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Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds answers your questions. @PewterReport Twitter accounts are added to the Bucs Mailbag weekly. Submit your questions to the Bucs Mailbag weekly via Twitter using the hashtag #PRMailbag. Here are the Bucks questions we chose to answer in this week’s issue.
Question: Absent a trade, how will the Bucks’ draft picks be determined by position? Is it possible that there will be multiple draft picks at each position?
![Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and GM Jason Richt](https://www.pewterreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Bowles-Todd-Jason-Licht-Bucs-war-room-2022-observe-300x199.jpg)
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and general manager Jason Richt – Photo courtesy of Buccaneers
answer: Free agency hasn’t even started yet, so it’s a little hard to say at this point. But the best-case scenario happens and the Bucs’ five big free agents, wide receiver Mike Evans, quarterback Baker Mayfield, safety Antwon Winfield Jr., linebacker Lavonte David, and kicker Chase -Imagine if all the McLaughlins were re-signed. Let’s also assume the Bucks don’t actually do more in free agency, since they might have to pay top dollar for Evans and Mayfield.
The Bucks have a glaring hole at strong safety since they won’t be re-signing Ryan Neal, and a hole at left guard since Matt Feiler won’t be returning either. Aaron Stinney could be re-signed on a cheap one-year deal for added strength, but the left guard job will be open competition.
Tampa Bay is also expected to part ways with veteran outside linebacker Shaq Barrett, who turns 32 this fall and is experiencing signs of decline. The Bucs will need to fill the outside linebacker position as Joe Tryon-Soyinka won’t pick up his fifth-year option. These three positions (safety, guard, outside linebacker) are expected to be the main needs Tampa Bay will address in the draft, even if they are not free agents.
Even if Evans re-signs with the Bucks, he will turn 31 in the fall and Chris Godwin will be entering a contract year. Tampa Bay is expected to release Russell Gage in a cap-reduction move, so the team could also use a very deep wide receiver draft to restock the room and increase competition for Trey Palmer .
The Bucks have seven draft picks this year, including a projected seventh-round compensatory pick. If Tampa Bay were to double up on a position this year, I think it would be on the interior offensive line (guard and center) and possibly at wide receiver. Just because of the depth of the position.
Question: Do you think there’s a chance the Bucks trade out of the first round? It feels like a realistic possibility if they don’t have a strong EDGE or O-line option on the board at No. 26.
![Bucs Mailbag: Questions about Bucs draft, Mike Evans 4 Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and GM Jason Richt](https://www.pewterreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Licht-Jason-Todd-Bowles-Bucs-war-room-2022-phone-300x200.jpg)
![Bucs Mailbag: Questions about Bucs draft, Mike Evans 4 Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and GM Jason Richt](https://www.pewterreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Licht-Jason-Todd-Bowles-Bucs-war-room-2022-phone-300x200.jpg)
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and general manager Jason Richt – Photo courtesy of Buccaneers
answer: Yes, Tampa Bay could trade down if the Bucs’ top target is no longer on the board at No. 26 worthy of that selection, or if multiple targets are still available.that’s what happened in 2022 When the Bucs fell behind Georgia defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, Georgia safety Louis Cine and Houston defensive tackle No. 27 pick Logan Hall.
The Bucks still had three players they liked, and one of them could get the top pick in the second round, so they decided to trade down from the 27th pick to the 33rd pick. The player ended up in the hole.
Tampa Bay could find itself in a similar situation this year with the No. 26 pick. There’s value in trading down to get more draft capital, even if it’s trading down to the second round. But with a fifth-year option down the road, it’s worth drafting a player in the first round.
Let’s see what happens when the Bucks get time. But the value of this draft really comes on Day 2, where we see general manager Jason Richt wanting to acquire an additional third-round pick if possible.
Question: Could Khalil Mack be an option for the Bucks, who need a pass rusher? He would be a short-term fill-in option until the Bucks find a long-term answer at the position. The 33-year-old may be able to get a cheaper deal at this point. What are your thoughts?
![Bucs Lieutenant Donovan Smith](https://www.pewterreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Smith-Donovan-Khalil-Mack-Bucs-Bears-300x200.jpg)
Khalil Mack and Donovan Smith – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
answer: If the Bucs were to sign a veteran edge rusher in free agency, price would be the biggest consideration. First of all, Khalil Mack is still under contract with the Chargers for the 2024 season, but he could become a salary cap casualty if the Chargers decide to move and clean up their cap situation. There is sex. But if that happens, Los Angeles will lose one of its star players.
If Mack were to become a free agent, I don’t think he would come cheap, even at 33 years old. He’s coming off a monster year in which he recorded a career-high 17 sacks and forced five fumbles.
Mack, who had his first sack against Bucs offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs, made the Pro Bowl with 74 tackles and 22 quarterback hits. Mack has started all 17 games in each of the past two years and shows no signs of slowing down. After recording eight sacks in his first year in LA in 2022, he more than doubled that total last season.
If the Bucs acquire a veteran edge rusher in free agency, it could be a cheaper option like New England’s Josh Uche, Miami’s Andrew Van Ginkel, or perhaps Dorrance Armstrong if the market is softer than expected. It will be.
Question: Why don’t the Bucks use the franchise tag on Mike Evans and sign Antwon Winfield Jr. to a long-term contract? Is there anything in his contract that can’t be tagged?
![Bucks Wr Mike Evans](https://www.pewterreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Evans-Mike-Bucs-Jags-TD-look-300x200.jpg)
Bucks WR Mike Evans – Photo courtesy of USA Today
answer: The reason is, The Bucks will use the franchise tag on Antwon Winfield Jr. It’s simply because of the price. The franchise tag amount for safeties is just $17,123,000, while the franchise tag amount for wide receivers is $21,816,000.
But really, it’s much more than that for Mike Evans. If a team uses a franchise tag on a player, but the franchise tag amount is less than that player’s previous year’s cap value, the rule is that the player must pay 120% of that amount. .
Evans’ cap hit in 2023 was $23,698,500, which was higher than his franchise tag amount. Therefore, Evans’ franchise tag would be $28,438,200, which is about $7.5 million more than for other wide receivers. And that’s more than $11 million more than what Winfield’s franchise tag would cost.
Keep in mind that once a player is franchised, he must play for that fixed amount unless a long-term contract extension is reached by the July 17 deadline. This is a strict amount that takes up quite a bit of cap space and should not be restructured downwards to save cap space.
Winfield will likely reset the safety market with a new long-term deal worth $20 million per year, so the Bucks actually signed Winfield to a deal worth just over $17 million, giving them some cash in the short term. This means that you can save money. And with Winfield receiving the franchise tag in place of Evans, the Bucks will have even more cap flexibility in March.
Q: The upcoming draft is so deep at wide receiver that a team could draft one or two really good players for less than half the price it would have taken to sign Evans, but instead of drafting a free agent like Mike Evans. Do you think it might discourage paying receivers big salaries? This could give Tampa Bay an advantage in retaining him.
![Washington W Rome Odunze Bucks](https://www.pewterreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Odunze-Rome-Washington-Tulsa-300x200.jpg)
Washington WR Roma Odunze – Photo courtesy of USA Today
answer: I think the Bucks are counting on that fact. There will also be talented receivers in free agency, such as Jacksonville’s Calvin Ridley, Buffalo’s Gabe Davis and Cincinnati’s Tyler Boyd, who will also be younger and cheaper than Evans. But yes, this year’s wide receiver draft class is very strong.
There are six or seven players in the first round this year, including Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr., LSU’s Malik Nabors, Washington State’s Roma Odunze, LSU’s Brian Thomas Jr., and Oregon State’s Troy Franklin. There is a possibility that another wide receiver will play. Texas’ Adonai Mitchell, Florida State’s Keon Coleman and Georgia’s Ladd McConkie could also sneak into the bottom of the first round.
One thing to note about Evans is that he turns 31 in August. The big contracts he’s pursuing with Las Vegas’ Davante Adams ($28 million), Los Angeles’ Cooper Kupp ($26.7 million) and Philadelphia’s AJ Brown ($25 million) are all tied to those players. was signed before playing his 30th season. Evans is a year older than Adams and Kupp were when they inked these big extensions, so he’s in a bit of uncharted territory.
Given his age, the availability of free agent wide receivers, and the extremely deep and talented draft class at the position, the Bucs believe the market for Evans is not as rich as he would like. I hope not.