news for McCoy is he could see less double teams this year due to the fact that the Bucs have capable defensive ends this year. With the group of Jacquies Smith, Howard Jones, Noah Spence, and Robert Ayers the Bucs have the speed and skill off the edge to cause opposing offenses to worry about more than just McCoy. Can't wait to see what d-line coach Jay Hayes can bring to McCoy's game as it is kinda scary that McCoy can become even better.  This could be the year Gerald gets consideration for defensive player of the year, I believe if healthy he could have that kind of season.

Dan Vitale Question Marks?

The Bucs did have a need for a Fullback and they addressed that with taking Vitale in the 6th round but is he the traditional FB the Bucs need? Vitale's position in college was labeled "super back", meaning he played all over the offense. This can be a positive because he has knowledge of playing multiple position and has receiving skills at a FB as well, but does he have the most crucial ability every FB needs?

While watching Vitale's tape he didn't show many aggressive blocks. He tends to dive at defenders legs to prevent them from making plays instead of using his size and strength to drive them out of the play. Coaching can help out with that but installing a hard nosed attitude to destroy the man in front of you isn't so simple. Vitale has many special gifts as an athlete and will be given every chance to become the Bucs starting FB but for me to feel confident about him blocking for Martin and Sims, he's going to have to show a lot more than what he has. Koetter may have plans to use him in different ways as he was in college and really make him a weapon but lets see him master the basics of his position first.

A Kicker In The 2nd Round?

Did the Bucs reach with taking FSU kicker Roberto Aguayo in the 2nd round? Many Bucs fans believe so but did they really? Aguayo has the title of being the most accurate kicker of all time in college football. The title speaks for itself but is he worth that high of a selection.

 I was one of the Buc fans to jump at the TV and wonder why they did it as well but looking more into it I can understand why Licht made the move. Aguayo was taken only 16 spots before where the Bucs would have been up in the 3rd round, so would fans be upset if he fell to the 3rd? The Bucs seemed to be set on taking him in the draft no matter what, so trading their 3rd and 4th round pick that they picked up from the Bears to make sure they got their guy seems understandable.

The other argument many Bucs fans have about taking a kicker that high is wondering what other players they could of had that were more valuable than taking Aguayo. Yes, the Bucs have needs on the defensive side of the ball and could have used another edge rusher or safety at that pick, but were they as good as Aguayo at their position? A few names that were available were S Vonn Bell, DE Carl Nassib, DE Yannick Ngakoue and DE Bronson Kaufusi. All of whom were good players in college and major contributors on their teams, but were they as elite as Aguayo was at his position? Obviously not and each of those players had certain knocks on them as being undersized, one year wonders or not having a set position. Taking Aguayo is what you see is what you get and has the potential to be a starter for 10+ years.

Aguayo is coming to Tampa and immediately taking over the starting kicker position as the Bucs have officially cut previous starter Connor Barth. Many fans will jump on him the second he misses a field goal due to his draft selection but with the nickname of Mr. Automatic he will quickly prove why he is worthy of it. He has plenty of pressure on him right now but I'm not going to argue against him until he shows he's anything but an accurate kicker.

Does Licht Have Confidence in His Receivers?

The Bucs had holes all along the roster last year which is why they only came away with 6 wins last year and one of those holes was with WR depth. When Vincent Jackson and Louis Murphy went down last year the only target Winston had was Evans as no one else could get open. Many thought the Bucs would have addressed that position in the draft yet they passed on selecting one, why is that? Does Licht have confidence in the receivers on the roster or were the options in the draft just not that appealing?

Licht and company seem to be exellent eyes for talent and maybe beyond the top guys they didn't view a deep class worthy of WR's worthy of taking in the later rounds. I would agree with that if that was the thinking, as beyond Corey Coleman, Sterling Shepard and Tyler Boyd not many receivers in this class really jumped out at you. But the Bucs are still facing the fact that they haven't improved in a position that was a weakness last year.

The good news is that Murphy will be coming back healthy and they also will be getting back last years 5th round pick Kenny Bell back who seemed to have a nice connection with Winston in preseason last year before getting injured. There is still a possibility that the Bucs look to grab Roddy White, as he is still a free agent and has a great relationship with Koetter and his offense. The WR position is one to keep your eye on moving forward as there still lies plenty of question marks as to who can compliment Evans and be a viable option for Winston.