A new Pewter Report Roundtable debuts every Tuesday on PewterReport.com. Each week, the Pewter Reporters tackle another tough question. This week’s prompt: Who Will The Bucs’ Pro Bowlers Be In 2024?

Scott Reynolds: Bucs Will Have 5 Pro Bowlers This Season

Bucs DT Vita Vea – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R

Last year the Bucs had just one player voted to the Pro Bowl. That was Mike Evans, who had his 10th straight 1,000-yard season and was tied with Miami’s Tyreek Hill for the most touchdowns in the 2023 season with 13. For Evans, who just turned 31, it was the fifth Pro Bowl of his illustrious, Hall of Fame-worthy career. But he opted out of the Pro Bowl games, which has devolved into a skills competition and a game of flag football and didn’t participate. Yet there were a couple of Bucs that did take part so there was a red and pewter presence in Orlando.

Tampa Bay left tackle Tristan Wirfs and quarterback Baker Mayfield were alternates who wound up making the Pro Bowl. Wirfs was added when San Francisco made the Super Bowl, thus making left tackle Trent Williams ineligible to play. For Wirfs, it was his third Pro Bowl in as many years – but his first as a left tackle. Mayfield made his first Pro Bowl berth when Dallas quarterback Dak Prescott opted out. I could see all three Bucs – Evans, Wirfs and Mayfield – all gaining consideration this year again.

But at the end of the day, Wirfs and Evans, who will have his 11th straight 1,000-yard season, will make the Pro Bowl along with safety Antoine Winfield Jr., who got snubbed last year, yet was named first-team All-Pro. I’m also a believer in outside linebacker Yaya Diaby and believe he could make the Pro Bowl if he has 10 sacks or more, which I believe is doable. So let’s put Diaby in there along with defensive tackle Vita Vea, who made his only Pro Bowl in 2021. I think he’ll have a dominant year playing next to Calijah Kancey and after losing some weight this year to become quicker, more explosive and hopefully healthier.

Matt Matera: 4 Familiar Faces Make The Pro Bowl For Bucs

Bucs FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

It seems like the tides are turning nationally for Mike Evans since he has a chance to tie Jerry Rices’ record for 11 straight seasons of 1,000 receiving yards. More football aggregators continue to post about Mike and people realize how great of a player he is. So if Evans gets 1,000 yards and a similar amount of production in touchdowns, he’s in.

Certainly, the other familiar face for Tampa Bay that’ll make it again is Tristan Wirfs. He’s already made it several times, including last season at left tackle. Another year at the position and playing even better, including with a better running game by the Bucs hears his name added to the Pro Bowl again.

The NFL also has to right the wrongs of All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. blasphemously not making the Pro Bowl last year. That mistake will be corrected this time around with more name recognition. Even a pedestrian year by Winfield’s standards gets him in. Last to make the Pro Bowl for the Bucs is nose tackle Vita Vea, who benefits from Aaron Donald retiring. Vea gets a ton of praise from Brian Baldinger and should get in for his efforts this season.

Bailey Adams: More May Be Deserving, But Bucs Will Have 3 Pro Bowlers

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: USA Today

These days, when I think “Bucs Pro Bowlers,” I think of wide receiver Mike Evans and left tackle Tristan Wirfs. So, my answer starts there. I don’t see Evans really slowing down this year. I think it’s beyond fair to pencil him in for yet another 1,000-yard receiving season — his record-tying 11th straight — as well as anywhere between 8-12 touchdowns. As for Wirfs, he slid from right tackle to left tackle last year and while there were growing pains, he remained one of the best tackles in the game. Those growing pains should be a thing of the past by now, and with a new contract under his belt — and with some new dad strength (as if Wirfs needed to get any stronger) — I think he earns a fourth straight Pro Bowl nod.

And finally, I think Antoine Winfield Jr. will come back with a vengeance in 2024 and make the Pro Bowl appearance that he should’ve gotten in 2023 when he was a First-Team All-Pro selection with an absolutely bonkers stat line. Even if the newly re-signed safety doesn’t quite match that production from a year ago, I think he’ll be impossible to ignore and snub this time around (though he should’ve never been snubbed last year… and no, I’m not over it).

Baker Mayfield, Rachaad White, Chris Godwin and Lavonte David should be in the mix as well, even if it’s as replacements the way Mayfield was last year. As much as I’d like to pencil David in for a Pro Bowl Games appearance, it’s hard to imagine this being the year that he finally stops getting overlooked. Unfortunately, I think he plays well enough to earn it but ends up snubbed once again.

Josh Queipo: Bucs Will Land 4 Pro Bowlers

Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Admittedly, I hate this exercise because I am trying to handicap a popularity contest. But here is my reasoning for four players making the Pro Bowl. I believe Chris Godwin will make it over Mike Evans. It is the “F” receiver, not the “X” that is the featured player in a McVay-style offense. From 2019-2021 (when he was largely healthy), Cooper Kupp out-targeted the “X” receiver in the Rams’ offense 440 to 378. If Godwin hits that target average (147) he should be good for 110 catches and 1,275 yards. I also think Godwin will get a healthier look in the red zone to improve his touchdowns.

I expect Tristan Wirfs to join Godwin on offense in his second year on the left side and fresh off a contract that makes him the highest-paid offensive lineman in NFL history. That kind of publicity should put him further in the front of minds of the voting public and with Trent Williams set to have a prolonged hold-out in San Francisco it should remove one potential competitor from consideration.

On the defensive side of the ball, I am going to project a veteran and an up-and-comer. Give me Lavonte David getting some late-career accolades to help bolster his case for the Hall of Fame. The league at large is sleeping less on the ageless wonder, and he has started to get more flowers post-Super Bowl. I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a concerted effort to help get him some additional accolades in a league-wide effort to help his stack his resume to match his play on the field for so long. For the up-and-comer, I think Calijah Kancey could come on strong as a high-sack pass rusher who takes the league by storm. The NFC has some fantastic defensive tackles, but with Aaron Donald now retired I would not be surprised if there was a general search for “the next Aaron Donald”. Kancey has one of the best profiles to fill that void in terms of style.

Adam Slivon: Bucs Will Be Well Represented With 5 Pro Bowlers

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield at the Pro Bowl – Photo by: USA Today

Looking over the Bucs roster, plenty of players have compelling cases to make the Pro Bowl. Starting with the slam dunks, I believe left tackle Tristan Wirfs, wide receiver Mike Evans, and free safety Antoine Winfield Jr. are a great place to start. Not only are each cornerstone players, but they are also popular and productive enough to make an argument for them easily.

With a new contract and a second year on the blindside (plus some added dad strength), Wirfs should be even better than he was last year and assert his status as the best left tackle in the NFL. Evans had one of his better years last season and another year with quarterback Baker Mayfield should yield similar results as a focal point in Liam Coen’s offense. Lastly, I do not think the league would want to snub ‘Tweez’ again after he was shockingly left off last year’s Pro Bowl roster despite producing otherworldly numbers for a safety — further supported by his own massive deal in the offseason.

Mayfield and inside linebacker Lavonte David squeak in as my other two Pro Bowl Bucs. Over the past year, Tampa Bay’s quarterback has shifted the perception around him and has won a lot of people over, even on the national level. For example, ESPN’s Scott Van Pelt discussed this at length at the 2024 Pro Bowl Games before Mayfield went on to win MVP of the game. With another season of similar or slightly better production, he should make it in. David has long been underrated, but at age 34 and still playing at a high level, I think he gets recognized with his second selection. It could be a blend of honoring him for his body of work and acknowledging that he is still one of the best at his position. Those are my five picks, and I do believe the Bucs will be well represented in the Pro Bowl. I also could easily see center Graham Barton shining as a rookie, while second-year players Calijah Kancey and Yaya Diaby may take off with a season under their belts. Even big nose tackle Vita Vea looks hungrier and ready to dominate, and not just because he lost some weight.