The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are becoming more of a wildcard before Thursday’s NFL Draft, and today’s news thickens the plot.
According to Pro Football Talk, there is “chatter in league circles” that the Buccaneers are contemplating a move from No. 7 into the No. 2 slot. Who the team is targeting remains a mystery, though there is speculation it could be to nab one of the top targets in Sammy Watkins or Johnny Manziel.
The Bucs traded away Mike Williams to the Buffalo Bills earlier in the offseason, largely due to the wide receiver’s recent flare of off-the-field issues. Aside from perennial Pro Bowler Vincent Jackson, the team lacks a viable second option in the receiving corps.
Watkins is the consensus No. 1 wide receiver prospect in this year’s draft, and is likely to come off the board within the top five picks. Moving up to the No. 2 spot would ensure the Bucs get their guy.
Tampa Bay has also been linked to former Texas A&M wide receiver Mike Evans. Widely considered the second-best at the position in this year’s class, there has been speculation the San Francisco 49ers and the Detroit Lions may trade up to get Evans, though staying at No. 7, the Bucs have a strong shot at landing him.
Evans is currently projected to fall to the Buccaneers in the final XN Sports Mock Draft.
The team may also be considering moving on from quarterback Mike Glennon, who was drafted in 2013 under the previous regime. The team signed and already anointed Josh McCown as the team’s starter for this season, but the journeyman is set to turn 35 years old this summer and is just now coming off a career year with the Chicago Bears.
If the team is not sold on Glennon as the future under center, the team may be looking to move up in order to grab Manziel. The former Heisman Trophy winner is reportedly on the Bucs’ “short list” of potential draftees,
The St. Louis Rams’ have openly shopped the No. 2 pick, despite speculation the team is also considering drafting Manziel. Coach Jeff Fisher recently denied the team is considering moving Sam Bradford and endorsed him at the team’s pre-draft press conference.
