2nd Round is Bucs Best Bet to Trade DownJustin Pawlowski @CommishOnlineApr 27, 2015
Last year, the Cowboys traded the 47th and 78th draft picks to move up for the 34th overall selection. This year, the Bucs own the 34th selection. Can they find a team to do what the Cowboys did?I know there have been folks hoping the Buccaneers would trade out of the 1st overall pick in the NFL Draft and acquire a huge package of picks to fill multiple needs. The bad news for those people is that the Bucs will likely (99.99%) keep the pick and select Jameis Winston. The good news is that the Bucs could be in a great position to trade down and acquire some extra picks in the 2nd round.We only have to go back one year to the 2014 draft to see what can be done with the 34th overall pick. The Bucs hold the 34th pick in this year's draft, and this is what can be done with it. 
The best part of the trade from last year's draft for the 34th pick was that the team that traded with the Cowboys was the Washington Redskins within their same division.The Buccaneers should be looking to mimic this deal if available. To move back just 14 spots and acquire an additional 3rd round pick would be a big deal in this draft.This draft is light on elite talent, but there is plenty of good depth through the early part of the 4th round. Grabbing an additional 3rd round pick could ultimately mean acquiring an additional starter if you're the Bucs.It's tough to tell which players will be available or even attractive enough for a team to trade up for. Last year, the Cowboys made that trade with the Washington Redskins to acquire Demarcus Lawrence, who was considered a good prospect, but not a surprise to have fallen to the 2nd round. The point, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so Jason Licht just has to figure out what teams are extra fond of the players at the top of round 2.In this year's draft, picks 45-50 are owned by the Vikings, 49ers, Dolphins, Chargers, and Chiefs. It's tough to gauge what these teams will fancy, but the common denominator, barring what happens in the first round, is that most of these teams need both a wide receiver and a cornerback. If a receiver like Jaelen Strong or Nelson Agholor, or a cornerback like Marcus Peters, Eric Rowe, or Jalen Collins, are available at the top of the 2nd round, the Bucs might find one of these teams desperate to make the big move up for the player they fancy most.In the middle of the 2nd round, the Bucs would still be in position to grab a potential starter and very talented player. There are a bunch of offensive tackles with late 1st/early 2nd round talent, so if one of them falls, the Bucs could grab that player.Another position the Bucs could address after a trade back in round two is defensive end. Lorenzo Mauldin is an attractive athletic defensive end with good size and strength, but I think the name to remember is Nate Orchard. Orchard has visited the Bucs and had a private workout with them. He might only be 250 lbs now, but he knows how to get after the quarterback, and the Bucs have invested a lot of time into him.If the Bucs address defensive end in the 2nd round, they can then pounce on their offensive line needs with both 3rd round picks, or they can provide another weapon for their rookie quarterback. That extra 3rd round pick could turn into Kansas State's Tyler Lockett or Winston's teammate at FSU Rashad Greene.A trade down mock could look like this for the Bucs through the first 4 rounds:1st Round - Jameis Winston - QB - FSU2nd Round (After trading down) - Nate Orchard - DE - Utah3rd Round - Donovan Smith - OT - Penn State3rd Round (Acquired in trade) - Rashad Greene - WR - FSU4th Round - David Cobb - RB - MinnesotaThat one extra 3rd round pick could be huge for a team like the Bucs with many needs. The 2nd round will be where the trade talks need to begin.link
