Exploring Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Sleeper Status in 2024

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00:00Joe, I see you doing some sound effects because we are about to preview the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

00:07and many people think that they are a sleeper team, others find them to be a yawning team,

00:13but Baker Mayfield surprised a lot of people last season.

00:17Does he do it again this season?

00:20He very well might.

00:21Yeah, we got to keep the guys in the back of the wing.

00:23It's Sunday morning, it's the dog days of August, you got to pump everybody up here.

00:28But yeah, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last year were much better than people thought they

00:33would be.

00:34Much better than I thought they would be.

00:35I was a team I was concerned with, with good reason.

00:37I didn't know what it was going to look like, what Baker Mayfield we'd be going to get.

00:41Dave Canales showed that he can get the best out of these project quarterbacks and we'll

00:45see if he can do it with Bryce Young this year.

00:47That'll be the next one.

00:48If he does it three years in a row, we got to start getting this guy some awards or something.

00:53It's pretty incredible.

00:54Baker Mayfield last year, most people don't realize, finished as QB 10 last year in fantasy.

01:00QB 10.

01:01Now, this year he's being currently drafted as QB 21.

01:06So there's a lot worse QB 2s you could have in your superflex league than Baker Mayfield.

01:11He's still got Mike Evans.

01:12He's still got Chris Godwin.

01:13He's still got Rashad White.

01:14He's got a lot of pieces around him.

01:16And Mike Evans is another year older, but am I the guy who's going to tell you Mike

01:21Evans can't do it again?

01:22Because if we keep doing this, we keep losing money on it, waiting for Mike Evans to somehow

01:27fail.

01:28Mike Evans, a thousand yards receiving again last year.

01:31He is projected to go over that again, 76 catches, eight touchdowns.

01:37It's hard not to look at the value you're getting on the board of the Buccaneers and

01:41say, you know what, this is a pretty competitive team, a team that won their division last

01:44year.

01:45Yeah.

01:46The division was very weak at times.

01:47I get that, but I want to give the Buccaneers a little bit of credit.

01:51The other thing to keep in mind too, is that Chris Godwin is moving back into the slot.

01:55Now that is very important because what's going to happen there is the target volume

01:58could potentially go up a little bit.

02:00So we want that.

02:01Jalen McMillan, the guy that I'm taking with my last pick in a lot of drafts, he is carving

02:06out a role for himself as that wide receiver three, that clear guy in this offense.

02:10So is that something we're super excited about right now?

02:13No, but if this is the year where we see some wear and tear finally catch up to Mike Evans

02:18or Chris Godwin has another injury where he misses time, Jalen McMillan is a versatile

02:23wide receiver who could really step into that void for either of those guys.

02:27He could play on the inside, play on the outside.

02:29And I really like what I've seen out of him this preseason.

02:31We always say preseason doesn't matter except for the guys that it matters for.

02:35And it mattered for a guy like Jalen McMillan, who's fighting for a job.

02:38And we say the same thing in baseball every year, right?

02:40Guys returning from injuries, rookies that we like, do we want to see progress with?

02:45So these games are typically throwaways, but the performances aren't all throwaways

02:49necessarily.

02:50And guys like Jalen McMillan matter.

02:52Will he become a star this year?

02:55Probably not.

02:56But I think when you're in that early going, he is an interesting late round pick, especially

03:00in those 14 teams, 16 team leagues, you're playing deeper leagues.

03:03Jalen McMillan is a guy not to forget about the tight end situation there.

03:07You have Kate Autin who's had some moments there, but I really want to come back and

03:12focus on Rashad White.

03:13Because Rashad White to me, Matt, is a guy that does not get nearly enough respect.

03:18In that same expert draft that I did on Friday afternoon, I was drafting from the 11 spot.

03:25I got A.J. Brown in the first round, came back around with Marvin Harrison Jr.

03:30So I needed to go running back.

03:31And who fell in my lap?

03:32Rashad White.

03:34And Rashad White last year, just to remind everybody, finished as RB5 in PPR last year.

03:39RB5 in PPR.

03:41And he's being drafted right now as RB13.

03:44So you tell me what's wrong with this picture.

03:47A guy who had 990 rushing yards, had 64 receptions in this offense for 549 yards, six rushing

03:54touchdowns, three receiving touchdowns, and so far also in preseason has looked really

04:00good, like really sharp, ready for the season to go.

04:05And a player that we've waited on and last year finally got the breakout, I think there's

04:08actually another plateau for Rashad White where he finishes even higher this year.

04:12So a great return on investment if you're an early wide receiver build like I am.

04:17A huge target of mine.

04:18So White is a guy that I'm drafting.

04:21Have I been able to sell you, Matt Stryker, on Rashad White's value?

04:25Because I keep looking around and some of the other guys going in that same range, guys

04:28like Josh Jacobs, and frankly, I'd rather have Rashad White every single time over guys

04:32like Jacobs, over guys like Joe Mixon, and even guys like James Conner.

04:37And again, that's the grouping he's going closer to.

04:39A couple of those names there that I would choose before I would choose Rashad White.

04:43But listen, I listen to you and I understand, but there are certain things that every fantasy

04:48manager needs to keep their identity, needs to keep something that is their own, so when

04:52they look at their team and the results happen, they can take an ownership of it.

04:56So no, I'm out on it completely because there are just so many better offensive ecosystems

05:00and for my mind, better players.

05:02I mean, look, I'd rather Jacobs, I'd rather Mixon, but that's just me.

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