The Bucs signing of Redskins free agent receiver DeSean Jackson and defensive lineman Chris Baker will ultimately have an impact on their approach to the NFL draft.
“To get two big needs that we have, we still believe in building through the draft and that helps you solidify how you’re going to draft,'' Bucs coach Dirk Koetter said. "This is a deep draft, and free agency isn’t over yet. Not only are we gaining some guys in free agency we’re also losing some guys, too, so it’s a process.''
The Bucs also signed Cowboys safety J.J. Wilcox and re-signed free agent safety Chris Conte. So three need positions already have been addressed at receiver, defensive tackle and safety.
That takes the pressure off the Bucs to focus on those positions early in the draft. That's not to say they would ignore a good player at one of those spots if they felt he had the best value at No. 19.
But that's the goal of free agency. The key for the Bucs is to try to approach it as if they had to play a game tomorrow and not next Sept. Could they line up and have a formidiible team -- one better than they put on the field in 2016 -- if they did not have a single pick in the NFL draft?
Also, unlike recent years, the Bucs have lost some key players to free agency. Russell Shepard, a fourth receiver and one of the best kick coverage men in the league, signed with Carolina, defensive tackle Akeem Spence signed with the Lions and backup quarterback Mike Glennon will get his chance to start for the Bears.
"Luckily we were able to keep Will [Gholston]," Bucs general manager Jason Licht said. "Russell Shepard was one of my favorite players on this team; it just didn't work out for us. It worked out for him, I'm happy for him. Akeem Spence, another player that was coveted around the league. We had to make a decision, we had to make a tough football decision about what was best for the Bucs."
So what do last week's signing in particular mean for the Bucs in the draft? It's less likely they would take a receiver in the first round. Again, if the best player on the board is, say, Clemson receiver Mike Williams or Western Michigan receiver Corey Davis, they could still select him. Jackson is 30 years old, so the Bucs still need to develop a No. 2 receiver.
It raises the possibility of the Bucs using an early pick on a running back, pass rusher, cornrerback or tight end. This is a deep class at all three of those positions with quality and quanitity throughout the first three rounds.
The Bucs are still keeping their options open when it comes to running back Doug Martin, who is suspended for the first three games of 2017 for violating the league's policy on performance enhancing drugs. Because of his suspension, he forfeited $7-million in guarantees. Martin's base salary for '17 is $5.764-million.
Tampa Bay re-signed free agent running back Jacquizz Rodgers and Charles Sims will return along with second-year pro Peyton Barber. Should they take a running back in the first round, that could seal Martin's fate.
A year ago, the Bucs doubled up in free agency and the draft. They signed cornerback Brent Grimes and drafted Vernon Hargreaves in the first round. They signed defensive end Robert Ayers but dtafred Noah Spence in the second round.
In the near future, Licht hopes to not have to do much in free agency but focus on just re-signing their core players.
"I can foresee this happening in the future," Licht said. "My goal would be to not have to allocate a lot of funds in free agency; it would be more so rewarding our own players."
