2. CB Ronde Barber
I'm a little nervous about this one. I really don't want to stunt the development of Carlton Davis, Sean Murphy-Bunting or Jamel Dean, one of whom would be seeing the field less often in 2020 if prime Ronde Barber was in the mix. But it all comes down to one mantra I have repeated over and over again for years: You can never have enough quality cornerback depth. So even though it doesn't look like the Bucs' current roster is in crying need of another cornerback, that can change in a heartbeat. So I'm going to assume that a roster carrying Barber, Davis, Murphy-Bunting and Dean would end up using all four in some meaningful way in 2020.
With that hurdle cleared, why would you not want Barber on your team? He's the best cornerback in team history and he's been a Hall of Fame semifinalist the last two years. He's second to Brooks on that aforementioned career AV list, even ahead of Sapp. He's also just a big play waiting to happen; he's fourth in NFL history in non-offensive touchdowns, and that doesn't even include his most memorable play from the postseason. Bowles would have a blast blitzing Barber out of the slot, a threat Barber practically pioneered. He's the only player in NFL history with at least 45 interceptions and at least 25 sacks. And he would also bring one thing to the cornerback room that it doesn't currently have – veteran experience. I'm doing this not because I want to hold back any of the young corners, but because I want to help them. This is only an exercise for 2020, but I think one season with Barber would help the Bucs' young corners for a long time.
Sure, I could have gone with John Lynch instead, given the greater uncertainty at safety. If you were to swap Barber out for Lynch, I wouldn't really complain. I just happen to value a big-play cornerback a little higher.
1. FB Mike Alstott
Yes, this is a luxury pick, but please hear me out. First, I'll admit, I probably should take Randall McDaniel here. McDaniel made the Pro Bowl during his career-capping two-year stint in Tampa, but he clearly was no longer at his Hall of Fame peak in 2000-01. But if you could add vintage McDaniel from his Viking years to a line that needs to provide better run-blocking in 2020, you probably should, no matter what you think of your current starting guards.
But I'm going to go with what I'm sure will be a crowd-pleaser instead. In her exercise earlier in the week, Carmen added Christian McCaffrey to the Bucs' backfield, and if you had McCaffrey he would instantly become the top snap-eater in that group, reducing the potential roles for Ronald Jones and Ke'Shawn Vaughn. And that's fine, because McCaffrey is a proven star who would produce well in that role. I could perhaps do something similar with James Wilder, Cadillac Williams or Warrick Dunn, but instead I'm going to add a complementary piece.
Yes, the fullback position is becoming increasingly marginalized in the modern NFL, but as Alstott's detractors at the time always claimed, he wasn't really a traditional fullback anyway. What you'd get in Alstott would be the ultimate short-yardage and goal-line weapon, plus a guy you know can catch a lot of passes out of the backfield. When was the last time you felt confident when the Bucs' offense was facing a third-and-inches? They've been missing that short-yardage element for a long time. And I think you can work him into the mix without taking too much away from Jones and Vaughn. We already saw how well Alstott complemented Dunn in that Thunder & Lightning backfield.
If the Buccaneers were at the one-yard line with seconds left and absolutely had to have a touchdown, wouldn't you feel better knowing you had Alstott as an option? His will to get the ball over the line, sometimes with second and third efforts, was legendary. Furthermore, he was a great teammate and a fan favorite. The Bucs' offense is already going to be exciting in 2020, but nothing stirred a Raymond James Stadium crowd more than the A-Train bouncing off of one tackler after the next.
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