If you’re an ESPN+ subscriber or an avid social media user, you may have seen that the worldwide leader in sports launched a summer series ranking the Top 10 players in the league at each position group. Here was their written criteria for the endeavor:

“To preview the 2020 NFL season, we asked more than 50 league executives, coaches, scouts and players to help us stack the top 10 players at 11 positions (sorry, special-teamers).

Here’s how it worked: Voters gave their best 10 to 15 players at a position, then we compiled the results and ranked candidates based on number of Top 10 votes, composite average, interviews and research. We had several ties, so we broke them by isolating the two-man match-up with additional voting and follow-up calls. Each section is packed with quotes and nuggets from the voters on every guy – even the honorable mentions.

Bucs ILB Lavonte David and DT Vita Vea – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The objective is to identify the best players right now for 2020. This is not a five-year projection or an achievement award. Who’s the best today? Pretty simple.”

The series highlighted the plethora of talent that Tampa Bay possesses on their roster, but not nearly as well as it should have. Five Bucs players were ranked among the various Top 10 lists across 11 position groups, including inside linebacker Lavonte David, wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, quarterback Tom Brady and tight end Rob Gronkowski.

However several Bucs not only weren’t ranked, but also remained unmentioned in the Honorable Mention sections of each list. I’ll go offense to defense breaking down how each position group fell and which Bucs I felt were snubbed.

Offense

Quarterback

Tom Brady finished as the seventh best quarterback in the league according to the voters. It was a pretty fair ranking even if some of the commentary from around the NFL was over-exaggerated. From the article:

Serious questions persist about whether Brady’s declining arm can drive the ball over 16 games.

“I wasn’t prepared for what I saw last year,” one NFC exec said. “It’s all anticipation and pre-snap ability now.”

Added a veteran NFL quarterback: “If he was still in New England, not sure I would put him on [the list]. I put him on there because he’s in Tampa, he’s got weapons. He processes at such a high rate that when you have pieces around you, it still works.”

Bucs QB Tom Brady – Photo by: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Acting like Brady is a physically incapable quarterback in the same way that Peyton Manning fell off in Denver near the end of his career is a pretty massive stretch. Even a cursory tape study will show you Brady’s arm strength isn’t a big issue. That’s just lazy analysis by some around the league.

However, the ranking of Brady at No. 7 is more than fair. I’d probably place him in the 7-10 range, with the caveat that quarterbacks from 5-13 probably rank somewhat differently year-to-year. That’s how minimal the distinction is between the second tier of passers in the NFL right now.

Running Back

No Bucs mentioned, obviously. That’s absolutely fair.

Wide Receiver

The real question was how high Evans would be ranked and whether Godwin would make the cut (as he should, and did). Evans was awarded sixth place by the voters, with at least one voter tabbing him as the best receiver in the NFL, and at least one other putting Evans outside the Top 10.

As for Godwin, voters were all over the map on the fourth-year receiver. He finished ninth on the Top 10 composite list, but the article identified some doubters across the league.

Execs and coaches don’t see Godwin as a top guy yet. And several prefer Kenny Golladay among the fourth-year receivers because he commands more game-plan attention with size and catch radius.

But the Bucs – and much of the league – expect Godwin to keep climbing.

Bucs WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“If you’re not convinced now, you will be by the end of the year,” an NFC exec said. “Mike Evans is probably more talented, but Godwin does everything well and has tremendous hands.”

I’m fine with the ranking of both Evans and Godwin, even if I may have each of them a spot or two higher than the voters around the league. I still wonder how Evans would compare to the guys consistently placed in the top tier of receivers if he had more manufactured touches and high percentage targets. He’s somehow managed to string together six straight 1,000-yard seasons while averaging over 15 air yards per target each of the past two seasons.

As for Godwin, I’ve seen the Twitter comments on how he’s being overvalued off of one good season, which obviously misses the mark completely. I get that it takes a special season like the one Godwin had in 2019 to get the attention of the national media in Tampa Bay, but he’s been good since he was drafted and was really stellar in 2018. I feel great about locking him into the Top 10.

Tight Ends

O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate went unmentioned, which wasn’t a total shock, while Rob Gronkowski finished fourth in the voter rankings. The top three tight ends were unsurprisingly San Francisco’s George Kittle, Kansas City’s Travis Kelce and Philadelphia’s Zach Ertz, but after that tier, voters couldn’t convince themselves to put anybody else ahead of Gronkowski, even if he’s lost a step.

To me, any ranking of Gronkowski is going to come with massive unknowns. Is he 100 percent physically? Can he stay healthy? And how much will the year away from football and the absence of training camp going to help?

Even with all those questions, we’ve never seen Gronk on an NFL field where he wasn’t one of the best players at his position. I’m fine with waiting for him to visibly fall off before dropping him down the tight end rankings.

Offensive Tackle

No Bucs mentioned, obviously. Left tackle Donovan Smith improved last season, but definitely not enough to be considered in this high quality grouping.

Interior Offensive Linemen

First of all, why not break this up into guards and centers? You’ve got the ear of 50 NFL personnel, take advantage of it. Instead, 96 players are being considered for 10 spots, rather than 32 for 10 in the case of centers, and 64 for 10 in the case of guards.

Bucs C Ryan Jensen and LG Ali Marpet – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

ESPN’s strategy put Ali Marpet and Ryan Jensen at somewhat of a disadvantage, but not enough so that the former should have missed the Top 10 entirely. Brandon Scherff ranked third on the list while playing just 20 of the most recent 32 games for Washington. He’s a really good player, but better than Marpet – even when he is healthy?

Cleveland guard Joel Bitonio, Indianapolis center Ryan Kelly and Pittsburgh center Maurkice Pouncey all made the Top 10, and none of them are as good at their positions as Marpet. Jensen wouldn’t have made my Top 10 rankings either, but not even mentioning him in the article seems like a gross oversight by the NFL personnel acting as voters. Both offensive linemen deserved more respect than they got on this particular ranking.

CLICK ON THE NEXT PAGE FOR ESPN’S DEFENSIVE RANKINGS