Thats a good point. That has to be on his mind at any time but this year especially as he tries to resign Goedeke and McCollum. Both of those guys were success stories and now the Bucs will have to pay the piper. There is still a lot of room for moving down to pick up an extra Day 2 pick and still stay in Round 1.A fifth year option on an edge or CB is huge money lost as it is cap savings big time if that draft prospect performs at a high level.
The other way to look at it is trading outside of the first round is cap savings too but not something I would say that Licht is thinking about. The primary benefit of trading out of the first is picking up a haul of draft picks.
This draft is very thin with blue chip players and the rest of the players are graded very close to one another so trading down might be what he wants to do. But a lack of blue chip players means you need other teams reasons to want to trade up too. And that is the problem so unless a team is crazy for a QB (eg Dart) then it will tough to trade down.
I think Licht/Bowles draft players that fit a future need in specific areas. The o-line, d-line and safeties.
More recently, when the offense got a shot in the arm with Baker, especially with the remnants of the Super Bowl caliber o-line & elite WR covered - they could draft the offensive pieces that could make it dominant. We know the limitations of cap space, which would have normally been used to help out the defense, made this impossible. So they did what they could in the drafts (guys like Zyon & Tykee) but pushed off the defensive talent acquisition till this year (I’ve feel like I’ve said this before).
So, BPA with a heavy dose of need - caused some ugly reaches (JTS, etc). But the Suoerbowl credit card/dead cap is freeing up, Hassan Reddick gets signed and we can now watch Licht &!Bowles flip from an offensive focus to the defensive draft focus.
Because of depth at the positions we need, we have some nice opportunities. However, a lot of teams need the same positions we do. So, depending on how the 1st & 2nd round falls - there will still be some draft & stash for development picks.
Tet falling would be hard to pass up…but that edge has got to be a target.
I think we can pick what we want, or go BPA. Hoping that BPA is heavily leaning to lots of defensive additions. But as Bowles said in his relaxed media comments - you don’t overlook an offensive gem.
Misses happen, but Licht & Bowles have to have gotten the JTS-yips out of their system.
I do think Licht has learned not to reach too far. But as Biggs points out, that sometimes ain’t a bad thing.
Love this time of year.
When Licht picks a player higher than the projection that doesn't mean he is drafting for need. The Bucs have their board, and they presumably follow it pretty closely. When they don't follow their own board because they have to fill a position that would be when they are drafting for need. Of course, we have no idea when that happens. Licht may choose to draft one need position in the first round because he sees a gaggle of players at another need position who will likely be there in another round. And of if that dries up, then he's left to scramble after the draft and hope a late round pick, UDFA or practice squad guy can step up. Yes all that can happen. To think Licht just drafts BPA is foolish. But I do think he has made a concerted effort not to get painted into a corner in this draft.
Misses happen, but Licht & Bowles have to have gotten the JTS-yips out of their system.
I do think Licht has learned not to reach too far. But as Biggs points out, that sometimes ain’t a bad thing.
Love this time of year.
I think all reaches are based on need at critical positions, sometimes they overestimate the talent, sometimes the coaches can’t develop it…but I think mostly they just reach because they have a need. Recently, I think reaching is based on a limitation on cap space, and lower round draft picks.
Both are because we’re winning.
I think all reaches are based on need at critical positions, sometimes they overestimate the talent, sometimes the coaches can’t develop it…but I think mostly they just reach because they have a need.
Just about all of them are. It's the prototypical need-based draft approach.
Its a reach if you abandon your own draft board based on your own evaluations on how guys will work with your system and coach, not because you don't follow the concensus of analysts. A player can be perceived to be a reach on the draft show but it's not if you are picking them because of your evaluations. Do you think they abandoned their own draft board when they took Goedeke, Smith, Diaby and guys like that? Of course nobody knows, but I don't think so. Do you?I think all reaches are based on need at critical positions, sometimes they overestimate the talent, sometimes the coaches can’t develop it…but I think mostly they just reach because they have a need.
Just about all of them are. It's the prototypical need-based draft approach.
Its a reach if you abandon your own draft board based on your own evaluations on how guys will work with your system and coach, not because you don't follow the concensus of analysts. A player can be perceived to be a reach on the draft show but it's not if you are picking them because of your evaluations. Do you think they abandoned their own draft board when they took Goedeke, Smith, Diaby and guys like that? Of course nobody knows, but I don't think so. Do you?I think all reaches are based on need at critical positions, sometimes they overestimate the talent, sometimes the coaches can’t develop it…but I think mostly they just reach because they have a need.
Just about all of them are. It's the prototypical need-based draft approach.
As you said, neither of us knows if they abandoned their draft board on the players that worked out. We also don't know if they did it on the players that didn't work out. It's certainly a possibility that their scouts hit on some guys that the Consensus missed. But the inverse is true as well.
But it's much more likely that these guys were need picks, not following their board. It would be quite the coincidence that the best guys on their board always happen to be at areas of need.
It's the prototypical need-based draft approach
Like Vernon H!
I called it last year… Verse was the elite edge. Besides Abdul, Mike Green is the next elite edge in this draft. He has the combined explosive get off and strength needed to be special. He’s a nasty, athletic, competitor.
Ali Marpet was a reach, until he wasn’t. Tristan Wirfs turned out to be the BPA but he was also once one of four the Bucs suggested they would take at a position of need.
teams do not strictly adhere to one philosophy or the other. They balance the two and even then on. A sliding scale as the draft goes on.
its sort of a hilarious yellow belly sneetches thing to watch draftniks suggest BPA is the only way.
Bruce Arians said Devin White was the BPA because he loved football so much (not) and he was a pass rusher (need)
Bruce Arians is full of shit. I'm glad he was able to turn this franchise around but he is an idiot for drafting White over Allen.
I think that once the NFL lowered the NFL salary rookie-scale cap for first round draft selections it made drafting for need a lot more justifiable than ever. BPA was a bigger deal before with the rookie salary cap having guys making more money than proven players at their respective position.I think all reaches are based on need at critical positions, sometimes they overestimate the talent, sometimes the coaches can’t develop it…but I think mostly they just reach because they have a need.
Just about all of them are. It's the prototypical need-based draft approach.
Mike Green is the next elite edge in this draft. He has the combined explosive get off and strength needed to be special. He’s a nasty, athletic, competitor.
Again, he’s not on Licht’s board.
I wouldn't mind a trade down that included a team's 2027 1st rounder. I have my eye on Arch Manning.
