The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have notoriously been overlooked during offseason polls and rankings. But it appears those days may be over.
Every offseason, ESPN publishes a positional ranking of the NFL’s top players. This is based on input from executives, coaches and scouts. This exercise offers a unique look at who the league’s key decision-makers consider the best at each position.
The Buccaneers had a strong showing, with multiple players ranking among the top-10. They also had several others receiving honorable mentions.
Six Buccaneers – Baker Mayfield, Mike Evans, Antoine Winfield Jr., Lavonte David, Vita Vea and Tristan Wirfs – cracked the list at their respective positions. Notably, some players, such as Bucky Irving and Cade Otton, were left off, raising a few eyebrows.
The number of Buccaneers players on these lists highlights the roster’s overall talent, a testament to GM Jason Licht’s roster-building efforts. The Buccaneers ranked among the top 5 teams league-wide in terms of players making the cut, with only elite teams like the Eagles (10), Lions (8), and Ravens (8) surpassing Tampa’s six representatives.
NFL executives, coaches and scouts view the Buccaneers as having one of the league’s deepest pools of elite talent. With a strong core of established players and a promising group of young talents like Yaya Diaby, Zyon McCollum, Calijah Kancey, Graham Barton, Cody Mauch and Bucky Irving, the Buccaneers are well-positioned for con
