Drafting Buccaneers: Who Stood Out and Who Needs to Step Up at Senior Bowl

The NFL calendar waits for nobody and while the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are busy figuring out how to retain as much talent as possible for the 2022 season, the evaluations on who to add in April’s draft meeting are also being developed and finalized.

With the Senior Bowl’s first practice on Tuesday, we got to see some of the potential talents on display.

Some players did well for themselves and their draft stock, while others need a strong Day 2 in Mobile.

Here, we review two of each, starting with the standouts.

NATIONAL TEAM CORNERBACK, COBY BRYANT (CINCINNATI)

It’s not going to surprise many that a Bearcats defender did well in this group setting.

Bryant lived up to expectations with his competitiveness and ability to hang with all the receivers present at this year’s Senior Bowl.

Doing it once isn’t enough, however, and talent evaluators will be looking for an equally strong performance on Wednesday.

AMERICAN TEAM WIDE RECEIVER, CALVIN AUSTIN III (MEMPHIS)

Austin jumped off the field in each phase of practice and showcased his skills in a variety of ways.

With versatility being a major key in measuring how desirable a player is in this era of passing in the NFL, the more one man can do, the better.

Despite subpar quarterback play at times from his teammates, the Memphis receiver was still able to showcase his talents for NFL scouts and personnel and will be looking to do the same on Day 2.

Day 1 struggles at the Senior Bowl aren’t career-killers. In fact, some measure of a learning curve is expected.

With that in mind, these two players need to come out looking improved from the lessons and experiences of the first day, to help stabilize their stock, and even improve it with a jump in performance.

AMERICAN TEAM QUARTERBACK, MALIK WILLIS (LIBERTY)

Willis made some of the best throws on Tuesday, and some of the worst.

While the upside of this quarterback prospect is what has him on the radar for so many teams, today’s impatient NFL landscape won’t have many coaches interested in a multi-year project.

Liberty’s playmaker needs to show he can improve on decision making and accuracy on Day 2, or risk seeing his stock fall quickly as excitement about his upside become overshadowed by questions about his floor.

NATIONAL TEAM QUARTERBACK, CARSON STRONG (NEVADA)

Not a strong outing for perhaps the most hyped quarterback group to ever take the field in Mobile, Alabama.

Still, Day 2 is crucial, and better mental processing will go a long way in helping Strong stay relevant in this quarterback showcase.

At one point on Day 1, Strong threw a more-than-questionable rocket into the air that seemed to take forever to come down.

When it did, his receiver was blanketed by two defenders and had no chance of making a play on the ball.

If stress and pressure will make a quarterback do that in practice, what happens on game day?

This isn’t the only question people will have about Strong if his second day at practice goes the way his first did.

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