The Bucs & Derek Barnett
April 11th, 2017
Sacks on the brain at One Buc Palace
With a pile of accomplished veterans on their defensive line, and a D-line coach with an impressive resumé, Tampa Bay possesses an incredible incubator with which develop a young pass rusher.
Will they use it?
Sure, the Bucs have Noah Spence, last year’s second-round pick at defensive end. But he’s just one guy, and he’s coming off shoulder surgery. And he is highly questionable against the run, even when healthy.
The Bucs need more juice and youth on the D-line. It’s obvious and advisable.
Perhaps that’s why general manager Jason Licht burned one of his official pre-draft visits in Tampa on defensive end Derek Barnett out of the University of Tennessee, per Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
Barnett, just 20 years old, was a stud from the minute he walked into the SEC as a freshman. His 32 sacks over three seasons, including leading the conference in sacks (13) and tackles for loss (19) is damn impressive.
What’s even more impressive is this detailed breakdown of Barnett’s game by former Bucs DE Steve White (1996-2001), who also has coached college D-linemen and was a recent Bucs coaching intern under Lovie Smith.
White believes Barnett can be a complete defensive end, a double-digit sack guy, and he says Barnett is better in multiple areas than soon-to-be No. 1 overall pick DE Myles Garrett out of Texas A&M.
Barnett should be a first-round pick. Mock drafts Joe has seen place him going anywhere from No. 8 to the bottom of the first round.
Joe would applaud the drafting of Barnett, who seems to have a lot of versatility. It’s just impossible to have too many guys who legitimately harass a quarterback.
A defensive end typically needs a year to settle in to the NFL before big-time production arrives. So Joe thinks the timing is just right to add a guy like Barnett in the first round.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:34 am
If we pass on him we will regret it. Top 5 player this draft.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:37 am
Selfishly I would like to see us draft a potentially elite Weapon for Jame
April 11th, 2017 at 10:40 am
Jameis*, but I think the best thing we could do in round 1 would be to draft a pass rusher or a top tier Defensive back.
In the NFC South, if you can build a defense that is capable of shutting down Matt Ryan and Drew Brees, then your chances of winning the division rise exponentially.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:40 am
watched him in several games esp against the gators guy is a flat out stud with an attitude that would melt the ice cream man’s truck
April 11th, 2017 at 10:44 am
Blake I would rather risk a shoot out with Matt Ice Or Brews than “trying” to stop them.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:52 am
Would love Barnett.
It is interesting to see who we bring in because last year we brought in Hargreaves, Spence, & Ryan Smith and ended up drafting all of them. And in general I’m guessing a lot of other guys we brought in were heavily considered (Rankins / Nkedivish or whatever / Emmanuel Ogbah / and a few others).
This is who we’ve brought in for private visits thus far:
Derek Barnett DE
Taco Chalrton DE
Jordan Willis DE
D’Onta Forman RB
Joe Mixon RB
Joe Williams RB
Chris Godwin WR
Curtis Samuel WR
OJ Howard TE
David Njoku TE
Adoree Jackson CB
Xavier Woods SS
We’ve also shown a ton of interest in lots of other players between combine private visits and showing up at pro days but I’m curious to see how much this may point to who we draft
April 11th, 2017 at 10:53 am
I hear you Blake_bucsfan. We have nothing but very good QBs in our division, two possibly top five (Ryan, Breese). We need to be getting after these guys. Would love Barnett in the first and not too upset if they got Charles Harris if Barnett was off the board.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:53 am
Much better chance one of the top skill position guys will fall to us than Barnett.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:54 am
What 941 said.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:55 am
I would LOVE to get Barnett but he should be LONG GONE by #19 me thinks
April 11th, 2017 at 10:56 am
If he’ll come inn and give us Jevon Kearse numbers year one fine( which he prolly won’t) but if he has to develop like most DE do I’ll pass give my QB a weapon. To h3ll wit Buc ball I wanna put up points.
April 11th, 2017 at 10:58 am
If he is available when we pick then I would be fine with getting him. DE is very worthy of 1st round picks. If that were to play out then we have to go BPA at RB,TE,WR, SAM LB, and Safety not necessarily in that order.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:01 am
Derek Barnett is on my wishlist, so that would make me happy.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:05 am
Sack artist and snap-jumper with limited athletic ability. Should be productive because he knows how to get to the QB but limited athletes at DE tend not to rise to the top
April 11th, 2017 at 11:10 am
I like this player. Just don’t see him available. The guy I would develop is Malik McDowell. Watch him versus Wisconsin (versus Ramczk) and Notre dame (McGlinchy) and tell me what you see. Watch those games and tell me about his perceived lack of effort.
Like Barnett tho. Would do somersaults for him at 19. still wouldn’t trade up for him.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:15 am
He’s a 3 down DE and that’s something the Bucs don’t really have. They either have small DEs or big DEs which can limit what a defense can do in terms of play calling.
If Barnett is there at #19, they MUST draft this guy.
Go Bucs!
April 11th, 2017 at 11:16 am
I’d be most happy to have Barnett taken at #19, or even a reasonable trade up.
The addition of Jackson and Sweezy will definitely upgrade the running game.
I like taking big uglies high in the draft. That is where football is won or lost.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:17 am
His size makes me raise an eye brow. If your gonna be Von Miller like in size I need you to be Von Miller like in speed as well.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:17 am
I would not mind this at all!
We could still come away with a RB, WR, S or TE in the next 3 rounds. However I don’t think Barnett will fall to us at #19.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:19 am
Unfortunately, DC will not be available at 19. He is going to be a Panther.
Njuko, Barnett or Taco would be awesome at 19. Getting the future replacement of DJack too would be icing in the cake.
16 days and counting!!!!
April 11th, 2017 at 11:27 am
If he is there, absolutely my pick. I just don’t think he’ll be there any more than Malik Hooker will be.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:29 am
I’m in the “inathletic DE’s scare me” crowd. Wouldn’t bee super upset with this pick, but there are definitely some question marks.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:41 am
@941BUC
Sometimes part of winning a shoot-out is holding onto a Lead in the 4th Quarter.
If our defense did so against Dallas and the Raiders, well, we would have been in the play offs.
If we generated any semblance of a pass rush against Dallas or New Orleans, we would have had a much better shot at winning those games.
Drew Brees and Dak Prescott were a combined 55-70 against us. Thats a 78% completion rate. And this was directly following the “resurgence” of our defense. We couldn’t stop the run against either team with Will Gholston out of the line-up. Giving up 318 yards on the ground, and surrending 4 rushing Touchdowns over the 2 games.
Yet defense wasn’t a major reason for us missing the playoffs? Give me a break.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:45 am
I would love to have him, but I think he’s gone by #12….GO BUCS!!!
April 11th, 2017 at 11:45 am
Drafting Barnett would be huge for possibly years to come. With him and Spence, that would be devastating! That would help the offense by getting them back on the field, and that would help out the secondary as well.
For those wanting a safety or CB, I’ve never seen a secondary make a Dline better, but a monster Dline will always improve a secondary
April 11th, 2017 at 11:51 am
You win in the trenches. We would still need those weapons for Jameis though.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:56 am
If Cook, Howard and Davis are off the board as expected then Barnett would be a good pick at 19 if he were available. He probably won’t be though.
April 11th, 2017 at 12:05 pm
Lord C, very interesting post. Please show us an updated visit list just before the draft. It would be fun to watch the list during the draft.
April 11th, 2017 at 12:10 pm
Yes, take him and reap the rewards! Kids gonna be a beast for somebody, may as well be us.
April 11th, 2017 at 12:36 pm
@lord…that’s great info….those players all seem ready to contribute early….a lot of those players have 1st or 2nd round grades….no cook on that list?..:)lol…GO BUCS!!!
April 11th, 2017 at 12:36 pm
Steve White’s endorsement should mean something.
Take Barnett if he’s there. Yeah we need a WR too, but passing on “the guy” at DE would be tragic.
April 11th, 2017 at 12:39 pm
Been doing MORE research on Malik McDowell. For those of you, who like me, heard the low effort complaints, the locker room cancer statements, you need like me to HOPE that Licht is checking into this young man. The more I dig the more I like.
I could write and write what I’ve found out but check out Bret Kollman’s take in his Film Room session.
He sees what I’ve seen. The only reason that the MSU staff is bad mouthing him I believe is that McDowell has publicly stated that he needs coaching. I never heard him say that he didn’t receive it but it is implied. But consider this, how can a kid develop properly in a system that asks him to play 0-9 technique, on the right and the left in the same game for multiple games? He gave up a TON of money by not demanding to be a full time right defensive end and only working on his pass rush moves. If he would’ve done that he would be a top 2 pick. So now this kid is a cancer because he’s mad that he’s the only one doing his job on a 3-9 team.
I don’t know, seems like he might be EXACTLY what this team needs.
Don’t be sheep, go watch his tape. Don’t look at what Mel Kiper says like most of the other lazy commentators. If any of you are up in Lansing and have direct or even a credible second hand story I’m ready to hear it but I HOPE this kid doesn’t end up in Carolina like Kollman says would be a perfect fit.
April 11th, 2017 at 12:46 pm
It would be awfully difficult for Licht to mess this up, there are a lot of fits for this team, especially in rounds 1 – 3 as long as it i snot a kicker or offensive lineman, or maybe even a linebacker. You have to like:
Bookends Spence & Barnett/Harris/Willis for the future
Backfield of Jameis, Cook/Mixon/Foreman/Mack/Kamura/Mcafree for the future
Receiving Evans and Davis/Ross/Goodwin/ for the future
TE’s Brate and Njuko/Engram/Roberts
the back end: Wilcox or Tandy and Baker/Melifonwu/Maye/King/Peppers
Corners: Hargreaves and Awuzie/Elder/Kazee/Jones
the only issue is who we have to pass on if certain players are still on the board, that is where you trust your board
can’t mess this up, the player may not have impact this year, but the future should be so bright “gonna need sunglasses”
April 11th, 2017 at 12:54 pm
rrsrq, you made the point that I have been saying for a while. There are so many opportunities in the top 100 players, this is a roster builder. If somehow, he can turn those 3 picks, into 4….
April 11th, 2017 at 1:13 pm
No way he makes it to us but if he somehow did Bucs should be panicking trying to get that card in as fast as possible. This kid has amazing hands and can bend that corner enough to wreak havoc. Really impressed by his hand usage though.
April 11th, 2017 at 1:18 pm
@Tnew, You make an excellent case for McDowell, and upon watching his highlights and that Brett Kollman video you referenced, I would have to agree with you 100 percent.
Kid is a beast, and with the superb coaching staff we have in place, he could become a lynch pin on our defensive line for years to come. For being a 280 pounder, he can straight up destroy double teams, and he can bend the edge and rush the passer.
He could be our new Michael Bennett. And undo the wrong that was done.
April 11th, 2017 at 2:47 pm
Barnett is the 8th ranked Defensive End according to NFL. com.
There is every chance in the world that he is there at 19.
April 11th, 2017 at 2:48 pm
Sorry, 7th ranked DE.
April 11th, 2017 at 2:49 pm
McDowell is a Defensive Tackle…not what we need at the moment.
April 11th, 2017 at 3:01 pm
He has the build, and ability to play every position on the defensive line. Including starting right Defensive end.
April 11th, 2017 at 3:01 pm
excuse me Left defensive end.
April 11th, 2017 at 3:10 pm
Sooooo how does anyone really want engram..Wide open every highlight. Guy is a wide receiver than isn’t gonna block a soul on an NFL field. Only prospect I’ve read on here who I’m not the slightest interested in. Yeah he’s fast. Can find a million of them
April 11th, 2017 at 3:17 pm
Buccaneer Bonzai Says:
April 11th, 2017 at 2:47 pm
Barnett is the 8th ranked Defensive End according to NFL. com.
There is every chance in the world that he is there at 19.
————————————————————–
Bonzai – BSPN, Walter football, SI, CBS sports, and many others rank Barnett as the 3rd best DE in this draft behind Myles Garrett and Solomon Thomas who are both expected to be top 5 picks.
Barnett’s average position on a lot of prognosticator’s big boards is in the 10-15 range. If the Bucs feel the same about him and rate him similarly – then Derek Barnett would represent good value should he drop to 19. He meets a need in that you can never have enough capable pass rushers and he would be in line to replace Ayers in a year or 2 as a DE capable of being solid against the run as well as put real pressure on QBs.
Barnett would get plenty of playing time as well as developmental help from Ayers and coach Hayes between now and when he would be expected to be the man. Barnett and Spence as your 2 primary edge pass rushers for the next 10 years would sure be a good way to solidify the strength of a position where high end talent has been seriously missing from this organization for the better part of the last dozen years
April 11th, 2017 at 4:01 pm
Foreman is another one. Untouched every highlight. It’s like some of you mention guys in late rounds to sound smart. There’s mixon fournette cook mcaffrey Perine and Kareem hunt late. Honestly would want to see how the ball rolls with the draft to determine who we get. The bucs have their board set and that’s that. I like the power of Perine and the versatility of cook. Perine is a stud. He jumped off the page for me immediately. When you see it u see it. It’s so obvious he will be quite good. Mixon I’m not sure about can be good. Cook fournette Perine are guarantees mcaffrey has lights out potential. Toledo kid can ball
April 11th, 2017 at 4:03 pm
Yeah I’ll take Perine any day of the week. This kid is ridiculous
April 11th, 2017 at 4:05 pm
BonzAi. The kid played early downs as the 0 because he was the best at stuffing the run. He played Right de on passing downs as he was the best at rushing the passer. Go watch his full game tape versus Notre DAme (McGlinchy and vs Wisconsin vs Ramczk).
April 11th, 2017 at 4:21 pm
I def think we need to add a descent pass rusher in this draft. I also believe the bucs would be smart to add another pick via trade down. I love the pick of a TE early but with needs at RB DE safety and wide reciever as well it would be smart to add another 3rd or 4th round pick. This draft is deep at multiple positions, lets take full advantage
April 11th, 2017 at 4:23 pm
Side note Perine is a beast. Id be happy picking him mid rounds.
April 11th, 2017 at 5:00 pm
Is this just a repeat?
April 11th, 2017 at 5:21 pm
Nole….you do understand that not every player taken in the 1st round is going to be an All-Pro out the gate, right?
I asked you a long time ago to give me a list of a few more players that you like in this draft beyond Dalvin Cook and you never did.
As far as I can tell, there is one and only one player in this draft that is even worth a sniff in your eyes. What are you going to comment about if your boy doesn’t get a Bucs hat on draft weekend?
April 11th, 2017 at 5:28 pm
I think it’s imperative that we draft Ayers replacement now. DEs take a year to groom and Ayers isn’t getting younger. If you draft a replacement the year Ayers leaves that leaves a one year gap where we’ll be screwed. Let’s find the guy while Ayers is still playing.
April 11th, 2017 at 5:33 pm
gotbucs, Nole doesn’t have to name anyone else. He already has posted before that the draft is rigged, so he doesn’t expect us to get anyone else. Apparently Goodell has informed all teams ahead of us not to draft Cook. Makes sense to me.🙄lol
April 11th, 2017 at 6:43 pm
Yes to Malik McDowell late in the first round! Trade them future picks! Hope there is a trade back opportunity to get extra picks and then we can trade back into the first round twice with future picks.
April 11th, 2017 at 6:48 pm
Would be a great pick but he will more than likely be gone by 19. We should try to trade down a few spots and take TJ Watt and if we can’t trade down then we should just take Watt at 19. Unless Williams or Davis are somehow still available.
April 11th, 2017 at 7:26 pm
Nobody who breaks Reggie White’s sack record makes it to 19. Although I Wish I Wish I Wish I Wish I Wish I Wish I Wish I Wish I Wish I Wish 😁
April 11th, 2017 at 7:50 pm
Corey Davis in the 1st and and Evan Ingram in the second!! Renegotiate Dougie on a 1 yr. prove it deal with Charles S and company in the backfield!!! Weapons for Winston!! Lethal offense!!
April 11th, 2017 at 7:51 pm
I like this direction… Finally we are making sense around here
April 11th, 2017 at 8:07 pm
He will be long gone.
April 11th, 2017 at 9:01 pm
Derek Barnett is the “real deal”. His non-stop motor and aggressive attitude is just what the Bucs need. If he is there at 19, jump all over it.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:13 pm
I’ve been saying Barnett for weeks. You can get a good RB, WR, TE or S in the following rounds. If you want good interior linemen (or QB) your best bet is in the 1st round. The way I see it the QB position and a premier pass rushing DE are the biggest game changers on the field. We have our QB now lets get our DE. I’d be shocked if he’s there but if so I’d take him over whoever else is there.
April 11th, 2017 at 11:45 pm
We’ll have to move up, probably 14th. Well worth it! Then ZZZay Jones, then Perine. Hit Safety next year.
April 12th, 2017 at 1:31 am
You guys forget about NosBos’s yearly traits:
If he doesn’t get the player he deems the best or if we lose a few games he disappears for most of the season, presumably to seek counseling or to tweak whatever meds he’s on to help him with his skewed logic and sporatic ebonics.
So while I never hope for us to lose……..there is an upside to it if in fact it does happen.
Nole on Saturday, Bucc on Sunday and always an idiot Monday-Friday!
April 12th, 2017 at 7:36 am
Holy smokes, an article that makes sense and comments that have valid points, what’s going on here?