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

QUESTION: Do you think we will draft a safety, and if so, what round and who might that be?

Bucs HC Todd Bowles and former S Mike Edwards – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

ANSWER: I would expect the Bucs to draft a safety early this year – certainly before Day 3. No position has fewer players right now than safety, which has just Antoine Winfield Jr. and Nolan Turner on the roster. Bucs general manager Jason Licht has always prioritized the position, drafting Justin Evans in the second round in 2017 and Winfield in the second round in 2020. Mike Edwards was a third-round pick, and Jordan Whitehead was selected in the fourth round.

Last year, the Bucs strongly considered drafting Georgia’s Lewis Cine with their first pick. And it’s important to remember that head coach Todd Bowles played safety at Temple in college and with Washington in the pros. It’s a very valuable position in Bowles’ defense, especially as the NFL has become more pass-happy over the years.

If Alabama’s Brian Branch falls to the Bucs at No. 19, it would be very hard to pass him up. Branch can cover in the slot and is a heck of a football player. The Bucs have also shown an interest in Illinois safeties Sydney Brown and Quan Martin. They are considered to be Day 2 prospects, but there is a chance the less-heralded Martin could slip into the fourth round. Florida State’s Jammie Robinson is also a Day 2 prospect. All four of those safeties met with the Bucs formally at the NFL Scouting Combine.

QUESTION: This draft class seems to have very pro-ready and Day 1 starting material defensive prospects projected to go in the first round (Brian Branch, Calijah Kancey, etc). With us having needs on the D-line and at safety, would it be a reach to go offensive line (mock draft consensus favorite) with our first pick?

ANSWER: No, it would not be a reach at all to draft an offensive tackle in the first round. Drafting a guard in the first round wouldn’t be wise given the value at the position, but a tackle makes a lot of sense given the fact that Tampa Bay cut Donovan Smith this offseason. Also, Josh Wells, the team’s swing tackle, is a free agent and will be out for much of 2023 due to a severe knee injury he suffered on Christmas versus the Cardinals.

After Northwestern’s Peter Skronski, there are three offensive tackle prospects the Bucs could – and should – consider in the first round. Ohio State’s Paris Johnson Jr. is rated higher than Tennessee’s Darnell Wright and Oklahoma’s Anton Harrison, but not by much. Johnson and Harrison are really good left tackle candidates, while Wright is more of a plug-and-play right tackle. But he has a year’s worth of playing time on the left side, which makes him plenty versatile.

The Bucs are considering moving Tristan Wirfs to left tackle, so drafting Wright at No. 19 would make a lot of sense. Luke Goedeke could replace Shaq Mason at right guard, where he might feel more comfortable after playing right tackle in college. Then, Robert Hainsey could challenge Nick Leverett at left guard as Ryan Jensen settles back in at center.

QUESTION: I see a ton of mock drafts saying the Bucs take Alabama DB Brian Branch at No. 19. If he is there at No. 19, are there any options of an offensive tackle in Round 2? Or do they have in-house options they feel good about at tackle?

ANSWER: If the Bucs draft Alabama’s Brian Branch in the first round, there are a couple of options in the second round. There is a chance that Wright could slide a bit because he’s viewed more as a right tackle than a left tackle. And some teams might be more enamored with Ohio State right tackle Dawand Jones, who carries a second-round grade.

Tennessee RT Darnell Wright – Photo by: USA Today

I’m not as high on Jones, or Georgia left tackle Broderick Jones, who will probably get overdrafted in the first round. Both Joneses (no relation) need a lot of work to be ready to play at the next level, but have interesting tools. Broderick Jones plays so well in space in Georgia’s pin and pull offense and is a good athlete. Dawand Jones has a ridiculously long wingspan and arms the size of toll booths.

BYU’s Blake Freeland is one of the most athletic tackles in the draft and stood out at the NFL Scouting Combine. He could be a sleeper in the second round for the Bucs or another NFL team due to his athleticism and physical traits, in addition to his 6-foot-7, 305-pound frame.

If the Bucs stay in-house and want to move Tristan Wirfs to left tackle to replace Donovan Smith, they could give Luke Goedeke or Brandon Walton a shot to play right tackle. Goedeke was a right tackle at Central Michigan, but was moved to guard as a rookie due to his short arms. Yet, he played right tackle in place of Wirfs in Week 18 at Atlanta and played well. He would be the top in-house option right now.

QUESTION: How early do you think the Bucs look at wide receiver in the draft?

ANSWER: I don’t see the Bucs drafting a wide receiver before Day 3. There are just too many other needs to address in Tampa Bay. Besides, a quick look at the depth chart shows three veterans at the top with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Russell Gage, who took a pay cut to remain with the team.

This is not a very good draft class at wide receiver. The Bucs only had formal interviews with three top receivers at the NFL Scouting Combine – Ohio State’s Jaxon Smith-Njigba, TCU’s Quentin Johnston and USC’s Jordan Addison. All three figure to go in the first round, but I seriously doubt the Bucs spend their first-rounder on a player that would be no higher than third on the depth chart as a rookie if he were to beat out Gage. That’s not good value, as a team’s first-rounder should be a full-time contributor as a rookie.

Day 3 is more likely to be reserved for a receiver due to special teams ability. That’s when the Bucs and other teams look for contributors for punt and kick coverage, as well as returners. Louisiana’s Michael Jefferson or Florida’s Justin Shorter could be late Day 3 options for the Bucs.

QUESTION: Do you truly think there’s a QB competition? Because to me it’s a no-brainer. The Glazers don’t want all their games at 1:00 p.m. ET. They want some semblance of relevancy. Kyle Trask gets you all games at 1:00 p.m. ET. Baker Mayfield gets you maybe a game or two in other time slots.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: Matt Matera/PR

ANSWER: Yes, there will be a quarterback competition. But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t a current favorite at the QB position. That favorite is veteran Baker Mayfield, who has 69 career starts under his belt in five years. The fact that there is a new offensive system to learn this year doesn’t give Kyle Trask, the Bucs’ 2021 second-round pick, any advantage because he has to learn it, too.

The good news for the Bucs when it comes to kickoff times and nationally televised games is that the 2023 NFL schedule comes out in mid-May, shortly after the draft. The NFL schedule-makers will probably make the assumption that you and I are making in that Mayfield is likely the winner of the QB competition due to his experience. So as a result, the Bucs will benefit from having a couple of late afternoon kickoffs, as well as some primetime games on national TV.

Even if Trask manages to beat out Mayfield in training camp and the preseason, the Bucs’ schedule will already be set. So in the end, it will be the signing of Mayfield – not his performance in camp or the preseason – that will help Tampa Bay get more primetime games and national exposure this year.

QUESTION: Do you think we will sign anyone else, and who do you think our kicker will be?

ANSWER: Yes, the Bucs aren’t done in free agency. Tampa Bay will sign a few more free agents before the draft and likely some after the draft as teams part ways with older veterans they no longer need thanks to rookie additions.

In fact, Bucs general manager Jason Licht has been known to find some impact players right before the start of the season. He added edge rushers like Jacquies Smith and Carl Nassib off the waiver wire the week before the season openers in 2016 and 2018, respectively. And Licht also signed running back Leonard Fournette the week before the 2020 season opener.

Look for the Bucs to possibly re-sign veteran defensive lineman Will Gholston and veteran safety Logan Ryan prior to the draft if the numbers are right financially. As for a kicker, Tampa Bay could sign a veteran or draft a rookie. It’s unclear which direction the Bucs will go to find a replacement for Ryan Succop and a challenger for Jake Verity.