TAMPA — The Bucs put quarterbacks Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota through dozens of passing drills — watching them take three-, five- and seven-step drops while evaluating every branch of the route tree. But what might have been more valuable is determining which player can throw from their rear end.
That's because the Bucs' offensive line is among the most porous in the NFL. Last season, Tampa Bay allowed 52 sacks, which tied with the 49ers for third most in the NFL, behind the Redskins (58) and Jaguars (71).
The line was also lousy at run blocking. Tampa Bay was 29th in the league with an average of 85.9 rushing yards per game. The only player to take the fall was left tackle Anthony Collins, who was released one season after signing a five-year, $30 million contract as a prized free agent from the Bengals.
Four starters return from last season's unit — tackle Demar Dotson, center Evan Dietrich-Smith and guard Logan Mankins, who was acquired in a trade with the Patriots 10 days before the 2014 regular-season opener, and guard Patrick Omameh.
The Bucs have failed to address the offensive line this year in free agency, perhaps gun shy from the Collins fiasco. They also are banking that with three selections in the top 65, a pretty decent offensive tackle should fall to them.
But Bucs fans have had a steady refrain: What is the team doing to improve the offensive line?
"I, too, understand that because I've made the statement we didn't play as well as we needed to on the offensive line this past year," coach Lovie Smith said. "That can lead to how other positions played, too. We all would agree on that. You have to look where we failed at first in free agency. You just can't start with just getting anybody. We're still in that process. There's still some offensive linemen out there. You have to look at the draft. When you're picking as high as we are, you have to assume you can get some players that can help you through the draft."
While this week's NFL draft is well-stocked with offensive linemen, not many are considered extraordinarily elite and perhaps none will go in the top five picks. Iowa's Brandon Scherff, who could play either tackle position or guard, Miami tackle Ereck Flowers and Stanford tackle Andrus Peat are likely to be the first offensive linemen off the board.
The Bucs have to hope a run on some offensive skill players or pass rushers will push down some first-round prospects such as Florida tackle D.J. Humphries, LSU tackle La'el Collins or Florida State's Cam Erving, who can play center, guard or tackle.
Since they own the second pick in the second round, the Bucs could also move into the first round to secure a coveted lineman who is falling.
The Bucs also hope at least one starter may come from last year's draft. Kevin Pamphile, a 6-foot-5, 310-pound tackle, appeared in seven games for the Bucs as a fifth-round pick from Purdue. Guard Kadeem Edwards, a fifth-rounder from Tennessee State who was inactive the first nine games last season, finished his rookie year on injured reserve with a foot injury.
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Explore all your options"We like their potential," Smith said. "Second-year players, we should see a lot of improvement. There's a reason we drafted both players and we'll see how far they can go. There's (center/guard) Josh Allen, also."
It remains to be seen whether the Bucs will continue their experiment with Dotson playing left tackle as he did at the end of 2014. The Bucs believe they can get better play from Dietrich-Smith and Mankins, who at 33 will cost them $7 million and the first pick of the fourth round in the draft this year that they sent to the Patriots.
"He's not looking at retirement by any means," Smith said. "We're excited about getting him there for an offseason because we got him so late last year."
Contact Rick Stroud at rstroud@tampabay.com and listen from 6 to 9 a.m. weekdays on WDAE-AM 620. View his blog at tampabay.com/blogs/bucs. Follow @NFLStroud.