Not everyone enjoys or agrees with Pro Football Focus’ grading system, but there is no question they’ve created a nationally recognized process to evaluating players. However, PFF’s process isn’t gospel and it should be critiqued at times. In the ranking of several Bucs players, I offer varying degrees of disagreement, predicting which Tampa Bay starters will out-play PFF’s ranking this season. I also think they nailed it in several instances, accurately listing Bucs players where they should be ranked.

Here are the rankings of every Bucs player to appear in PFF’s top 32 players at each position. PFF compiled these lists with a level of projection for how they believe a player will perform in 2021, not just how they played in 2020. Offensive tackles and offensive guards were all ranked together.

QB Tom Brady – 2nd
RB Ronald Jones – 25th
WR Mike Evans – 12th
WR Chris Godwin – 13th
TE Rob Gronkowski – 9th
WR Antonio Brown – 24th
TE O.J. Howard – 23rd
TE Cam Brate – 32nd
RT Tristan Wirfs – 6th
LT Donovan Smith – NR
LG Ali Marpet – 6th
RG Alex Cappa – 27th
C Ryan Jensen – 11th

DT Vita Vea – 7th
DT Ndamukong Suh – 25th
EDGE Shaq Barrett – 9th
EDGE Jason Pierre-Paul – NR
LB Lavonte David – 4th
LB Devin White – 25th
CB Carlton Davis – 15th
CB Jamel Dean – 19th
S Antoine Winfield Jr. – 21st

QB Tom Brady – 2nd

In my opinion, ranking Brady anywhere from No. 2-No. 6 is hard to argue with. Depending on the year, Deshaun Watson, Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson are in the same tier, with Josh Allen and Dak Prescott in the conversation as well. Patrick Mahomes would be first, of course. When you take into account the context of what Brady did in 2020, turning the Bucs around and posting crazy numbers despite a new offense, no offseason and a system that asks for a ton of big-time plays from the quarterback position, ranking him second isn’t crazy at all.

RB Ronald Jones – 25th

Clearly Jones is the most talented back on the Bucs’ roster, but it’s difficult for me to consider him for this list due to how last year ended. Looking at the backs ahead of him on the list, it becomes easier though. It’s hard to make an argument that J.K. Dobbins or Clyde Edwards-Helaire or Nyheim Hines are better than Jones right now. Jones is a frustrating evaluation because his struggles in the passing game have led the Bucs to bench him, but there is no denying he’s an exciting rusher when he’s running with confidence.

Wide Receiver

Mike Evans – 12th
Chris Godwin – 13th
Antonio Brown – 24th

Wide receiver is one of the deepest position groups in the NFL, and there should be no shame in being ranked outside of the top ten. But I definitely take exception to Evans and Godwin being ranked behind Adam Thielen, Justin Jefferson and Calvin Ridley. Thielen is a great receiver, but 9th in the NFL? What does he do better than Evans or Godwin? Jefferson was awesome as a rookie, but I still don’t see a superior skill set than the Bucs’ duo, and longevity has to matter a little more here.

I agree with keeping Evans and Godwin out of the top five receivers in the league, as I think Davante Adams, Deandre Hopkins, Tyreek Hill, Stefon Diggs and Julio Jones are the top tier. But after that, anywhere from 6-10 is fair game. I think this is one of the lowest rankings you’ll ever see for Evans and Godwin. Also, there is a strong argument to be made that Antonio Brown is still better than Corey Davis, Jarvis Landry and Cole Beasley. We just need to see him in action for a full season again.

Tight End

Rob Gronkowski – 9th
O.J. Howard – 23rd
Cam Brate – 32nd

Nice to see Brate included on this list, as I’ve said several times over the past year that there are a few teams he would start on. Howard is difficult to rank, as the list admits, but he could be a few spots higher in 2022. I would have Gronkowski higher up the list than this, as I don’t believe his physical skill set has diminished much at all. But with PFF looking to the future, it’s understandable that they would be a little lower on him.

RT Tristan Wirfs – 6th
LT Donovan Smith – NR
LG Ali Marpet – 6th
RG Alex Cappa – 27th
C Ryan Jensen – 11th

Wirfs was the best right tackle in the NFL last season, but I’m not going to squabble over a 6th-place finish for a rookie. Wirfs and Marpet were fairly ranked, while Cappa rightfully cracked the top 32 guards in the NFL. Should Smith have been ranked? Maybe, but looking at the list, there are only a couple spots where an argument could be made.

The biggest issue by far is with Jensen’s ranking outside the top ten, an egregious mistake. OL guru Brandon Thorn recently appeared on the Pewter Report Podcast to discuss why he believes Jensen is the best center in the NFL. We are not exactly in a golden age of center play in the league right now. Ranking outside the top 10 essentially means you’re an average center. I don’t know anyone on the planet who believes Jensen is an average center. The way he plays the game may eventually take a toll on his body and cause a drop in play, but Jensen was excellent in 2020 and should be a top five lock at his position.

DT Vita Vea – 7th
DT Ndamukong Suh – 25th

Not much to squabble about here. PFF continues to herald Vea as one of the best defensive tackles in the NFL, while Suh remains a force despite his age. Could Vea crack the top 5 next season? That’s a pretty dominant top six ahead of him.

I was surprised to see Suh ranked this high at first, then I looked at some of the names ahead of him and realized there’s an argument for him to be even higher. What hurts Suh is his lack of impact as a pass rusher, but he’s still a premier run defender.

EDGE Shaq Barrett – 9th
EDGE Jason Pierre-Paul – NR

I’m not the biggest Pierre-Paul advocate, but not being ranked at all here is curious. Pierre-Paul isn’t better than Trey Hendrickson? Leonard Floyd? Josh Allen? Clelin Ferrell? Pierre-Paul is not an elite player and has always been a little overrated in my mind, but he’s clearly better than most of the bottom 7-8 players on this list. Not ranking him at all is very confusing to me.

In the same breath, I think a top ten ranking for Barrett is a little rich. He’s certainly a very good player, but he’s not better than Von Miller or Danielle Hunter. Recency bias seems to have crept into that ranking a little bit. Barrett wasn’t dominant this past regular season, but erupted in the playoffs for four sacks. It’s a big year for him to build on last season’s finish even after inking a massive contract this offseason.

LB Lavonte David – 4th
LB Devin White – 25th

PFF continues to be enamored with Bobby Wagner, their top linebacker once again heading into 2021. I’ll take David due to his superiority in coverage, the most distinctive skill a linebacker can bring to the table. Still, it’s a strong ranking for David, who will attempt to stave off age for at least two more seasons.

The ranking that has already incensed Bucs fans is White’s, and understandably so. PFF is down on White’s 2020 performance compared to the common narrative that he’s among the top 3-5 linebackers in the league, but 25th? In a projection of the position for the 2021 season? It’s hard for me to understand how one could watch the way White closed out last season, almost single-handedly destroying the Saints offense in the divisional round of the playoffs, and not think he’s on pace to be at least a top 10 linebacker in the NFL next season.

White was always going to take a little while to fully develop, and the fact that he looks like he’s arriving coming out of last season should be given more attention here. Instead White is sitting behind Josey Jewell, Benardrick McKinney, Jaylon Smith, Cory Littleton, Kenneth Murray and Tremaine Edmunds. We might need to have Sam Monson, one of PFF’s best analysts and the author of this ranking, on the Pewter Report Podcast to discuss White’s placement.

CB Carlton Davis – 15th
CB Jamel Dean – 19th

PFF ranks Davis lower than I would have, but I also understand that he’s only played like a top 32 cornerback for one season. It’s ok to be skeptical about a fairly volatile position, and recognition as a top 15 cornerback in the NFL is still a big deal. Two cornerbacks ahead of Davis on this list, Richard Sherman and Steven Nelson, are not currently on a roster. That will change in the coming months, but I believe the door is wide open for Davis to solidify himself as a top 10 cornerback in the league this season. Not sure Bucs fans saw that coming back in 2019.

PFF loves Dean, so I wasn’t stunned by the ranking. However, some of the players behind Dean on this list, particularly Kyle Fuller, Darious Williams, Darius Slay, Kendall Fuller and others, are far better players right now. Perhaps PFF is bumping Dean’s rank due to how they believe he’ll play in 2021. The upside is certainly there for Dean to fly up cornerback rankings, but right now he hasn’t played like a top 20 cornerback in the NFL. The consistency is still lacking in his game as he heads into year three.

S Antoine Winfield Jr. – 21st

Quietly, safety is one of the more loaded position groups in the NFL. Winfield Jr.’s rank is a fair one, as he impressed during his rookie season, but wasn’t dominant. I believe there is still another level for Winfield to reach as a free safety, which could springboard him into the top ten next year. But if you look at the names ahead of him on this list, there are only a couple I would say are worse than Winfield. And a few behind him might still be better. So No. 21 seems like a pretty accurate spot for him…for now.

Although I understand why Jordan Whitehead didn’t make the list, 2021 was a nice breakout season for him. If the fourth-year pro posts a similar campaign in 2020, he should crack the top 32. Mike Edwards has some potential to join the list too, if the Bucs can get his ball-hawking skill set on the field more often this year.