What the Buccaneers say they need

On reviewing some notes from the middle of last season, I came upon a list of needs from a source close to the team.  A few weeks later, another source within One Buccaneer Place gave me a similar list.  Matching up the lists gives the following list of where the Buccaneers may be watching as the 2012 NFL Combine approaches.

Need #1: Cornerback
Both sources had corner at the top of the list, with the departure of Ronde Barber in the near future (neither said this was the season, but both felt the playing career could stop in the next few years).  Other reasons include the inability of Aqib Talib to have a quiet offseason.  Finally, the team believes there is talent on the roster for this position, but wants more fuel on the fire.

Need #2: Offensive Linemen
The current set of offensive linemen have played mostly intact for the past four years, which is spectacular.  However, C Jeff Faine is entering his tenth offseason and three of the other four starters up front are entering thier seventh offseason (tackles Donald Penn and Jeremy Trueblood and guard Davin Joseph).  The team needs to continue developing young linemen like G Ted Larson and T Derek Hardman so when these veterans complete their careers there are ready and able replacements available.

Need #3: Quarterback
This one surprised me.  It appears the Buccaneers are of the opinion with the new roster limits that carrying a third quarterback will soon be a thing of the past in the NFL.  In that spirit, a top-flight backup becomes that much more important.  QB Josh Johnson could start for other NFL teams and may get his chance during the free agency period this year.  Tampa Bay may try to grab a rookie signal-caller in the middle rounds to backup Freeman for the next several years, hoping the young player will be able to step in right away if needed.

Need #4: Linebacker
Both Geno Hayes and Quincy Black spent time out of the starting lineup this season because of poor performance on the field.  The team believes Dakota Watson is making strides along with Mason Foster.  Drafting a third young linebacker means there is a talented next wall of players ready to step forward if the group does not perform up to the expectations of the new coaching staff.

These needs may have changed since midseason, but I believe the reasons here still apply.  I would expect the Buccaneers to address these positions in some way during the 2012 offseason.

Barber Outlasts Classmates

With the signing of Ronde Barber, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Class of 1997 appears to have reached "Sole Survivor" status.  And what a class it has been.

Of the ten players selected in 1997, eight went on to have solid NFL careers of five or more seasons:

• 3rd Rounder Ronde Barber - 14 Seasons (all with Tampa Bay)
• 6th Rounder Al Harris - 13 Seasons (7 with Green Bay, 5 with Philadelphia, 1 with Miami)
• 1st Rounder Warrick Dunn - 12 Seasons (6 with Tampa Bay, 6 with Atlanta)
• 4th Rounder Alshermond Singleton - 10 Seasons (6 with Tampa Bay, 4 with Dallas)
• 2nd Rounder Jerry Wunsch - 9 Seasons (5 with Tampa Bay, 4 with Seattle)
• 3rd Rounder Frank Middleton - 8 Seasons (4 with Tampa Bay, 4 with Oakland)
• 5th Rounder Patrick Hape - 8 Seasons (4 with Tampa Bay, 4 with Denver)
• 1st Rounder Reidel Anthony - 5 Seasons (all with Tampa Bay)

Nigea Carter and Anthony DeGrate, also drafted by Tampa Bay in 1997, failed to make the team.

Is there a more impressive group of draft picks?  Currently, only the 1987 Draft Class is the only draft class in the history of Buccaneer football which has played more games in a Tampa Bay Buccaneer uniform.  Yet only Barber and Singleton won SuperBowl rings with the Buccaneers.

Al Harris, one of the all time "one that got away" stories in Buccaneer Draft history, may have just completed his carrer this past season.  After being cut by the Green Bay Packers, Harris landed with Miami last season.  However, as of today, he is not shown on the Dolphins offseason roster.  Imagine the decade the Harris and Barber tandem would have posted if Harris had remained a Buccaneer.

With the impending retirement of Harris, Ronde Barber has now established yet another milestone in his carrer.  As the Last Man Playing for one of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers all-time draft classes, Barber continues to highlight one of the most amazing careers in Tampa Bay history.

Final 2010 Roster: 63% Drafted

Here are (in alphabetical order) the players Tampa Bay has drafted and retained on their roster through the 2010 season:


Ronde Barber (1997)
Arrelious Benn (2010)
E.J. Biggers (2009)
Quincy Black (2007)
Josh Freema (2009)
Cody Grimm (2010)
Geno Hayes (2008)
Adam Hayward (2007)
Tanard Jackson (2007)
Josh Johnson (2008)
Davin Joseph (2006)
Myron Lewis (2010)
Erik Lorig (2010)
Gerald McCoy (2010)
Roy Miller (2009)
Kyle Moore (2009)
Brian Price (2010)
Barrett Ruud (2005)
Maurice Stovall (2006)
Sammie Stroughter (2009)
Aqib Talib (2008)
Jeremy Trueblood (2006)
Dekoda Watson (2010)
Cadillac Williams (2005)
Mike Williams (2010)
Jeremy Zuttah (2008)


These 26 men represent 63% of the 67 players on the Buccaneers final roster of 2010.


The ageless Ronde Barber continues to be the old man of the group from the Class of 1997, but every class since 2005 still has two or more players on the team.