FAB 2. BUCS WILL DRAFT JACKSON’S REPLACEMENT IN 2017
The Buccaneers must deal with the sudden loss of veteran receiver Vincent Jackson, who tore an ACL in last Monday night’s win against Carolina, with a familiar cast of characters. Jackson missed six games last year due to injuries and Adam Humphries and Donteea Dye had to step up and shoulder the load as undrafted free agents opposite Mike Evans.

Dye was just re-signed this week, and newcomer Cecil Shorts returns to the lineup after a hamstring injury. Both will split time at the Z receiver position replacing Jackson this week, and the team expects veteran Louis Murphy, who is coming back from a torn ACL last year, to make his 2016 debut either this week or next week.

“Obviously that’s a huge loss for us – losing VJax – he’s a leader in the receiving corps. But getting D.D. back and Murphy coming back and Cecil coming back; those are guys that I think we have a lot of faith and trust in. Me and Mike are just going to continue to work like we have been.”

Bucs WR Vincent Jackson by: Cliff Welch/PR

Evans noted that the Bucs offense’s production dipped last year without Jackson in the lineup, but said that the show must go on without him for the rest of the year.

“All our receivers are very capable receivers,” Evans said. “We have a very good receivers room – Cecil Shorts, Louis Murphy, DD and Adam – everybody can make plays. It’s a big loss, obviously. VJax is one of our captains, but there’s nothing we can do about it. We’re going to go out there and play for him.”

Let’s be honest. The 33-year old Jackson was a shell of his former self this season even before the injury.

With just 15 catches for 173 yards and no touchdowns, Jackson and quarterback Jameis Winston were often out of sync in the passing game. In the final year of his contract, Jackson wasn’t slated to return to the Bucs in 2017, but the team was hoping to squeeze one more productive season out of him in 2016 before addressing the receiver position again in the draft in the offseason.

Bucs general manager Jason Licht has spent four draft picks on receivers since 2014, selecting Evans with the seventh overall pick in his first year in Tampa Bay, in addition to selecting Robert Herron in the sixth round of the 2014 draft. Last year, Licht drafted Kenny Bell in the fifth round and receiver-returner Kaelin Clay in the sixth round, but didn’t address the receiver position in the 2016 draft.

That will change next April, as the Bucs will look to add more size and speed to their receiving corps. Licht knows he needs to add some speed to replace Bell, who struggled to catch the ball over the last two training camps and was part of this year’s roster cutdown. Dye is the fastest receiver on the team with 4.45 speed.

But due to the fact that Winston’s accuracy is still stuck at 58 percent in his two years in Tampa Bay, drafting a smaller, speedy receiver may not be the best option for Winston. Drafting a bigger receiver like Evans with a wider catch radius may help Winston even more.

Denver Pro Bowl cornerback Aqib Talib said that Evans’ size and wing span make him tough to defend.

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“With receivers, there are some guys where you either have this huge catch radius or you don’t,” Talib said. “There’s nothing you can learn in the NFL. If you go watch Evans’ tape from seventh or eighth grade, I bet he’s doing the same thing, catching jump balls, running past people, catching deep balls. It’s just that catch radius that makes him special.”

I chronicled some receivers to keep an eye on during college football season that could emerge as viable draft prospects for Tampa Bay in 2017 in an August edition of SR’s Fab 5. The players that were featured were USC’s JuJu Smith-Schuster, Clemson’s Mike Williams and Artavis Scott, Virginia Tech’s Isaiah Ford, Michigan’s Jehu Chesson, Western Michigan’s Corey Davis, LSU’s Malachi Dupre and Travin Dural, Florida State’s Travis Rudolph, Eastern Washington’s Cooper Kupp, Oregon’s Darren Carrington II, and Texas A&M’s Speedy Noil and Josh Reynolds.

With the 2016 college football season more than halfway concluded, here are five speed receivers and five big receivers that could help Tampa Bay in the 2017 NFL Draft.

SPEED WIDE RECEIVERS
Oklahoma WR Dede Westbrook
Senior – 5-foot-11, 175 – 4.39
Westbrook played in the shadow of Sterling Shepard at Oklahoma last year, catching 46 passes for 743 yards (16.2 avg.) and four touchdowns as a junior. In his senior season, the Sooner speedster has 43 catches for 728 yards (16.9 avg.) and eight touchdowns, including monster games against TCU (7-158-2), Texas (10-232-3) and Kansas State (9-184-3). There might not be a hotter receiver in America right now than Westbrook.

Washington WR John Ross
Junior – 5-11, 190 – 4.30
Perhaps the fastest receiver in the country, Ross uses his game-breaking speed in the return game on kickoffs, too. A knee injury shortened his sophomore season and limited him to 371 yards and four touchdowns on 17 catches (21.8 avg.) last year, but he’s fully healthy and has 30 catches for 371 yards (12.4 avg.) in 2016. Although his average is down because he’s a marked man this year, Ross, whose game resembles that of DeSean Jackson, does have a career-high nine touchdowns.

Oklahoma State WR James Washington
Junior – 6-foot, 205 – 4.56
Wearing number 28, Washington looks like a running back rather than a wide receiver at times, but with a game that resembles that of Jarvis Landry, Washington has plenty of explosiveness for a guy that doesn’t have top-end speed. Washington has 117 career catches for 2,274 yards and 22 touchdowns, including 36 receptions for 731 yards and six touchdowns this year. He had nine catches for 296 yards (32.9 avg.) and two TDs to key a 45-38 win over Pittsburgh this year.

West Virginia WR Shelton Gibson
Junior – 5-11, 195 – 4.48
Gibson caught 37 passes for 887 yards and nine touchdowns last year in his first year as a starter while producing a gaudy 24-yard average. Gibson has some Odell Beckham, Jr.-like qualities in terms of speed and ability to make defenders miss, and he’s caught 23 passes for 472 yards (20.5 avg.) and two touchdowns for the undefeated Mountaineers. (Warning: explicit lyrics in the following highlights)

Louisiana Tech WR Carlos Henderson
Junior – 5-foot-11, 191 – 4.52
Henderson, who is also a kick returner for the Bulldogs, is one of the smoothest receivers in the land and has enough sneaky speedy to get deep and make defenders miss. He has 107 catches for 2,227 yards and 19 touchdowns in his career, including 42 receptions for 884 yards and 10 touchdowns this season. Henderson’s eight catches for 232 yards (29 avg.) and three TDs helped Louisiana Tech beat Western Kentucky, 55-52, and his 12-catch, 326-yard (27.2 avg.), five-touchdown day against UMass was a career day.

BIG WIDE RECEIVERS
Clemson WR Mike Williams
Junior – 6-foot-3, 225 – 4.50
After catching 77 passes for 1,346 yards and nine touchdowns in his first two years at Clemson, Williams broke a bone in his neck in the 2015 season opener and missed the rest of the year. Now healthy, Williams has returned to dominance, catching 39 passes for 578 yards (14.8 avg.) and four touchdowns as a big target for quarterback DeShaun Watson. Williams has great hands and uses his big frame to shield defenders from the ball.

Eastern Washington WR Cooper Kupp
Senior – 6-2, 215 – 4.52
Kupp came into 2016 with 311 catches for 4,764 yards (15.3 avg.) and 56 touchdowns with no less than 93 catches for 1,400 yards and 16 TDs in any season in the Eagles’ prolific offense. The FCS’ player of the year in 2015 had 12 catches for 206 yards and three TDs in a 45-42 upset of Washington State and he became the FCS all-time leading receiver in that game, too. Last year, Kupp had 15 catches for 246 yards and three TDs against Oregon. Although not terribly fluid, Kupp, has great hands, speed and power and has 46 catches for 712 yards and seven touchdowns this year.

Western Michigan WR Corey Davis
Senior – 6-3, 213 – 4.48
Davis is an incredibly productive, explosive receiver with 279 catches for 4,437 yards and 43 career touchdowns. His 44 catches for 652 yards and 10 TDs this year are a big reason why Western Michigan is undefeated and ranked in the top 25. With 15 catches over 50 yards in his career, Davis has the speed to go deep. Davis, who has been a four-year starter, has shown he can produce against NFL-caliber defensive backs from Power 5 schools with 18 catches for 250 yards and two touchdowns in two meetings against Michigan State.

Texas A&M WR Josh Reynolds
Senior – 6-4, 193 – 4.52
Reynolds burst onto the scene with 52 catches for 842 yards (16.2 avg.) and 13 touchdowns as a sophomore replacing Mike Evans for the Aggies. He followed that up with 51 catches for 907 yards (17.8 avg.) and five touchdowns last year, including a 95-yarder that showcased his speed. Although Texas A&M has a lot of weapons and spreads the ball around, Reynolds has been productive with 25 catches for 488 yards (19.5 avg.) and four scores this year, including a 92-yarder against Arkansas. Reynolds and the Aggies will face a big test this week at Alabama.

SMU WR Courtland Sutton
Redshirt Sophomore – 6-4, 215 – 4.59
Sutton burst onto the scene last year as one of the best freshman receivers with 49 catches for 862 yards (17.6 avg.) and nine touchdowns. This year, Sutton has 30 catches for 590 yards (19.7 avg.) and four scores, and has a pair of 100-yard receiving games against Big 12 schools Baylor and TCU. Sutton has good, but not great speed, and makes a lot of plays by out-leaping and out-muscling his opponents. While not a finished product, Sutton could leave for the NFL because of his NFL-ready size and ability.