TAMPA, Fla. — The Buccaneers have one week before they're officially on the clock for the 2024 NFL Draft. Round number one takes plays Thursday in Detroit. Tampa Bay currently holds the 26th overall pick.
ESPN NFL analyst and Bucs 1999 first-round pick Booger McFarland likes what the Bucs have done this offseason to gain momentum going into the draft. Tampa Bay signed receiver Mike Evans and quarterback Baker Mayfield to two and three-year deals, respectively.
McFarland likes the moves because they provide stability for the franchise, even if it's just for the short term.
"You give yourself a little three-year window where you continue to get the best out of Mike Evans. You get the best out of [receiver Chris Godwin]. I think Jason Licht is in that sweet spot right now where you have a guy that can play franchise-level quarterback," McFarland explained via video chat. "However, you’re not paying the franchise-level quarterback money. So I think the Bucs are in good shape there."
The signing of Mayfield makes it highly unlikely that the Bucs will take a quarterback with the 26th pick- or anywhere else in the first round, should they decide to trade up or down. But general manager Jason Licht says he never says never when it comes to the most important position on the field.
"I’d never say that we wouldn’t take a quarterback. You could take one and be glad that you did, at some point. We like our room right now, but we’ll take a lot at all of them- we already have," Licht said in his pre-draft press conference. "There’s always that instance, you like somebody, you think he’s better than the other positions on the board, that we would consider it."
This year's draft class is considered quarterback-heavy. USC's Caleb Williams is the overwhelming favorite to go number one overall to the Chicago Bears. LSU's Jayden Daniels, North Carolina's Drake Maye, and Michigan's J.J. McCarthy could all go in the top five.
McFarland thinks Tampa native and former Washington quarterback Michael Penix, Jr. will go higher than projected (late first to early second round).
ESPN's senior NFL Draft expert Mel Kiper agrees, and he thinks a team might make a move to draft him in the first round.
"If you can reconcile the medical, he’s a first-round caliber quarterback. It’s just the four injuries at Indiana," Kiper said during a pre-draft teleconference. "They’re either going to prevent you- or if you can reconcile it and you’re okay with the medical, he’s a first-round caliber player."
Licht smiled when he said the science of drafting a quarterback is far from exact.
"If anybody could ever nail it and figure it out, then they’re going to be a wealthy person."
The first round of the draft starts at 8 p.m. on Thursday, April 25th. Rounds two and three begin Friday at 7 p.m., followed by rounds four through seven on Saturday. You can watch all the action on ABC Action News.
