FAB 4. THE NFC SOUTH’S BIGGEST DRAFT THREATS FOR THE BUCS
Despite having the 19th overall pick, there should be plenty of options for Tampa Bay when the Buccaneers are on the clock in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft. PewterReport.com is going to spend the month of April reviewing those options for the Bucs – beginning with the new 2017 Bucs’ 7-Round Mock Draft 4.0 on Saturday, April 1.

And that’s no April Fool’s Day joke.

But what about Tampa Bay’s NFC South foes? Who are the players the Bucs would least likely want to face twice per year?

Like last year, I’ve taken the liberty of coming up with the offensive and defensive options for the first-round picks of Carolina, New Orleans and Atlanta. Here’s what I’ve come up with.

No. 8 Carolina – Offensive Threat: LSU RB Leonard Fournette
Although I would be more afraid of Florida State running back Dalvin Cook going to the Panthers at No. 8, head coach Ron Rivera has had the most success with big bruising running backs like Jonathan Stewart and Mike Tolbert. DeAngelo Williams was more of a versatile, speed back like Cook, and he fared well in Carolina, but Rivera likes smash-mouth football and wants to get back to being more physical on offense.

LSU RB Leonard Fournette – Photo by: Getty Images

At 6-foot, 240 pounds, Fournette ran an impressive 4.51 in the 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine and rushed for 1,034 yards as a freshman and 1,953 yards and 22 touchdowns as a sophomore at LSU. Although a nagging ankle injury robbed him of some production as a junior, he did have five 100-yard games, including a 287-yard, three-touchdown masterpiece against Ole Miss.

Fournette is a man-child with the ability to outrun and run over defenders, and he would be a nightmare to face twice per year for an undersized defense like Tampa Bay’s. The key to stopping a big back like Fournette is getting after him before he gets going. With a premier runner like Fournette on the roster, the Panthers would seek to upgrade their offensive line and add bigger maulers in the run game over the next year or two to give quarterback Cam Newton some balance on offense.

No. 8 Carolina – Defensive Threat: LSU Jamaal Adams
Adams is a top 5-caliber player with tremendous leadership ability and playmaking ability. Right now the Panthers have 36-year old Mike Adams as the starting free safety, but with Adams’ addition, Kurt Coleman can move to free safety where his ballhawking skills can best be taken advantage of and Adams could be the team’s strong safety.

LSU S Jamal Adams – Photo by: Getty Images

Carolina’s secondary was a mess last year, especially at the cornerback position after cutting Pro Bowler Josh Norman. The Panthers drafted three cornerbacks, including James Bradberry, who looks like a keeper, Daryl Worley and Zack Sanchez. They all gained some valuable experience last year, and adding a safety like Adams will only improve the secondary over time.

It’s never fun to see a player the Bucs really like taken by a division rival, and Tampa Bay really likes Adams despite the fact that he’ll be long gone by the time the Bucs are on the clock at No. 19. Seeing Adams twice a year won’t be any fun for Jameis Winston, Mike Evans and DeSean Jackson.

No. 11 New Orleans – Offensive Threat: Washington WR John Ross
The Saints traded speed receiver Brandin Cooks, a former first-round pick, to New England for two reasons. First, New Orleans didn’t want to have to pay a king’s ransom to re-sign Cooks in a year or two. And second, the Saints defense really needs some help, especially in the secondary.

Washington WR John Ross – Photo by: Getty Images

Adding Ross, the fastest player to enter the NFL, is a dream come true for head coach Sean Payton and future Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees. Ross is a faster, more explosive version of Ross, and he’ll be on a rookie contract for the next four or five years. Imagine Ross returning kickoffs and playing alongside fellow receivers Michael Thomas, Willie Snead, newly signed Ted Ginn and Brandon Coleman, in addition to tight end Coby Fleener. That’s a lot of weapons for the Bucs secondary to cover.

The real problem with facing Ross twice per year for Tampa Bay is that they don’t have the speed to match him in the secondary, and once a year they will have to cover him on the fast turf of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. The Bucs better hope that the Saints want to address the defensive side of the ball instead of getting another blazing fast weapon for Brees in Ross, who had 81 catches for 1,150 yards and 17 touchdowns last year as a junior.

No. 11 New Orleans – Defensive Threat: Tennessee DE Derek Barnett
The Saints need help rushing the passer. New Orleans got a nice addition to its defensive line with last year’s first-round pick defensive Sheldon Rankins, but a broken leg sidelined him for the first half of his rookie year. The Saints re-signed defensive tackle Nick Fairley this offseason, but need a bookend for Pro Bowler Cameron Jordan.

Tennessee DE Derek Barnett – Photo by: Getty Images

Barnett was a model of consistency and improvement at Tennessee where he recorded nine sacks as a freshman, 10 sacks as a sophomore and a career-high 13 quarterback captures as a junior. He also recorded three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and one interception for the Volunteers, and notched 52 tackles for loss in addition to his 32 career sacks.

Barnett would be a huge upgrade over Obum Gwacham and Alex Okafor at the left defensive end position, which is where he played at Tennessee. Because he had a good deal of success as a freshman at Tennessee with 20.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks, he could give Tampa Bay left tackle Donovan Smith fits as a rookie twice a year.

No. 31 Atlanta – Offensive Threat: TE David Njoku
What more could the Falcons do to improve the best offense in the NFL? They have the league’s reigning MVP in quarterback Matt Ryan, the NFL’s best receiver in Julio Jones, some great complimentary receivers in Mohamed Sanu and Taylor Gabriel. With a solid offensive line and a great running back tandem in Devonta Freeman and Tevin Coleman, the only place Atlanta could really use an upgrade is at tight end.

Miami TE David Njoku – Photo by: Getty Images

Austin Hooper, Levine Toilolo and Jacob Tamme are decent tight ends, but none of them have the field to stretch the field and work the seam the way Njoku could. At the age of 20, Njoku, a junior out of Miami, is far from a finished product. But with veterans like Hooper, Toilolo and Tamme already on the roster, there wouldn’t be a need to rush Njoku into the starting lineup, and he has plenty of mentors willing to help groom the rookie.

The Bucs really like Njoku, so it would be a shame to see him head to a division rival and face him twice a year. Tampa Bay does have the linebackers to match him down the field from a speed standpoint in Kwon Alexander and Lavonte David, but the truth is that elite tight ends on opposing teams have given the Bucs fits in coverage over the last couple of years. When he matures in a year or two, Njoku is going to be a handful as a receiving threat.

No. 31 Atlanta – Defensive Threat: S Obi Melifonwu
Most NFL mock drafts have a defensive end mocked to Atlanta at No. 31 from the likes of Missouri’s Charles Harris to Kansas State’s Jordan Willis to Wisconsin’s T.J. Watt. But the addition of defensive tackle Dontari Poe could force Ra’Shede Hageman outside to left defensive end on run downs opposite Reed Brooks or Adrian Clayborn.

UConn S Obi Melifonwu – Photo by: Getty Images

The Falcons use Vic Beasley as a defensive end in nickel rush passing downs, so the cupboard isn’t bare when it comes to getting after the quarterback as he had 15.5 sacks and six forced fumbles in a breakout year. But Atlanta could use more size and an upgrade over strong safety Ricardo Allen, who is just 5-foot-9, 186 pounds. The 6-foot-4, 224-pound Melifonwu is an instant upgrade from a size and athleticism standpoint as he ran a 4.4 at the NFL Scouting Combine and was the top performer among safeties athletically.

Melifonwu is on the Bucs’ radar, so it might be a bit painful to face him twice per year because he has the size and speed to match-up one-on-one with tight ends in man coverage as well as the physicality to support the run. Due to his height and wingspan, Melifonwu has the reach to make like difficult for big receivers like Tampa Bay’s Evans and would force Winston to be super accurate or risk being picked off. Melifonwu had eight career interceptions at UConn, including four last year as a senior.

Do you agree or disagree with my NFC South threat picks? Let me know what you think. Sound off in the article commenting section below.