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Going Over The 2006 Buccaneers Draft

When I started this series, I knew I wouldn't be writing about rainbows and daisies. We all know during GM Bruce Allen time here that we had a terrible time drafting starters. What I didn’t realize was how bad he was at drafting for depth too. And as I write this, I have only gone over two seasons of data. Well, here is the third. Also, special shout out to Hockie Duckie with the idea of using CAV.

After the 2005, in which the Buccaneers went 11-5 and made the playoffs, GM Bruce Allen decided to stay quiet in free agency. We resigned Chris Simms, who led us to the playoff after Brian Griese got injured. We also resigned WR Ike Hilliard, K Matt Byrant, TE Dave Moore, Anthony McFarland, Kenyatta Walker, Mike Alstott, and Chris Hovan. We continued to sign older players, the likes being WR David Boston and decent young talent in FB Jerald Sowell, LB Jamie Winborn, and CB Torrie Cox. We tried to sign Guard Toniu Fonoti but he failed his physical. After free agency, many people felt we still had holes at OT, CB, WR, and DE. Our own, Sander Philipse, felt we should upgrade our whole OL except for LG. I’ll go one step further and say we also needed to address our DT situation and FS due to Dexter Jackson leaving.

1st Round

So when the Buccaneers headed into the 2006 NFL Draft, we had needs at OT, OG, C, WR, DE, DT, CB, and FS. While some of the needs were due to age or injury, I.E. CB and WR, others were out of basic needs. With the 23rd pick in the NFL Draft, we decided to take Davin Joseph out of Oklahoma. In his senior year, he won First-Team All-Big 12 as a guard. Looking at the numbers, He was big, fast, and strong. Plain and simple, he was one of the best Guards in the draft.

Rd Pck Pos F. Name L. Name Drafted Team H W 40Yd 20Yd 10Yd Bench Vert Broad 20SS 3Cone CAV/PG
1 23 G Davin Joseph Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75 311 5.09 3.01 1.74 24 32.0 111 4.73 7.74 31%
2 47 G Daryn Colledge Green Bay Packers 77 299 5.05 2.91 1.71 22 32.5 110 4.60 7.46 41%
2 56 G Chris Chester Baltimore Ravens 76 303 4.83 2.85 1.68 27 31.5 106 4.51 7.33 29%
4 108 G Jahri Evans New Orleans Saints 77 316 5.25 3.11 1.81 20 27.0 95 4.88 7.98 72%
6 199 G Charlie Johnson Indianapolis Colts 76 298 39%

By using CAV divided by the possible games played in his Career, he was actually the 5th best Guard taken in the draft. But if you base it off of just the NFL Combine and Pro Day numbers, he is second to Daryn Colledge. But due to the size difference, 12 pounds, and that we wanted a mauler, I can see why we chose Davin Joseph. I could list the possible players drafted based off of needs but the list would be endless. The top three players we missed were C Nick Mangold, OT Marcus McNeill, and WR Greg Jennings.

2nd Round

Since our need at Guard was gone, we still needed a way to protect our QB Chris Simms. In doing so, we decided to draft OT Jeremy Trueblood with the 59th pick in the NFL Draft. A tall but average guy, he turned one of the slowest 40yd, 20yd, and 10yd dash by a lineman his size. He was also just average in both of the agility tests too. But GM Bruce Allen saw something on tape that we didn’t and decided to draft him.

Rd Pck Pos F. Name L. Name Drafted Team H W 40Yd 20Yd 10Yd Bench Vert Broad 20SS 3Cone CAV/PG
1 4 OT D'Brickashaw Ferguson New York Jets 78 312 5.08 30.0 107 4.85 7.62 37%
2 59 OT Jeremy Trueblood Tampa Bay Bucs 80 316 5.25 3.09 1.86 20 27.5 96 4.71 7.84 29%
3 66 OT Eric Winston Houston Texans 79 310 4.94 2.89 1.70 22 33.0 108 4.49 7.47 36%
6 187 OT Jeromey Clary San Diego Chargers 78 309 5.26 3.12 1.87 26 29.5 102 4.66 7.75 38%

By using CAV/PG, Jeremy Trueblood turned out to be the 6th best OT in the draft. What is clearly visible to me is that the 5th best, Eric Winston, is leaps and bounds better from a statistical view. Eric Winston was better than Trueblood and it showed on the playing field. Why we decided to pass on him, which he was drafted 7 picks later, is beyond me. Just after our pick, the Jaguars took RB Maurice Jones-Drew and well we all know what happened there. But based off our needs, the best three we could’ve chosen were CB Tim Jennings, DE Daryll Tapp, and DT Dusty Dvoracek along with OT Eric Winston.

3rd Round

Just to update, our needs have been slimmed down to C, WR, DE, DT, CB, and FS. We have built the right side of our offensive line with the first two picks. Now considering our offense was terrible compared to our defense, we could either go for a C or WR. With the 90th pick in the NFL Draft, we chose WR Maurice Stovall. Based simply on his height and weight, it looks like GM Bruce Allen decided we needed a possession receiver. In doing so, he got one of the slowest WR that was terrible at jumping but had good agility. What they got was the 14th best WR in the Draft.

Rd Pck Pos F. Name L. Name Drafted Team H W 40Yd 20Yd 10Yd Bench Vert Broad 20SS 3Cone CAV/PG
1 25 WR Santonio Holmes Pittsburgh Steelers 71 188 4.35 38.0 126 4.26 6.82 33%
2 52 WR Greg Jennings Green Bay Packers 71 197 4.42 2.60 1.57 36.5 117 4.18 6.69 44%
3 90 WR Maurice Stovall Tampa Bay Buccaneers 77 217 4.55 2.69 1.60 35.0 124 4.16 6.81 4%
4 119 WR Brandon Marshall Denver Broncos 77 229 4.52 2.71 1.60 37.0 120 4.31 6.96 50%
7 252 WR Marques Colston New Orleans Saints 77 224 4.50 2.65 1.60 37.0 123 4.44 6.96 49%

Looking at the data, you can see that both Brandon Marshall and Marques Colston are both heavier but can run faster and jump higher than Stovall. Although they don’t have as well of agility, they are fairly average overall. That means they can run routes but don’t ask them to be perfect at it. As I look for needs, I see that G Jahri Evans, FS Ko Simpson, and DT Jason Hatcher were all great players that were taken after Stovall but before our next pick. That includes Brandon Marshall too.

4th Round

In the 4th Round, we decided to draft CB Alan Zemaitis. If anyone knows his name, it’s because he was highly picked but never played a game. It’s also called a Bust in NFL terms. He was big and tall and agile but slow and couldn’t jump that high for a CB. For falling in love with agility numbers, like with Stovall, GM Bruce Allen drafted the worst CB in the draft. Take a look at the numbers:

Rd Pck Pos F. Name L. Name Drafted Team H W 40Yd 20Yd 10Yd Bench Vert Broad 20SS 3Cone CAV/PG
1 19 CB Antonio Cromartie San Diego Chargers 74 208 4.38 2.70 1.58 18 42.0 132 3.89 7.02 42%
2 62 CB Tim Jennings Indianapolis Colts 68 185 4.32 2.51 1.48 17 37.5 117 4.34 31%
4 122 CB Alan Zemaitis Tampa Bay Buccaneers 73 194 4.57 10 30.0 117 4.18 6.68 0%
7 215 CB Cortland Finnegan Tennessee Titans 70 188 4.34 14 44.0 128 4.34 6.95 38%

Both Cromartie and Jennings were drafted before Zemaitis and for good reason. They were both faster and could jump higher than Zemaitis with reasonable agility. Sandwiched in between them is 7th round pick Cortland Finnegan. He was very similar to Cromartie and Jennings but was very good at reading the QB’s eyes. It’s too bad we skipped drafting him 7 times. The three other possible choices are a brutal list. DT Kyle Williams, DE Elvis Dumervil, and DT Barry Cofield all could have insured our defensive line had the ability to pass rush the QB.

5th Round

As we continue through the draft, you can see that we are drafting for need. Our list of needs has been whittled down to DE, DT, FS, and C. And this pick is no different. With the 156th pick in the NFL Draft, we selected DE Julian Jenkins out of Stanford. At first view of his combine and pro day numbers, this pick was absolutely terrible. He was the slowest DE in the draft although fairly agile. But GM Bruce Allen must have seen something on film to draft him. But what the Bucs got out of him was the 13th best DE in the draft. Out of 16.

Rd Pck Pos F. Name L. Name Drafted Team H W 40Yd 20Yd 10Yd Bench Vert Broad 20SS 3Cone CAV/PG
1 1 DE Mario Williams Houston Texans 79 295 4.70 2.77 1.60 35 40.5 120 4.37 7.21 49%
5 156 DE Julian Jenkins Tampa Bay Buccaneers 76 277 4.95 2.95 1.76 25 34.5 110 4.24 7.11 6%
5 159 DE Mark Anderson Chicago Bears 76 254 4.62 2.74 1.64 20 42.0 127 4.24 6.96 18%
6 191 DE Jeremy Mincey New England Patriots 76 259 4.68 27 33.5 121 4.25 7.01 22%

As you can see, Mario Williams was the best player in the draft. Mark Anderson and Jeremy Mincey were both on the smaller side but were faster than and just as agile as Jenkins. I don’t understand why we chose Jenkins over Mincey or Anderson other than his size. And both of them are on the list of players we missed out on including FS Reed Doughty.

6th Round

In the 6th round, we were lucky enough to have two picks. What we did with them helped the team in the short run but not much else. With the 194th pick in the NFL Draft, we selected QB Bruce Gradkowski. Due to him being a QB, the scouting and pro day numbers don’t really matter. In this draft, only two QB’s stuck out. One was Vince Young and the other was Jay Cutler and both were gone by the 12th pick. We missed out on DE Melvin Oliver (who was injured and had no numbers) and G Charlie Johnson.

With the 2nd pick in the 6th round we selected TE T.J. Williams out of NC State. If you don’t know of him, it’s okay. He never played a game in the NFL. He was fast in his 40 time but slow everywhere else. Based off his career, we got the 2nd worst TE in the draft.

Rd Pck Pos F. Name L. Name Drafted Team H W 40Yd 20Yd 10Yd Bench Vert Broad 20SS 3Cone CAV/PG
1 6 TE Vernon Davis San Francisco 49ers 75 254 4.38 2.59 1.51 33 42.0 128 4.17 7.00 29%
6 175 TE Delanie Walker San Francisco 49ers 73 240 4.49 2.68 1.65 36.5 127 4.60 7.23 14%
6 202 TE T. J. Williams Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75 269 4.72 2.76 1.69 25 34.0 111 4.58 7.50 0%
7 244 TE Tim Massaquoi Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75 259 4.85 32 29.0 110 4.34 6.92 0%

As you can see, the last good TE in the draft was Delanie Walker who was taken about 30 picks before. Sadly, we missed out on some good players. FS Antoine Bethea was one of the best in his position based off his numbers. CB Cortland Finnegan was mentioned earlier. And C Will Montgomery is still playing to this day. For special mention, OT Zach Strief and SS Jarrad Page were also drafted before our next pick.

7th Round

We had 3 picks in this round but all of them were in the bottom half of the round. Due to their position, we shouldn’t have expected to get anything out of them. But onto the picks!

With the 235th pick in the NFL Draft, we selected SS Justin Phinisee. He had no scouting numbers so it is safe to assume we drafted him based off of his tape. Sadly, it didn’t turn out well and he never played a down in the NFL.

With the 241st pick, we decided to take OLB Charles Bennett. He was bigger than our usual LB and exceptionally slower, I don’t understand the pick. In the end, his CAV was 0 as he didn’t contribute.

With the 244th pick, and our last, we took TE Tim Massaquoi. As from the round 6 table, you can see that he was fairly agile though slow. He did have a big body though. Sadly, he also ended with a CAV of 0.

Again, considering all of these picks were in the bottom half of the 7th round, one wouldn’t expect to find a star here. Sadly, we missed one in WR Marques Colston. If you see the round 3 table, you can see how big and fast he was compared to Stovall. Here is a list of the rest of the 7th round picks we missed: P Ryan Plackemeier, WR Benjamin Obomanu, and G Mark Setterstrom.

Conclusion

As you can see, drafting for need helped wonderfully in the first 2 rounds. We drafted starters in both rounds that solidified our offensive line for multiple years. After that, we drafted one 3rd WR and a back-up QB. If we drafted on Best Player Available, this draft might have turned out differently. Yes, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers might have had a few holes to fill but the strength of the team would’ve been stronger and longer.

Previous Draft Articles

Terrible Drafting by the Buccaneers

2004 Buccaneers Draft

2005 Buccaneers Draft

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