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Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds answers your questions from the @PewterReport Twitter account this week in the Bucs Mailbag. Submit your question to the Bucs Mailbag each week via Twitter using the hashtag #PRMailbag.  Here are the Bucs questions we chose to answer for this week’s edition.

QUESTION: If the Bucs don’t draft one of the “Big 4” – Jared Verse, Laiatu Latu, Jackson Powers-Johnson, Graham Barton – in the first round, who are they most likely to target outside of them? A skill position player? Or a trade back?

ANSWER: This is a great question and I’m sure Jason Licht and the Bucs’ brass are working on a bunch of those scenarios in the weeks leading up to the NFL Draft. Picking so late in the draft, the Bucs have to be ready for multiple possibilities.

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and GM Jason Licht – Photo courtesy of the Buccaneers

That includes possibly having all four of those players you mentioned – Florida State edge rusher Jared Verse, UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu, Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson and Duke guard-center Graham Barton – off the board by the time they’re on the clock. So would the Bucs stick and pick at No. 26 or trade back?

That depends on how many players the Bucs have left in their initial pool of players they would select with their first pick. In 2022, the last time Licht traded back in the first round, defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt, safety Lewis Cine and defensive tackle Logan Hall were all available when the team was on the clock with the No. 27 overall pick.

Tampa Bay traded out of the first round with Jacksonville, which had the first overall pick in the second round at No. 33. Wyatt was selected by Green Bay at No. 28 and the Vikings traded up to get Cine at No. 32, so the Bucs were left with Hall.

In 2018, the Bucs traded back from No. 7 to No. 12 to collect a pair of second-round picks from Buffalo and still got the player they targeted in defensive tackle Vita Vea. So Licht has some experience trading back in the first round, and I wouldn’t rule it out this year unless the team is down to just one or two of its top targets.

If it’s not an interior offensive lineman or an edge rusher, I could see the Bucs draft another wide receiver or a cornerback in the first round. Another receiver could see plenty of time as WR3 on the field this year and eventually replace Mike Evans or Chris Godwin, as I wrote about in Friday’s SR’s Fab 5. Another cornerback could eventually replace the oft-injured Jamel Dean and safeguard the Bucs in case he gets hurt again this year.

QUESTION: Who is the most likely choice in the first round for the Bucs?

ANSWER: With Tampa Bay picking so late in the draft at No. 26, the Bucs are beholden to the teams picking ahead of them in the draft. With an extra third-round pick from Detroit acquired in the Carlton Davis III trade, general manager Jason Licht has some added ammo to trade up for a player he wants within a reasonable range.

Clemson CB Nate Wiggins – Photo by: USA Today

As the first Bucs Mailbag question mentioned, the “Big Four” by most Tampa Bay fans are considered to be Florida State edge rusher Jared Verse, UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu, Oregon center Jackson Powers-Johnson and Duke guard-center Graham Barton. Finding another pass rusher and a starting left guard or an upgrade at center appear to be Tampa Bay’s top needs.

I think the Bucs would be thrilled to get any of those four players, so let’s start there. If those four are gone at No. 26 or if the team decides to trade down and they’re off the board when it’s time to pick, I could see Tampa Bay draft a wide receiver like Florida State’s Keon Coleman or LSU’s Brian Thomas or a cornerback like Iowa’s Cooper DeJean or Clemson’s Nate Wiggins.

The Bucs had formal interviews with Coleman, Thomas and Wiggins at the NFL Scouting Combine and will have Coleman in for a Top 30 visit. It will be interesting to see how the second half of the first round pans out because that’s when the predictability goes out the window, the likelihood of trades increase, and teams start making some surprise moves.

QUESTION: Bit of a left field one for you here, Scott. Does the Bucs front office keep an eye on those coming through the International Player Pathway? And if so, do you think they may offer a spot on the practice squad to one of them?

ANSWER: Good question. For those who don’t know, the International Player Pathway program features 11 athletes from around the world and a group of five specialists from England and Ireland, according to a media press release by the NFL. The IPP began in 2017 as a way to broaden the NFL’s reach globally with the idea of landing more international players on NFL rosters.

Bucs directors of player personnel Rob McCartney and Mike Biehl – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The selected athletes come from various backgrounds in sports, including rugby, Gaelic football, Australian football and track and field. Former New York Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora is spearheading the NFL’s Africa program, so the program is not just centered around European countries, as the NFL looks to expand its reach across the world.

Since its inception, 37 international players have signed with NFL teams (allocated, drafted or signed as a free agent), with 18 IPP athletes currently on NFL rosters. Five players —Jordan Mailata, Jakob Johnson, Efe Obada, Sammis Reyes and David Bada — have been on the active rosters of the Philadelphia Eagles, Las Vegas Raiders and Washington Commanders, since the program began in 2017.

I don’t have any information that the Bucs are necessarily targeting any specific player in this year’s IPP class. But the fact that the training takes place at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., which is an hour’s drive south of Tampa, and the recent pro day was held in Tampa at the University of South Florida tells me that the Bucs have scouts keeping close tabs on these athletes. If the team believes a player could help improve their roster, Tampa Bay will make an effort to sign one.

QUESTION: How does Bailey Adams not put James Wilder as deserving of the Bucs Ring of Honor? That seemed like a major snub. Was it intended? Also, do you feel that Hardy Nickerson should go in before Simeon Rice?

ANSWER: Pewter Report has championed the cause of former Tampa Bay running back James Wilder being inducted into the Bucs Ring of Honor for years. I’ve written about extensively in my SR’s Fab 5 column and reported on it before. So has the late, great Mark Cook. But I don’t think that is in the cards for Wilder. I think something must have happened that affected his candidacy, and I believe that’s why Bailey Adams left him off his list.

Former Bucs RB James Wilder – Photo courtesy of the Buccaneers

Remember, the team calls it the Ring of Honor for a reason. It’s not the Ring of Records. Jon Gruden won the franchise’s first ever Super Bowl and is still the all-time winningest head coach in Tampa Bay history. Yet he was removed from the Bucs Ring of Honor when some of his past offensive e-mails sent to former Bucs and Redskins general manager Bruce Allen saw the light of day.

If I were calling the shots, I would put Simeon Rice in next. He’s a Super Bowl champion and a two-time Pro Bowler with the Bucs. Without his induction into the Bucs Ring of Honor, he basically doesn’t have a shot at making the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His sack numbers and accomplishments are Hall of Fame-worthy, but he’s not viewed as a legitimate candidate for some reason. His name affixed to Raymond James Stadium would certainly help his cause.

Hardy Nickerson would be next because he laid the foundation for the team’s success with Tony Dungy. Before John Lynch, Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks there was Nickerson who was the captain of the Bucs’ ship. He brought attitude and All-Pro play to Tampa Bay and helped Lynch, Sapp and Brooks ascend as leaders on defense.

After Rice and Nickerson, I think Tom Brady and Gene Deckerhoff have to go in next. I would like to see the Bucs resume their Bucs Ring of Honor inductions this season after taking a year off. By the time those four are inducted, it would probably be time to induct the legendary Lavonte David next in 2028, followed by future Hall of Famer Mike Evans in 2029.

QUESTION: In your opinion, were all of the new NFL rules necessary? If not, which one could have waited?

ANSWER: I have no problems with the new NFL rules, generally speaking. I’m not a fan of the hip drop rule change, which outlaws that form of tackling. I think it’s largely accidental in nature, but it will lead to more missed tackles and broken tackles as a result. That’s fine by the league, which not only wants more scoring and points, but also to have running backs, wide receivers and tight ends get more yardage for fantasy football and betting purposes.

The biggest change that had to be made was the kickoff rule change. The kickoff used to be one of the most exciting plays in football but also resulted in a rash of concussions due to a collisions at full speed with players sprinting 40 yards downfield. Yet the kickoff was largely killed due to the plethora of touchbacks due to the league moving the kickoff spot up years ago.

This new rule, which was adopted from the XFL, may not result in a sudden surge of kickoff returns for touchdowns. But now we’ll finally see more kick returns, and teams will at least have that opportunity. Here is a good breakdown of the new kick return rules.