Auman: Bucs Likely To Sign DT Before Training Camp
- Greg Auman of The Tampa Bay Times expected the Buccaneers to draft one defensive end and one tackle, and while Tampa Bay did draft a DE (Noah Spence), the team did not grab a DT. As such, Auman expects the club to sign a DT before training camp opens (Twitter link).
Draft Rumors: Glennon, Vikings, Colts, Giants
Jason Licht said the Buccaneers did not engage in any trade discussions involving quarterback Mike Glennon, according to Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com (on Twitter), who added Licht and Dirk Koetter are “happy to have him.”
Jameis Winston‘s backup has not played since 2014 and was speculated as a trade target for quarterback-needy teams, joining Nick Foles, A.J. McCarron and the now-released Brian Hoyer in that regard. A 2013 third-round pick, Glennon is entering his contract year and as of now would net the Bucs a low-round compensatory selection if he departs in free agency.
The 26-year-old owns a 5-13 record during his starts as a rookie and then in 2014, completing 58.8% of his passes and throwing 29 touchdown passes compared to 15 interceptions before receding into a practice-only player once the Bucs drafted Winston.
Here’s the latest from Day 3 of the draft, beginning with a bit of history.
- German League standout Moritz Boehringer informed the Vikings he’d sign with the team as a free agent after the draft, according to Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, but those assurances evidently weren’t enough for the Vikings, who took the wide receiver project in the sixth round. A Vikings fan since he saw some Adrian Peterson YouTube videos in 2011, the 6-foot-4, 229-pound Boehringer is responsible for a landmark draft moment: he’s the first foreign-born player selected who didn’t attend a North American college (Twitter links courtesy of Tommason).
- The Giants are going to add between 12 and 15 undrafted free agents, which is a slightly heightened figure from recent years, NJ.com’s Jordan Raanan tweets.
- We heard earlier the Steelers were trying to move into the fifth round in order to select potentially a running back or quarterback, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette tweets, but balked when the players they targeted were no longer on the board.
- The Colts had some issues on their offensive front last year but did not necessarily intend to devote half of their initial six picks during the draft to the line, Jim Irsay told media (including Mike Chappell of IndySportsCentral.com). Ryan Kelly and Le’Raven Clark went to Indianapolis in the first and third rounds, respectively, with the team adding Carson Wentz‘s top blocker at North Dakota State in guard Joe Haeg in the fifth.
Buccaneers Acquire 59th Pick From Chiefs
The Buccaneers have acquired the 59th selection from the Chiefs, tweets Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times. In return, the Chiefs will land the 74th and 106th picks, according to the NFL Network. Surprisingly, the Bucs will choose Florida State kicker Roberto Aguayo, reports Armando Salguero of the Miami Herald (Twitter link).
Aguayo is the highest-drafted kicker since the Jets used a second-rounder on Mike Nugent in 2005. The Buccaneers had the third-worst field goal percentage in the NFL last season at 72.5 percent and finished toward the bottom in extra-point success rate (91.5%), so upgrading was in order on paper. However, after the team replaced Kyle Brindza with Connor Barth in October, its kicking performance improved significantly. Barth hit 23 of 28 field goals and only missed one extra point on 26 attempts.
Aguayo missed nine kicks during his three-year college career, though five of those came last year on 26 tries. During his best season, 2013, he nailed 21 of 22 field goals, won the Lou Groza Award as the nation’s best kicker, and earned first-team All-America honors.
Buccaneers Cut Eight Players
- Perhaps clearing room to add a few extra undrafted free agents at the conclusion of the draft, the Buccaneers announced today that they’ve waived eight players from their 90-man roster. The players receiving their walking papers are as follows: wide receiver Andre Davis, linebacker Darius Eubanks, guard Antoine Everett, safety Gerod Holliman, defensive tackle Derrick Lott, safety Kimario McFadden, linebacker Jermauria Rasco and cornerback C.J. Roberts.
Bears Acquire No. 9 Pick From Buccaneers
After the first seven teams in the draft tonight made their own picks, the next two have been traded. The Buccaneers have sent the No. 9 overall pick to the Bears, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link).
Per Jenna Laine (Twitter link), Tampa Bay gets a fourth-round pick (No. 106) from Chicago, in addition to the Bears’ first-round pick (No. 11). The Bears will use the ninth overall pick to select Georgia outside linebacker Leonard Floyd, tweets Brad Biggs of the Chicago Tribune.
Floyd has been rising up draft boards in recent weeks — indeed, perhaps no player has accrued more buzz over the past few days. Many teams around the top-1o were rumored to be in on Floyd, including the Buccaneers, Bears, and Giants, so it makes sense that Chicago would aim to move ahead of New York. With the Bears, Floyd figures to team with Pernell McPhee in getting after opposing quarterbacks. He’ll join Jerrell Freeman, Danny Trevathan, and Akiem Hicks as part of a remade Chicago defense.
The Buccaneers, meanwhile, will get a bit of a financial windfall by moving back to No. 11. As Joel Corry of CBSSports.com notes (via Twitter), the fifth-year option for picks made outside of the top 10 is equal to the average of the third through 25th-highest salaries at a given position. Had Tampa stayed at No. 9, a fifth-year option would have been equal to the transition tag figure, always a higher number.
Pauline’s Latest: OTs, Steelers, Packers, Bucs
League insiders believe that as many as six offensive tackles could be selected in the first round of tonight’s draft, according to Tony Pauline of WalterFootball.com. Laremy Tunsil, Ronnie Stanley, Jack Conklin, and Taylor Decker are the obvious names, but Jason Spriggs, Le’Raven Clark, and Germain Ifedi are also candidates to go off the board tonight. The clubs that have put the most research into offensive tackles, per Pauline? The Colts, Packers, Seahawks, Broncos, Panthers, and Steelers.
Let’s check out the latest draft rumors, all courtesy of Pauline:
- Among the teams hoping to trade down tonight are the Falcons, Colts, Vikings, and Jets, according to Pauline. On the other side of the coin, the Cardinals, Panthers, and Broncos may like to trade up. Denver, presumably, would be targeting a quarterback in a trade-up scenario.
- The Steelers will consider a cornerback at pick No. 25, but they’ll also look at offensive tackles, writes Pauline. Pittsburgh returns Alejandro Villanueva at tackle, and signed Ryan Harris this offseason, but an upgrade wouldn’t be out of the question.
- The Packers might also like to find a new left tackle, says Pauline, as Green Bay would like to transition incumbent David Bakhtiari to left guard.
- If pass rusher Noah Spence is still available at the end of the first round, a club might trade back up in order to draft him, per Pauline. The Buccaneers are one team to watch in such a situation.
Buccaneers Eyeing Leonard Floyd At No. 9?
- Georgia linebacker Leonard Floyd is generating big buzz heading into the draft, according to Peter Schrager of FOX Sports (on Twitter). Floyd, he says, could be a candidate for the Jaguars at No. 5, the Buccaneers at No. 9, the Giants at No. 10, and the Bears at No. 11. Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) says that he appears destined to go inside the top ten. Schrager (link) hears that a team with a top 10 pick scheduled a meeting with Floyd on Tuesday to get one last look.
Draft Rumors: Texans, Pats, Bears
The latest draft rumors from around the NFL:
- Texas A&M cornerback Brandon Williams worked out privately for Texans coach Bill O’Brien and also visited the Steelers, Patriots, and Bears, Wilson tweets. Williams bench pressed 225 pounds 18 times at the NFL scouting combine and is said to be turning heads with his athleticism. Wilson writes that the A&M product, who had 34 tackles and seven passes defended in 2015, is drawing third/fourth round grades from scouts.
- Michigan linebacker James Ross is drawing interest from the Colts, Raiders, Ravens, and Lions, Wilson tweets.
- Temple wide receiver Robby Anderson had visited the Packers, Browns, Bengals, Chiefs, and Raiders, Wilson tweets. Anderson caught a career-high 70 passes for 939 yards on his way to an all-conference selection in 2015. The 6’3″, 190-pound receiver ran a 4.28 second 40-yard-dash at his Pro Day.
- The Buccaneers and Chargers worked out Iowa State receiver Quenton Bundrage, according to Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net (on Twitter). Bundrage, who posted a 4.5 second 40-yard-dash time, finished his senior year with 41 receptions, 548 yards, and one touchdown as a senior. He missed the 2014 season with a knee injury.
- Utah State quarterback Chuckie Keeton is drawing late interest from the Texans, Vikings, and Cardinals, Wilson tweets.
Nate Chandler, Brandon Mosley Try Out For Bucs
- The Buccaneers will bring in offensive lineman Nate Chandler and Brandon Mosley as tryout players for their three-day minicamp this week, Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. Chandler can play both tackle and guard.
Bucs To Sign Storm Johnson
- The Buccaneers have signed running back Storm Johnson to a two-year contract, as Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The former Miami, UCF, and Jags tailback is now slated to compete for the backup running back job this fall in Tampa. The former seventh-round pick had some hype behind him in Jacksonville but never broke out in the way that coaches and fantasy owners hoped he would.