Welcome to Bucks Insider Live.
Casey Phillips here with senior writer and editor Scott Smith, and we are here to bring you all the Buccaneers news that you need and our new tradition, a Bucks Trivia question. I like this one. I think this is fun. I did not know it, but I think it's very fun. So why don't we start out? And again, if you want to answer for it, leave it underneath our live Facebook video. We'll see if we can read out some of the people to get the right answer.
Later on, somebody will get it right.
Okay, all right, let's hear it.
All right. Our question this week is, and I'm doing this because we just signed a whole bunch of undrafted players like you do after the draft. And the question is who is the only undrafted player ever to make the Pro Bowl as.
A rookie for the Buccaneers.
So to be clear, some undrafted guys like Shelton Quarrels and Donald Penn have eventually made the Pro Bowl. But I'm saying they sign as undrafted rookie and to make the Probowl that year.
It's I've been done once and you.
Just helped by giving a couple of clues of who is not, so it just helps everyone to either of those people. So all right, So again, if you have the answer to that, leave it underneath our Facebook live video stream here. So right now, let's dive into because, as you pointed out, we've signed a lot of new people and you have the rookies, you've got even some other free agents they've brought in. So recently we put up the idea of the numbers of how many at each position we have on the team.
That has changed since the last time we did it, so we.
Thought we'd give an updated look at those numbers, how many guys we have at each position and what that means to the team might still need to act.
Yeah, we updated it because they did the draft and they did the undrafted free agents, and so the roster is now at ninety players. It can still change, obviously, you could release somebody and sign somebody else, but it's at ninety which is the limit, which is what you take to training camp. And you look there, teams, particular, coaching staffs and personnel staffs tend to try to hit
the same numbers closely each year. So if you look at what they bucks took to training camp at each position last year compared to what they have now, you'll see some areas where there probably will be some tweaking. Like I think they're going to need a few more receivers. You tend to like to have a lot of receivers because it's tiring they run their routes or a lot of running right as opposed to say like a defensive lineman or something, So you want to have a lot
of them on hand for training camps. So I would think you'd see a couple more of those, but it's maybe one more quarterback. Seems to be running a little heavy.
At the linebacker position right now, ten outside linebackers, and I think that's a matter of just that's hard position to fill and if you find any talent there, Like they just signed after the tryouts after the rookie mini camp, there were four guys signed that had participated on tryout contracts and one of them was a rookie outside linebacker named Marquise Watts. So I think some of these positions right now they have just signed players because they're good
and they have a shot. But I would imagine that some of those numbers will be tweaked a little bit, what.
Are some of the other factors you think in terms of why we would have certain numbers at certain positions that why might it be a little different this year versus last year, some of the motivations behind some of those different numbers or.
Now in sort of the I guess the third phase of the offseason and your roster building. You have the really quick rush of free agency and a few signs here or there in April, and then you have the draft, and after the draft, and after you signed some undrafted free agency. And remember, you don't necessarily get every one of those that you want. All the teams are calling around trying to get land the guys that they want, and so you may not get exactly what you want.
And this is when you look at your roster now and go, okay, good, we did a good job of getting enough receivers, but we have to find a few more running backs or something like that, and that could involve veteran free agents that are out there, and sometimes teams. First of all, teams waited until after the draft. I don't remember which exact May date, but it was some date in May. After that, if you sign a free agent,
it no longer counts in the compensatory formula. So a guy that if an unrestricted free agent, that if you'd signed him in March or April, he would count against you in that formula.
Now he doesn't.
And then and then after June one, you have the thing where you can spread out the salary cap pit. So you know it's this is the time to reevaluate, reevaluate your roster and say, man, I don't feel good about our cornerback situation.
We really need another veteran cornerback.
And there's guys out there in every position, obviously not superstars at this point, but there's still.
Some pretty well known free agents that are out there on the market.
Okay.
Also, I realized that we read the trivia question so quick off the top, there's probably some people that have joined in watching a little bit later. So I figured we again read it one more time, just to give people a shot, and then we'll.
Keep well in honor of us just having signed a bunch of undrafted free agents. The question is who is the only undrafted player ever to make the Pro Bowl as a rookie for the Buccaneers. So Right, signed that year as an undrafted for agent, played for the Bucks made the Pro Bowl that.
Year, Okay, I like it.
And in terms of the drafted guys on our team, I know that every year there's always typically somebody maybe you know, the later rounds that can end up making an impact on the team. And you know that there's the guys that you kind of know or maybe get you know, getting drafted early on to start, But then there's always guys that maybe that sixth, you know, round, fifth, sixth, seventh round that they're always like, man, look at that
this guy stuck around. I think about an Anthony Nelson, who's you know, had some some big impact, you know, kind of that mid round guy. What do you feel like is a guy this year that has a chance to do something like that?
Actually I kind of feel pretty good about all of our six round picks because there seems to be obvious roles for them. Josh Hayes is a shot at being the nickel. Trey Palmer is that Berner who can be sort of I guess the next Scotty Miller who can take the He could probably do more than just that, but he can take the top off the defense. But
the guy would focus on is Jose Ramirez. Which was the last of those three, and that was a very well received If you read draft braids and stuff, people think the Bucks got a little bit of a steal there.
Very very productive.
And after the draft on that night, John spy Tech he said, I'm not saying he's Shaq Barrett, but he sort of compared him to Shaq Beart because their style of play, how they just work really hard and they may not be the absolute biggest or the absolute fastest guys, which is why Shaq Barrett went undrafted out out of Colorado State and Jose Ramirez lasted until the sixth round,
but both of them are really really productive players. And actually it was kind of funny because John Spytech was making that comparison basically because of the sort of players that they were. But if you look at their last year in college and how they peaked, it's nearly identical.
I mean, look at this.
The shack is on the left and Joseier and Maris is on the right. Look at those numbers, they're practically identical. They both had twelve sacks, nineteen or nineteen and a half tackles for loss, and they both were their conference's defensive player of the year that year, so they really peaked at the right time.
Shaq arrived.
He signed with Denver as an un drafted free agent, kind of had to wait a little bit, but then became a rotational player and did well when he got playing time. But then he got a chance to start here in Tampa and we all see what happened. So hopefully, if you get anything like the sort of production that you got out of Shack from Jose Ramiers, then you've really nnowned that.
Sixth round pick.
Yeah, and I know that we talked about in the numbers that wide receiver was a position we had seen lately of Yeah, the odds are they're going to be adding Yeah, some more of those that we were low on that going into camp, and so they have made one of those editions. They've signed wide receiver. David Moore tell us a little bit about this guy and what are the odds that he's going to be a contributor.
Yeah.
The fun thing about that one was he tried out, he participated in the rookie camp on a trial contract. But he's anything like a rookie and you can do that. You know, there's no rules against that, but it kind of it's not that common. And after the draft, after the week in mini camp, the Buccaneers signed him. He was a seventh throne draft pick of the Seahawks in
twenty seventeen. But as you can see, I'm not seeing these are blowers the doors off numbers, right, But this is three years in a row of being a relatively you know, productive player, like a third or fourth receiver. You can see from his averages in his foot in eighteen and nineteen and the long receptions he had each year that he can he can get deep, he can make some big play shore. That's a lot of touchdowns honestly for the amount of playing time, thirteen touchdowns.
Wow, that's that's a lot.
So, I mean, this is the guy that's shown he can play in this league and you know, just kind of uncover that and gave you a little bit of depth there and more competition for maybe like the fifth or sixth spot on the receiving core.
Yeah, I mean we've seen we know Mike Evin's, Chris Godwin, Russell Gage, we know who those guys are to an extent what they bring to it.
So what are the other things that you feel like, what are.
The maybe the gaps or holes that the other you know, people whether it Howard Many and up with are going to be trying to fill. Is it going to be the special team's ability? And then how much is it going to be the wide receiver ability.
It's a great point in your part.
Those guys that are like the fourth, fifth, and six guys, usually you really want them to also have a special team's role, and if they don't, they have a hard time being active on game to either they maybe you're sixth receiver, but you only keep five actives.
So I'm sure all of these guys know this.
I know Trey Palmer has talked about playing on special teams as an example. But you also want a little I know you think, okay, you got Mike Evans who does this, and Godwin who does this, and Russell Gage who does this?
What else do we need? But you also need a little bit of redundancy, you know what I'm saying.
So because like Rashad Perryman didn't necessarily do anything in his last few years with Bucks that Mike Evans or Godwin didn't do. But there are times when somebody's hurt just undertaible. So it's nice to have a little bit of redundancy. You can't find a second exactly Mike Evans, but if you can find a guy that can fill the same role. You know, Mike runs a deep route and then has to come out the field for a couple snaps, and this guy goes in and can do the same thing.
Yeah, that's going to be interesting to see.
And I'm just intrigued to see how having a new offensive coordinator changes the types of guys that make those last positions. How they're wanting to use some different people. I think, you know who really excels in a new scheme.
Well, they may want somebody who can really do well in the slot, because I think the goal is to get Chris Godwin out of the slot for more. Like I don't think they want to use him as much in the slot as they have because you get beat up a lot in the side, and you know Chris, he's such a willing blocker.
Yeah, he'll take it right.
He'll take the hits and he'll deliver the hits.
And so if he plays more snaps on the outside, they think he'll be able to play more snaps period. Right, He's missed some time in the last couple of years, and he's so valuable to the offense. It's not saying he won't play in the slot, but I think he's not gonna be in there as much. So to have other guys can do that would be helpful.
Okay, all right, Well that is going to do it for us on this We have to give our answer to the trivia question before we go.
Tell us.
Sorry, everybody get it.
Nobodybody has gotten it.
I know it's so it's so crazy, but especially because it's a Smith. Oh it's Clifton Smith, is the answer. So do you want me to tell you this story?
Yes?
Tell the story.
Okay.
So in two thousand and eight, the Buccaneers use a second round pick on Appalachian state wide receiver Dexter Jackson. Not the Super Bowl MVP Dexter Jackson, They're a different one, thinking he would be the return man. It didn't really work out, and sometime about on October, the Bucks We're like, well, this isn't working out, So they brought up Clifton Smith, who they'd signed as an undrafted free agent. I'm San Diego and I mean small guy. That's why he was undrafted.
He was a very productive running back in college. But he was really small and he was amazing, Like he immediately returned to kickoff for a touchdown and you were trying to punt for a touchdown. I don't remember the exact averages, but he averaged like thirty yards per kickoff return or someone.
Wow.
And he made the Pro Bowl as a rookie. And that's the only time that's ever happened for the Bucks with an undrafted guy.
That's amazing.
I love that. All Right, that's going to do it for us on this edition of Bucks Insider Live. We will see you next time, and thanks again for watching.