FAB 5. SR’s BUC SHOTS
• Tampa Bay’s local pre-draft visit day will be held on April 14. It’s an important day for not only those players who either went to nearby USF or played high school football in the Tampa Bay area, but it’s also crucial for the team because it has to find several good undrafted players to take part in the team’s rookie mini-camp the week after the 2017 NFL Draft.

The Bucs have seven selections this year, but will need at least 40 other invited participants to build a team for three days around those Tampa Bay draft picks for the sake of the rookie mini-camp. Most of those in attendance at the team’s rookie mini-camp will be signed to three-day try-out contracts.

So don’t panic when you see the Bucs interested in someone like former Florida and Purdue quarterback Austin Appleby, who doesn’t carry a draftable grade. Tampa Bay isn’t looking for him to join their 53-man roster in September. Just the three-day roster for the rookie mini-camp to throw passes to the players the Bucs draft at wide receiver and tight end.

USF WR Rodney Adams – Photo by: Getty Images

• Have you ever wondered why Tampa Bay splits up its precious pre-draft visits with draft prospects up between first-rounders and players that could go undrafted? While it might make sense to use those 30 visits on players the Bucs might actually consider drafting, such as USC cornerback Adoreé Jackson, Kansas State defensive end Jordan Willis or USF running back Marlon Mack, there’s a method behind bringing in players that are fringe of being seventh-round picks or going undrafted, like USF wide receiver Rodney Adams, who was featured in PewterReport.com’s most recent 2017 Bucs’ 7-Round Mock Draft.

For those players on the fringe of going undrafted, it is an opportunity for Tampa Bay to see who is worthy of spending a sixth- or seventh-round pick on. It’s also a chance for the Bucs scouts and coaches to make a big-time sales pitch to woo a potentially undrafted player to come to Tampa Bay if he in fact goes undrafted.

The hours immediately following the draft are even more intense as the draft itself as scouts and coaches feverishly work the phones with players and agents to try to recruit undrafted free agents to join the team. The Bucs also get a jump on that process by having position coaches travel the country in the months of March and April to privately work out players that might be destined to go undrafted.

The time and effort that goes into those personal workouts and meetings help the position coaches establish a relationship with a player that could pay off immediately after the draft’s conclusion with the signing of an undrafted free agent. The Bucs aren’t the only team that does this, but not every team employs this practice. It’s one of the ways general manager Jason Licht tries to use every advantage to help get the most talented undrafted free agents he can to sign with Tampa Bay.

The Bucs have had a great deal of success with undrafted free agents in the past with the likes of starting right tackle Demar Dotson in 2009 and return specialist Clifton Smith in 2008, who wound up going to the Pro Bowl during his rookie season. More recently, Licht has found cornerback Javien Elliott, fullback Alan Cross, offensive tackle Leonard Wester, linebacker Adarius Glanton, running back Peyton Barber and defensive linemen Channing Ward and DaVonte Lambert as undrafted free agents.

• One position that the Bucs are looking heavily at when it comes to undrafted free agents is linebacker where Tampa Bay needs a backup middle linebacker behind Kwon Alexander and competition for Devante Bond, last year’s sixth-round pick, for the strongside linebacker spot vacated with the departure of Daryl Smith, who is considering retiring. Bucs linebackers coach Mark Duffner has privately worked out several linebackers that could go undrafted or be considered for selection in the sixth or seventh rounds.

Bucs LB coach Mark Duffner – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

One of those players is Eastern Washington’s Samson Ebukam, who at 6-foot-2, 240 pounds, is a candidate for Sam linebacker. Ebukam, who was born and raised in Nigeria, was mainly used as an edge rusher at EWU where he used his 4.45 speed to notch 44 tackles for loss and 24 sacks. With 25 reps of 225 pounds Ebukam has the strength to set the edge in the Bucs’ 4-3 under scheme and the speed and pass rush ability to blitz from the Sam position.

Duffner also worked out Southern Illinois linebacker Chase Allen, who ran a 4.58 at Northwestern’s pro day. The 6-foot-4, 241-pound Allen led SIU in tackles for three years while racking up 324 career stops at middle linebacker. The Bucs crave speed at the linebacker position and have also worked out Cincinnati middle linebacker Eric Wilson, who at 6-foot-1, 230 pounds, ran 4.53 in the 40-yard dash and had a 39.5-inch vertical jump at his pro day.

The Bucs also worked out East Carolina linebacker Dayon Pratt, but he ran a 4.83 time in the 40-yard dash, which could exclude him from the faster group of linebackers Tampa Bay could be targeting on Day 3 as a late-round pick or undrafted free agent.

• Another position group the Bucs are heavily targeting – literally and figuratively – on Day 3 is defensive tackle. There are three massive defensive tackles on Tampa Bay’s radar and the team has either worked them out privately or met with them at their pro day.

The Bucs have taken an interest in Missouri’s Josh Augusta, who is 6-foot-3, 347 pounds. He notched 81 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, four sacks, one interception and one forced fumble in his Tigers career.

Another is Colorado’s Josh Tupuo, who is 6-foot-3, 353 pounds. Tupuo racked up 124 tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss, 6.5 sacks and a fumble recovery for the Buffaloes as a three-year starter. Tupuo did miss the 2015 season as a redshirt after being suspended for his involvement in a fight before returning to action as a senior in 2016.

Perhaps the most intriguing is Albany State defensive tackle Grover Stewart, who is 6-foot-5, 330 pounds and ran a 4.8 in the 40-yard dash while putting up 37 reps of 225 pounds in the bench press. Stewart recorded 27 sacks, including 7.5 last season in addition to forcing a fumble and blocking a kick.

The reason why the Bucs are looking for such a big reserve nose tackle is that the team wants a challenger for Sealver Siligia, who is 6-foot-2 and weighs close to 330 pounds.

• University of Washington secondary coach Jimmy Lake, a former defensive backs coach in Tampa Bay under Jon Gruden and Raheem Morris, has done a great job in producing NFL-caliber defensive backs in recent years. While former first-round cornerback Marcus Peters, safety Budda Baker and first-round cornerback candidate Sidney Jones grabbed the headlines, Lake believes cornerback Kevin King is just as talented. Due to Jones’ torn Achilles tendon, King, who has worked out privately for the Bucs, has seen his stock rise into the first round to replace Jones.

“He’s so versatile,” said Lake. “When I first arrived he was a safety and I kept him at safety. But he was a nickel at 6-foot-3. You should watch that tape from 2015. It’s very impressive. He played versus the slot and clogged the lane. He knocked balls down, intercepted the ball and he could blitz. This last year he was a full-time corner, so he’s very versatile. He’s long. He’s 6-foot-3. He can jump and he’s one hell of an athlete. He runs in the low 4.4’s.

Washington CB Kevin King – Photo by: Getty Images

“He’s just not as polished as Sidney. But when you take a guy that is 6-foot-3, 199 pounds, there is going to be a place for somebody with that length and his ball skills. He had maybe one of the best interceptions of the year – a one-handed grab against Arizona State. It was impressive.”

• While there will be an SR’s Fab 5 column the next two weeks (April 14 and 21) there will not be an SR’s Fab 5 on April 28, which is the second day of the draft. We are revamping our Bucs draft coverage this year and I will be doing multiple draft stories for PewterReport.com on April 27 and 28 and putting my information and analysis into those instead of the traditional, long-form SR’s Fab 5 column for that particular week.

• We have had several inquiries about PewterReport.com’s Draft Party this year and after much discussion with our staff and the local sports bars and restaurants that we are associated with, we have decided not to host one this year. To ensure the best turnout and to not compete with the team’s own draft party at the stadium on Thursday night, we typically hold our draft party on Friday night, which is the second day of the draft.

Last year’s event was held at the Hard Rock Cafe, but due to renovations at Seminole Hard Rock, PewterReport.com is unable to host it there this year. With over 150 fans in attendance last year, no sports bar or restaurant we’ve reached out to is willing or capable to reserve that many seats – or even 75 seats – on a Friday night, which is a busy night for the industry anyways. While that is unfortunate, it’s also understandable.

However, we do have something special in the works for Bucs fans and PewterReport.com readers with regards to our draft coverage this year. Stay tuned for a special announcement on PewterReport.com prior to the start of the 2017 NFL Draft.

• Although there won’t be a PewterReport.com Draft Party this year there will be another PewterReport.com Charity Bowling Mixer at Pinchasers next Friday, April 14  You can RSVP by clicking on this message board link or clicking on this Facebook link.

Our second mixer will be held from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. at the Pinchasers location on Armenia Avenue in Tampa. The cost is a $15 charitable donation per person and that allows Tampa Bay fans unlimited bowling for two hours, while enjoying FREE pizza and soft drinks courtesy of Pinchasers, plus a rewards card good for 5 more FREE bowling games – a $35 value.

This month, long time Tampa Bay offensive tackle Demar Dotson and tight end Alan Cross will be attending the event and will be available for photos and autographs. In addition there will be raffles for a number of prizes, including autographed Bucs merchandise, gift cards, and even a bowling ball donated by Pinchasers. At 8:00 p.m. there will be a 10-minute Q&A with Dotson and Cross followed by the raffle drawing.

Our first bowling mixer drew 50 participants, and our next one will reach Pinchasers’ capacity. Make sure you RSVP today and we’ll see you there!

• The 2017 NFL Draft is rapidly approaching. Make sure you stay in the loop with Bucs updates on PewterReport.com’s social media sites. Join the largest Bucs media outlet on Twitter and follow @PewterReport on Twitter by clicking here and follow us on Facebook by clicking here.

• And finally, thank you for the overwhelmingly positive feedback on the Pewter Nation Podcast. Our fourth episode – Live From Lot 6 – was published on Wednesday and I think it’s our best (and funniest) one to date. What (almost) happened to PewterReport.com’s Mark Cook in Lot 6 at Raymond James Stadium? You’ll have to listen to find out. If you haven’t had a chance to listen to it yet, you can click here to do so, or you can subscribe to the Pewter Nation Podcast podcast on iTunes.