FAB 2. The 12 Most Important Buccaneers In 2020

There is plenty of star power in Tampa Bay in 2020 thanks to the arrival of Pro Bowl quarterback Tom Brady and Pro Bowl tight end Rob Gronkowski this offseason. But sometimes a team’s star players aren’t always the team’s most important players, especially at positions that are thin from a depth perspective. That’s true in Tampa Bay this season.

Here is a look at the 12 most important Buccaneers in 2020 ranked in the order of importance.

1. QB Tom Brady

Bucs QB Tom Brady – Photo By: Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Imagine Blaine Gabbert starting 10 games for the Buccaneers this year – or even 16. Now you see why Brady is atop this list. He’s that important. And it’s no surprise. The starting quarterback is always the most important position on any team in the league, especially in the pass-happy modern NFL. If Jameis Winston had been re-signed by the Bucs he would the No. 1 player on this list. What solidifies Brady’s spot at the top is the “Brady effect” he’s supposed to have on the offense and in the locker room from his 20 years worth of experience in the league, and his NFL-record six Super Bowl championships.

2. K Matt Gay

Why is Gay the second name on this list? Because he’s the kicker and he’s responsible for the most points scored every year. Every NFL kicker is their team’s leading scoring. Gay accounted for 124 points last year, which was the fifth-most in the NFL, followed by Chris Godwin’s 56. As a rookie, Gay connected on 77.1 percent of his field goals (27-of-35), which ranked 23rd in the league, and made 89.6 percent of his extra points (43-of-48), which ranked 28th. Gay entered the season finale hitting 84.3 percent of his field goals before missing all three field goals in the south end zone against Atlanta in a 26-22 loss. Gay also missed a game-winning field goal in the south end zone against New York in Week 4. Had he made that kick and one of the kicks against Atlanta then Tampa Bay would have finished 9-7. The Bucs need a big year from Gay with improved accuracy in 2020.

3. LT Donovan Smith

Brady is only good to the Buccaneers if he’s upright and healthy for all 16 games. A lot of that pressure falls on Smith, who will serve as Brady’s blindside protector. Smith did a solid job for Jameis Winston over the past five years, but did give up a sack against Arizona in 2017 that resulted in Winston hurting his throwing shoulder and missing some action. The 42-year old Brady has a history of getting rid of the ball quickly, whereas Winston held on to the ball too long at times, which should help. But Bruce Arians’ passing game is vertically-based, and that forces the QB to hang in the pocket a second longer so routes can develop downfield. Smith will need to be like the Secret Service this year and be perfect in his protection by not allowing Brady to be touched even once. Josh Wells is expected to be Smith’s backup and there would be a huge drop off in talent if Smith were to get injured.

4. NT Vita Vea

Bucs NT Vita Vea – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The reason why the Buccaneers had 47 sacks last year, which was the second-most in team history, wasn’t just because of Pro Bowl outside linebacker Shaquil Barrett’s NFL-high 19.5 sacks. Vea’s presence in the middle of the defense played a huge role, and that will continue in 2020. Although Vea, Tampa Bay’s first-round pick in 2018, had just 2.5 sacks last year to go along with 35 tackles, his interior push either collapsed the pocket and forced quarterbacks to slide towards Barrett or outside linebacker Jason Pierre-Paul, who was second on the team with 8.5 sacks, or prevented the QB from stepping up into the pocket to deliver an accurate throw. The 347-pound Vea is an absolute juggernaut at nose tackle and was a huge force in Tampa Bays’ No. 1-ranked run defense, which helped set up so many third-and-long passing situations that resulted in sacks. Backup nose tackle Beau Allen is gone, and there isn’t a reserve defensive tackle on the roster that comes close to Vea’s size, physicality and sheer power.

5. C Ryan Jensen

The departure of veteran reserve Earl Watford in free agency leaves a huge hole at center behind Jensen. The only other Buccaneer that has snapping experience in an NFL game is Ali Marpet, who spent the 2017 season playing center. Jensen had a much better year in 2019 than he did in his first year in Tampa Bay, and was actually the Bucs’ highest-graded offensive lineman, according to Pro Football Focus. Jensen’s rapport with Brady will be huge for the offense in 2020, as will his prowess and physicality in the Bucs’ between-the-tackles running game. Tampa Bay is trying to groom a young reserve behind the 29-year old Jensen, and maybe it winds up being Zack Bailey or Anthony Fabiano. But neither one of those young players has any NFL playing experience, which means that Jensen must stay healthy for all 16 games this year if the Bucs offense is expected to continue to perform at a high level.

6. CB Carlton Davis

Entering his third year in the league, Davis has just 26 NFL starts under his belt, but it’s more than any other Buccaneers cornerback, which makes him an awfully important member of the Tampa Bay defense. Davis, a former second-round pick, had a breakout year in 2019 with 19 pass breakups and one interception, and is regarded as the team’s shutdown cornerback. When healthy, the Bucs’ trio of Davis, Sean Murphy-Bunting and Jamel Dean are young, talented and ascending cornerbacks. The problem is that if one of those three gets injured, especially Davis, there is no experienced backup outside of Ryan Smith, who is best as a special teams ace. With Davis as the most veteran cornerback in a division that features Drew Brees, Matt Ryan and Teddy Bridgewater his importance to Tampa Bay can’t be overstated.

7. RB Ronald Jones II

Bucs RB Ronald Jones II – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

After a disastrous rookie season, Jones, a former second-round pick in 2018, supplanted Peyton Barber for the starting role halfway through the 2019 campaign. After seeing him rush for 724 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 4.2 yards per carry, the Bucs are expecting Jones to take the next step and eclipse 1,000 yards in 2020. Entering just his third year in the league, Jones is the most experienced running back on the roster with only Dare Ogunbowale, the team’s third-down back last year, with any real playing experience on offense. Tampa Bay drafted Ke’Shawn Vaughn in the third round and added Raymond Calais in the seventh round, but both rookie runners will see their growth stunted this year due to no mini-camps or OTAs. If Jones gets injured this year the Bucs are weak on experience at running back.

8. / 9. OLB Shaq Barrett & OLB Jason Pierre-Paul

Barrett and Pierre-Paul are lumped together in this one because the Bucs could withstand losing one, but not both because of the lack of experienced depth. The Bucs couldn’t afford to use the franchise tag on Barrett, and re-sign JPP and Carl Nassib, so Nassib became the odd-man-out. Nassib recorded 12.5 sacks over the past two years in a part-time role, and no other edge rusher in Tampa Bay aside from Barrett and Pierre-Paul has recorded a single sack in the NFL. Barrett recorded nine of his 19.5 sacks through the first six games without playing opposite Pierre-Paul, but the two recorded 19 together. If Barrett or JPP get injured, the Bucs would be left with just one proven edge rusher without Nassib in 2020, and that would lead to double teams and probably a serious drop in pass rush production. Either Barrett or JPP would be ranked higher if the Bucs had only one of these talented pass rushers on the team.

10. / 11. WR Mike Evans & WR Chris Godwin

The Bucs saw what life was like without Evans down the stretch after he tore his hamstring in Week 14 on a touchdown catch against Indianapolis. Tampa Bay won that game due in part to Godwin’s seven catches for 91 yards, and Godwin came through the next week in a win at Detroit, catching five passes for 121 yards before a hamstring injury in that game forced him to miss the last two weeks of the season. Breshad Perriman, the Bucs’ No. 3 receiver, helped pick up the slack last year with three straight 100-yard games, but he departed for the New York Jets in free agency. Tampa Bay doesn’t have much experience behind Evans and Godwin, and if one of those Pro Bowl receivers were to go down the other one would see a significant amount of double coverage. Having a Pro Bowl-caliber tight end like Rob Gronkowski would help shoulder some of the load in the receiving game, but expect a drop in point production if Evans or Godwin gets hurt because that’s what happened in the last two games of the season in 2019.

12. OLB Lavonte David

Bucs ILB Lavonte David – Photo by the Buccaneers

David is one of the Bucs’ Top 5 players, but he makes this list at No. 12 because Tampa Bay has a quality back up in veteran Kevin Minter, who stepped in at MIKE linebacker last year when Devin White missed time after a Week 2 knee injury. Whether Minter would replace David at MO linebacker or replace White, who would slide over to David’s spot, is unknown because David didn’t miss any games last year. David is still a big-time playmaker, who hasn’t lost a step despite turning 30 in January. Without an experienced linebacker like Minter on the roster, David would be ranked much higher on this list.