OT A. Collins - In terms of money, under age 30 and position of need he wasn't a bad gamble, but the coaching staff couldn't motivate him. D+
OL E. Smith - Not bad for depth but he was overpaid when he first arrived in Tampa. This is unfortunately a theme with Licht's other OL free agent signings where too much emphasis on low grade guards and centers. C-
OG K. Edwards - Decent value looking for a guard in the 5th even if he was a project and it didn't work out. C-
OL: K. Pamphile - Very good value for a 5th round pick due this versatility. Unfortunately Pamphile wasn't given an opportunity to play more while in Tampa. Still has been a good free agent value that Licht has passed over a few times chasing big money guys. Missed opportunity for Licht to upgrade the line on the cheap when he had a chance to re-sign him or sign him as a free agent. Robinson is ahead of the curve on Pamphile which Licht clearly has a blind spot. C+
OL A. Marpet - Licht's only home run so far. A
OT. D. Smith - Smith isn't bad value for an OT that was drafted but the Bucs could do better. C+
OL J. R. Sweazy - I don't care if he has looked competent with other teams the Bucs shouldn't have given him that type of money even if he was 100% healthy. The fact that he had injury concerns with his back signaled in my mind the Bucs shouldn't have even signed him for vet min that year. Failure of Bucs organization and medical staff. FF
Trading for OG L. Mankins - One good year out of him but I am not jumping on that gravy train as it was a knee jerk move. C-
OL C. Benenoch - For a fifth round pick that is decent value. Bucs did not develop him properly and he still struggles to use his hands violently which results in him being thrown off balance. With a new staff and training camp we find out quickly if he can be a more grounded player literally and figuratively. C-
OC - Jenkins filled a need but the Bucs clearly overpaid when they didn't have to. D+
You might be wondering why is this list so short? Because Licht hasn't done enough to address the OL (especially through the draft). I did not include players like Hawley and Cherilus.
Some observations:
1. Licht has had too much emphasis on signing free agent guards while not having his staff develop the drafted guards for the most part. Pamphile and Marpet looked competent as Bucs but were moved around way, way too much which stunted their growth. Edwards flamed out and Benenoch is a question mark still. Licht has thrown money at the guard position via free agency which is not congruent to any long term plan IMVHO. If the Bucs wanted better quality players at guard they should have invested a 2nd or 3rd round pick at the position where in theory don't need as much development as 5th round picks. Marpet is a higher drafted guard and obviously is better. This isn't rocket science. C
2. Bucs went from one extreme to another with the center position. Bucs went from using street free agent scraps to overpaying E. Smith and Jenkins to fill in as centers. Big no no and Licht failed to draft a center the entire time he has been a Bucs GM. How is this even possible? As long as Licht has been a Buc GM to not use even a late draft pick on a center is baffling. F
3. Draft capital toward D. Smith was smart even if LT is not his natural position. A. Collins signing looked good on paper but the gamble didn't work out. But other than that Licht has given up on adding to the position which has cost the Bucs some wins over the years. That is baffling given the Bucs haven't drafted more OT's and especially true with Pamphile no longer on the roster. The gamble of hoping Benenoch could develop at two positions (RG/RT) when he hasn't mastered a single one is equally baffling in my mind. C-
Overall grade for Licht's effort toward the OL: D+
Not surprisingly it feels like the Ol is overall a below average unit and the stat in some aspects show this. Scheme change can help the Bucs o-line reach NFL average of C grade. But it is clear the Bucs have sunk too much money into a unit that looks very pedestrian.
