Tampa Bay Buccaneers Draft Rumors: Teams Looking To Trade Up With Buccaneers for Fletcher Cox?

According to Jason LaCanfora of NFL Network, 'some clubs are exploring options to trade with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' with the object of drafting defensive tackle Fletcher Cox ahead of the St. Louis Rams, who have the sixth pick in the draft. This, to me, is the first realistic scenario for a trade down for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Other scenarios mostly involved Ryan Tannehill, who teams could trade up for, but would trade up for with Jacksonville at number seven.

I wrote about Fletcher Cox and the Bucs' needs at defensive tackle yesterday, but selecting a DT should be low down the priority list for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Meanwhile, obtaining more selections should be pretty high on the list of priorities for the Bucs, especially given the fact that they have more holes to fill on their team than they have draft picks. If the Bucs do move down, they could target any number of players who would fill major needs on their team. Safety Mark Barron, linebackers Mark Kuechly and Dont'a Hightower, cornerbacks Stephon Gilmore and Dre Kirkpatrick or running back Doug Martin depending on how far they move down.

So why is this rumor a little more realistic than most? Because good pass-rushing defensive tackles are hard to come by, and Fletcher Cox is a good pass-rushing defensive tackles. In some ways he reminds me of Gerald McCoy, and I even suggested the Bucs could draft him yesterday. File this under 'rumors', but there could be more truth to this one than most.