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

QUESTION: If Tom Brady retires do we go to Kyle Trask next year? Or do you see Bruce Arians sticking with Blaine Gabbert for a year?

ANSWER: I think Tom Brady returns next year following the Bucs’ 30-27 loss to the Rams on Sunday. I’m sure he’ll want to hear what the Bucs’ blueprint is for Tampa Bay’s roster from general manager Jason Licht and head coach Bruce Arians before making a decision one way or the other. But let’s speculate and answer the hypothetical question that was posed.

If Brady decides to retire, it’s almost assured that Arians would want to re-sign quarterback Blaine Gabbert. Arians is very high on Gabbert, who has made strides in his offense over the last three years behind the scenes. The 32-year old Gabbert has failed as a starter before in Jacksonville and San Francisco, but perhaps a late-stage resurgence of his career is in order? At the very least, he could provide veteran competition for Trask, who has made strides during his redshirt rookie year.

Trask, the Bucs’ second round pick, is largely unproven and Arians would rather see a veteran under center. But he is talented and the team still believes he is the future starter at some point. Whether that is in 2022, 2023 or later is up to Trask’s development – and ultimately how long Brady decides to play in Tampa Bay.

QUESTION: What does this offseason look like? Do we look to get more weapons and better DBs?

ANSWER: There will be roster changes this offseason. This won’t be like last year where the Bucs try to re-sign all of their free agents – nor should they. This was forecast in an SR’s Fab 5 column around midseason. Tampa Bay doesn’t have to blow up its roster, but it needs to part ways with some players and make some significant upgrades at several positions through free agency and the NFL Draft.

Bucs QB Tom Brady and WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Having Tom Brady return for one more year would help greatly because the drop off at quarterback would be huge. Unless of course Aaron Rodgers was his replacement if Brady opts to retire. Brady would also be a great lure in free agency as several of the top free agents would love the opportunity to play with the greatest of all time.

Getting Brady – or whoever plays under center – some more weapons will be paramount. The Bucs need to re-sign slot receiver Chris Godwin, who was the team’s franchise player, and then add another starting-caliber receiver in free agency and the draft. Neither Tyler Johnson, Breshad Perriman, Cyril Grayson nor Scotty Miller have shown the talent and reliability to be the Bucs’ No. 3 receiver.

Tampa Bay does need to improve the depth at cornerback, too. The position was ravaged by injuries this year and Sean Murphy-Bunting’s season was a big let-down due to injuries and poor play. He, Jamel Dean and Mike Edwards, who had a terrible playoff game against the Rams, are all entering a contract year. The Bucs need more talent and competition in the secondary heading into the 2022 season.

QUESTION: Two years ago fans just wanted a winning record and a playoff berth. Now, we’re just greedy. Many fans are calling for the firing of our coaching staff after an incredibly successful year. What’s the deal? Will we never be satisfied without another Super Bowl trophy?

ANSWER: Let’s cut right to the chase. The call by defensive coordinator Todd Bowles to call an aggressive all-out blitz and leave free safety Antoine Winfield, Jr. in single coverage against Cooper Kupp was horrifically bad. It was the wrong call as the Rams didn’t have a timeout and needed a field goal to win. The Bucs should’ve played coverage and kept the ball in front of them. Instead Winfield was caught flat-footed and put in a bad position.

The analytics said not to blitz Stafford, who was 85-of-118 (72 percent) for 1,031 yards with 14 touchdowns and zero interceptions when blitzed, as reported by Jon Ledyard in last week’s Bucs Briefing. Blitzing Stafford only produced eight sacks all year. Neither one of Tampa Bay’s two sacks came on blitzes in Sunday’s loss.

Yet when rushing four or less, Stafford completed 319-of-483 (66 percent) for 3,855 yards with 27 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Stafford was sacked 22 times when not blitzed during the regular season.

Bowles likely regrets the call given the outcome, but he can’t take it back. His Super Bowl ring can’t be taken away either, though. Let’s remember that Bowles’ game plan was magnificent in Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl LV championship. The Bucs held the Kansas City Chiefs to nine points. Bowles also had to deal with a rash of injuries in the secondary. Yet the Bucs still managed to win 15 games and the NFC South title.

I’ve seen plenty of bad defenses – and offenses – in Tampa Bay over my 26 years of covering the Bucs. I’m all for wanting excellence over incompetence. But Tampa Bay has a 25-9 record in the regular season and a 5-1 record in the postseason over the last two seasons. That’s better than any two-year span in Bucs history.

QUESTION: Are the Bucs special teams the worst in the NFL?

ANSWER: No, I believe that distinction goes to Green Bay, especially after allowing a blocked punt to be returned for a touchdown in San Francisco’s upset playoff win on Saturday night. But the Bucs special teams are far from special, and something has to be done. The coverage units were improved this year, except for allowing the Rams to average 20 yards per punt return on three returns on Sunday, including a long of 33 yards.

Bucs WR-KR Jaelon Darden – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Kicker Ryan Succop had a good year, but not as good as last year. He connected on 83.3 percent of his field goals in 2021 after nailing 90.3 percent of his kicks last year. Succop was 2-of-3 on Sunday, yet he missed a 48-yarder. That came back to bite the Bucs in a three-point loss to the Rams.

Punter Bradley Pinion really faded down the stretch, perhaps due to a hip injury. Pinion averaged 53 yards per punt, but had a net of just 33 yards, in addition to a touchback. None of his four punts were downed inside the 20. To make matters worse, he was flagged twice for kicking the ball out of bounds, which gave the Rams the ball at their own 40-yard line twice.

Tampa Bay’s return game has been lackluster, and rookie Jaelon Darden was not nearly as good as Jaydon Mickens was. Darden averaged 15.5 yards per kick return on Sunday, and returned one punt for five yards. He’s not the answer in the return game.

QUESTION: I would like to hear about some of the questionable decisions this season, including Jaelon Darden as a returner and the love of Sean Murphy-Bunting. Any others come to mind?

ANSWER: Rookie receiver Jaelon Darden impressed in the OTAs and in training camp. But once the pads came on and the bullets starting flying for real, Darden was awful. Darden logged just six catches for 73 yards and had a pass bounce off his hands and turn into an interception at Washington.

He also failed to make an impact in the return game. Darden averaged just 7.5 yards per punt return and slipped and fell down way too many times. He was equally unimpressive on kick returns, averaging just 19.9 yards per return with a long of just 34 yards. The Bucs traded up in the fourth round to grab Darden, but he’s not as fast as advertised and lacks the size to slip or break tackles at 5-foot-8, 174 pounds. Darden will get a chance to earn a roster spot next August, but he looks like a bust right now. He can’t be considered a lock to make the 2022 Buccaneers.

Sean Murphy-Bunting is highly regarded by the defensive coaches. But outside of a nice postseason run in 2020, he’s done little to impress. Murphy-Bunting seems to lack the “it” factor and has had a slew of injuries over the past two seasons. Don’t be surprised if the Bucs draft a cornerback early to compete for Murphy-Bunting’s spot on the depth chart.

The other questionable decision by the coaching staff was allowing Jason Pierre-Paul to play as much as he did in the regular season. Pierre-Paul should be commended for trying to play through pain and be a good teammate and leader. But the reality is that he put an awful lot of bad film out there in the process. On too many snaps it seemed like the Bucs were playing with 10 players because of Pierre-Paul’s ineffectiveness. And the Bucs coaches were stunting Joe Tryon-Shoyinka’s development in the process.

At age 33 and with neck, knee and shoulder injuries each of the past three seasons, it’s time to turn the page. Tampa Bay needs to draft another young edge rusher to add to the rotation and eventually line up opposite JTS when Shaq Barrett’s playing days are done.

QUESTION: Have we seen the last game of O.J. Howard?

Bucs TEs Rob Gronkowski and OJ Howard – Photo by: USA Today

ANSWER: Yes, Sunday was likely the last game in Tampa Bay for tight end O.J. Howard, the Bucs’ first-round pick in 2017. He just hasn’t been the same player since tearing his Achilles tendon in the 2020 season. A fresh start for Howard elsewhere in free agency seems probable.

The tight end position needs to be retooled in 2022. Bringing back Rob Gronkowski for one more seasons seems wise if Tom Brady returns. But the Bucs have a decision to make regarding 30-year old Cameron Brate, who is set to make $6.5 million in 2022 and can no longer separate in coverage.

Although he didn’t play, Sunday was also the last game in Tampa Bay for running back Ronald Jones II. The former second round pick fell out of favor with coaches over his lack of progress in the passing game. Jones’ development as a receiver stalled, and he never improved as a pass protector. He was a liability on third down as a result.