National Football League

Final Grades for the Buccaneers 2016 Season

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 8:11 p.m. ET

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Jan 1, 2017; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans cheer as the game against the Carolina Panthers comes to an end at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-USA TODAY Sports

Time to put a bow on the 2016 season for the Buccaneers. This means one last report card for a team which had its first winning season since 2010 and won more games this year than it had in the last two combined.

The owners, players and fans alike are all surely disappointed the Buccaneers didn’t find themselves in the post-season pool following their Week 17 victory over the Carolina Panthers, but there’s no denying the feeling of anticipation as this team looks poised to take the next step towards Super Bowl contention.

9-7 may not earn the franchise a playoff spot, but it sure earned them some love from the fan base as they notched six wins in their last eight games.

We know how the team did, now let’s break it down by squads and pass judgement one last time before we put the 2016-17 season to bed.

Jan 1, 2017; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston (3) points to the fans after they beat the Carolina Panthers at Raymond James Stadium. Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Carolina Panthers 17-16. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

QUARTERBACK: B-

You didn’t need to see the “C” on Jameis Winston’s chest to see he was a leader inside the locker room and on the field for this year’s Buccaneers squad.

The team seems to have found their franchise quarterback, and he became the first quarterback in NFL history to fire the pigskin for over 8,000 yards in his first two seasons.

What looks on the surface to be a disadvantage is one of the things which makes Winston’s early success all the more incredible.

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His lack of legitimate receiving targets is well known as he has one legitimate starting receiver at his disposal, and just this year found a tight end worthy of regular targets from the former Seminole quarterback.

Still, as amazing as his total numbers might be, it wasn’t always easy to watch him stack them up.

Three times this year he failed to reach 200-yards passing and threw multiple interceptions in four games while having just five efforts of zero-turnover football.

While his completion percentage went up from year one to year two, it sat at just 60.8% in 2016 and ranked him 23rd among starting quarterbacks in the NFL while his interception total (18) was second to only Philip Rivers who threw 21 for San Diego this year.

So it wasn’t all roses this season, but you can’t deny the ability being contained within the 22-year old who will enter his third professional campaign looking for the playoffs.

It’s important to note as well, that while coach Koetter once declared his team a running team, Winston threw the ball 33 more times this year than last despite winning three more games.

On top of this, Winston finished fourth on the team in rushing with 165 yards on 53 carries.

He obviously sees the ability in his young leader, and while there’s room for improvement, his future looks bright.

For what it’s worth, backup Mike Glennon got 11 passes in against the Atlanta Falcons in the Bucs’ Thursday Night debacle which we’d all rather soon forget.

The 4th year player completed 10 of those throws and scored a touchdown despite the lopsided loss.

He’ll likely be donning a different uniform next season, and could be one of the most sought after free-agents at the quarterback position this off-season.

Oct 10, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Jacquizz Rodgers (32) carries the ball during the fourth quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. The Buccaneers won 17-14. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

RUNNING BACKS: D

The Bucs’ leading rusher this season was Jacquizz Rodgers who turned in 560 yards on the ground on 129 carries.

Doug Martin led the team in carries with 144 of them, but amassed just 421 yards averaging a measly 2.9 yards per carry. That doesn’t really justify the second-round pick I used on him in my fantasy draft now does it?

Charles Sims entered the season as Martin’s back-up but finished behind his quarterback in rushing yards and carries, although we all know his strength is in the passing game.

Dec 11, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Doug Martin (22) runs with the ball against the New Orleans Saints during the second half at Raymond James Stadium. Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the New Orleans Saints 16-11. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Undrafted rookie Peyton Barber not only made the team but carried the rock 55 times for 223 yards. His yards per carry average reached 4.1 giving him the second best amongst ball carriers who touched the ball more than 10 times.

If the start of this seems like a patchwork list of names and numbers, well, it’s because it is. This is how the Bucs running game went in 2016, and with the recent news of drug abuse by Martin, this team will start 2017 with a new running back in the starting lineup as well.

Of course, most fans are hoping this will be either Rodgers or Dalvin Cook from Florida State, but we’ll leave this to future draft and free-agent speculation.

The bottom line is the running backs were spotty at best. Just when one seemed to get it going there’d be a fumble or injury which would just set the entire group back where they started from.

Only seven rushing touchdowns were collected by this group, giving them the second fewest total in the NFL.

Remember the comment earlier about Koetter saying this was a running team? Well, they ran the ball 453 times combined making them the seventh highest rushing team in the league.

However, those rushes produced the ninth lowest yards gained, and therein lies the struggle.

Some blame the backs themselves, others blame the offensive line (more to come on them) and some simply say they were right last year when the fan base was divided amongst those who wanted to keep Martin and those who did not.

No matter what, the Bucs running backs as a group simply didn’t get it done consistently for their team, and they’ll have to live with the marks to go with their performance.

Nov 27, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans (13) stretches prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

WIDE RECEIVERS and TIGHT ENDS: C

Mike Evans and Cameron Brate both get individual “A” marks for their performances in helping the Bucs reach nine wins this season. Let’s see how the rest did.

Outside of Evans’ 1,321 yards and 12 touchdowns, the second leading wide receiver was easily Adam Humphries, who totaled 622 yards and two scores in his second year out of Clemson as an undrafted free-agent.

Calling Humphries a diamond in the rough would be an understatement as he stepped up for much of the year after Vincent Jackson exited early with an injury. Of course, he suffered his own injury on an uncalled knee to the back of his head, but really found his place on the team with his performance this season.

Russell Shepard has been a captain for his special teams play, but this year he got in the action on offense with 23 catches and two touchdowns himself.

While the numbers aren’t all that gaudy, his catches were pretty memorable for the most part, and he really showed some of the versatility which has made him a mainstay on the Bucs roster for years now.

While he isn’t considered much of a vertical threat, Shepard had five plays which went for 20-yards or more and hauled in 19 catches for first down conversions, meaning 91% of his receptions either moved the chains of put points on the board. That’s how you make an impact.

As for tight ends, it didn’t get much better than Brate this year as he finished with 660 yards and eight touchdown catches.

Behind him was mostly blocking tight ends who will never get the credit they deserve, but we’re getting them some here.

Luke Stocker was a big-time contributor to both run blocking and pass protection throughout the season, and even chipped in with the occasional reception when the defense wasn’t paying attention.

Alan Cross is another good undrafted story, and seeing him get his first career touchdown is hopefully the start of his developing into a good second tight end down the line.

There are more names to credit including Cecil Shorts, Freddie Martino and Brandon Myers. Each of whom stepped up during crucial moments of the season and helped the team reach the winning record they did.

Again, it didn’t always look pretty, but quarterbacks don’t get to 4,000 yards without guys making catches.

Consistency is what escaped this group, and consistency is what the Bucs will hope to provide their offense moving forward. It was nice to see so many little-known players or castaways from other teams step in from time-to-time, it’s just isn’t a way to build a true winner in the NFL.

Nov 27, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive guard Ali Marpet (74) guards during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Seattle Seahawks at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

OFFENSIVE LINE: D

From the moment Logan Mankins announced his retirement we all knew this offensive line was going to be an adventure beginning with the Bucs’ first live snap of the season.

I lost count of how many different combinations were used up front, as the front line simply never seemed to fully gel throughout the injuries of the season.

Two guys who were consistently healthy were Donovan Smith and Ali Marpet. The duo of second-year players impressed at times in their rookie years and many were hoping they’d elevate their game even more this year.

Nov 3, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive tackle Donovan Smith (76) runs down field during the first quarter of a football game against the Atlanta Falcons at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

For Marpet, it was a solid season with little to complain about outside of the occasional penalty which befalls any offensive lineman in the NFL.

For Smith, it’s more questions as he looked stiff, slow and simply overmatched many times during the year.

Not to be outdone, the right tackle position was no better in performance or consistency. Demar Dotson played in 13 games this season despite battling injury for much of it, but the times when Gosder Cherilus was called upon to take his place were noticeable and painful.

During the matchup against the Dallas Cowboys the veteran simply looked past his playing days despite the fact he was suited up in pads and a helmet doing his best to stop the onslaught of a suddenly Pro Bowl caliber defensive end named David Irving.

Irving had four sacks in the 2016 regular season, and 1.5 of them came against the Bucs – namely Cherilus.

It wasn’t so much the sacks of that game, as it was the timing of them. They simply couldn’t have come at a worse time as the Bucs still had the game within reach, yet watched it slip through their fingers.

Jameis Winston was the fifth most hit quarterback in the league this year, and yes some of those were his own fault, but many of them were not. The fact he only got sacked 35 times is a testament to his scrambling ability, but also contributed to the 18 interceptions he threw and less than 65% completion percentage.

The running game was a staunch disappointment as well, and the offensive line has to take a bite out of that sandwich just like the running backs do.

There were some good moments, but overall, this group left much to be desired and hopefully much to be addressed in the off-season.

Jan 1, 2017; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Gerald McCoy (93) reacts to the fans after they beat the Carolina Panthers at Raymond James Stadium. Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Carolina Panthers 17-16. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

DEFENSIVE LINE: B-

The award for most improved has to go to the Bucs secondary, but man did the defensive line give them a run for their money.

Try to find one fan in using #SiegeTheDay or #FireTheCannons who doesn’t like Noah Spence and I’d be surprised if you found even half of one.

The fact this second-round draft pick finished the year with a separated shoulder shows you the level of determination and dedication he also showed during his time overcoming his ejection from the Big-Ten and Ohio State University.

5.5 sacks for the rookie is a promising number when you look at his role on the team this season, and his future is as bright as any at this point.

Gerald McCoy has been anchoring this defensive front for some time now, and he was up to his usual tricks on his way to yet another Pro Bowl this year.

Turning in seven sacks with two forced fumbles is humble on the stat sheet, but his ability to show up and pressure the offense when it was needed the most was anything but.

Robert Ayers battled injury early in the year and William Gholston battled injury later. Both men finished with a combined 9.5 sacks and while the younger of the two will be a free-agent upcoming, Ayers will be back in pewter next season, and the fans should be jumping for joy to see him in his second year on this line.

The Bucs finished Top-10 in sacks this regular season, and the defensive line had a hand in every single one of the 38.

Clinton McDonald gets lost in the shuffle a bit playing amongst some of these names, but his 8th season as a pro football player saw him come up with 3.5 sacks as well.

Overall, the unit was consistently good at getting in the faces of opposing quarterbacks and preventing running backs like Devonta Freeman, Jordan Howard and Latavius Murray from taking over games.

There was a stretch during the year where this front line contributed to allowing just one rushing touchdown to a running back in six games.

Down the stretch this group got victimized by the likes of Ezekiel Elliott and even Mark Ingram, but overall, it was still a strong year for the defensive front.

Dec 11, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA;Tampa Bay Buccaneers middle linebacker Kwon Alexander (58) runs out onto the field as he is introduced before the game against the New Orleans Saints at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

LINEBACKERS: B

Kwon Alexander and Lavonte David lead this group of linebackers for the Bucs, but these days Alexander is leading more than just the Bucs.

With 145 tackles combined, the second-year middle linebacker from LSU not only led the Bucs, but finished atop the NFL with 108 solo tackles.

Dec 11, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers outside linebacker Lavonte David (54) against the New Orleans Saints during the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

While he notched just three sacks, it was David who led the way for this unit with five of them including four in the last three games of the season.

The fifth-year player really took some criticism for what has been perceived as a down season for him, but he was really able to turn it up a notch at the end.

He also contributed with four forced fumbles and one interception which he returned for a touchdown in Week 13 against Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers.

Veteran Daryl Smith was added in the off-season to play strong-side linebacker for the Bucs, and in return he gave them 35 tackles and came up with some big-time pressure in key situations on more than one occasion.

He may be the oldest member of the Bucs’ linebacker room, but he showed he can still get it done on the field when called upon to do so.

The performance of this group of players seemed to tie together with the performance of the defense altogether.

If Alexander and David were flying to the ball and getting involved early then the entire defense seemed to get rolling. If they struggled, it tended to be a long day for the entire defensive side of the ball.

More often than not they showed up to play, and despite the occasional struggle, this group was vital to the success coach Koetter and coordinator Mike Smith enjoyed in their first season together since Atlanta.

Dec 4, 2016; San Diego, CA, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers strong safety Keith Tandy (37) reacts following an interception during the second half against the San Diego Chargers at Qualcomm Stadium. Tampa Bay won 28-21. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

DEFENSIVE BACKS: B

In a league with a general fan base which is more concerned with “what have you done for me lately” than anything, Keith Tandy will be the fan favorite coming into the Bucs training camp in 2017.

The “Tandyman” started just five games this season, but it was the last five, and he responded to his opportunity with four interceptions including two in the final game of the year.

He also had two games with double-digit tackles, a feat Chris Conte accomplished just once in 2016 despite starting six more games.

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Speaking of Conte; the much-maligned safety has had his share of boo-birds and doubters while in Tampa, but then he earned many of them.

However, despite all this, he had two simply magnificent outings where he took one interception – courtesy of Daryl Smith pressure – to the house against the Bears, and had another just a week later on Alex Smith of the Kansas City Chiefs.

While the fans were starting to open their eyes to the possibility of a new Conte, he was injured and missed two games towards the end of the season, opening the door for Tandy to step in and become the hero.

Speaking of heroes; while he didn’t get much playing time on the defense this season, there wasn’t much better a moment for the Bucs than when Alterraun Verner secured an interception just days after the passing of his father right between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Even if you view Verner’s time as a Bucs player as a failure, part of you if not all of you had to feel for the man and find joy in his moment as his teammates swarmed him following the play. I for one certainly found myself with something in my eye at that moment.

Moving on to redemption stories; how about Brent Grimes? We’ve all heard the story of Grimes and his wife Miko whom many blame for causing him millions in dollars and for ostracizing the entire fan community of Miami.

I’m sure their bank account is just fine, and after securing at least four interceptions for the sixth time in his ten-year career, I don’t think the cornerback is short on fans either.

The only knock I have on Grimes this year is his apparent hate-hate relationship with the equipment manager. The veteran corner was slipping and sliding all over the field it seemed throughout the season and I can only come to the unsupported conclusion that the equipment managers hate him. Someone please get this man some good cleats!

Then there was the rookie: Vernon Hargreaves III, the Bucs’ first-round draft pick in 2016 and starting cornerback for his hometown franchise.

The rook secured just one interception in his first year as an NFL player, but turned in solid play throughout the year, as long as you don’t count the game against Amari Cooper.

Never was there an outside run to his side where he didn’t have his hat in the mix somewhere and he tallied 68 solo tackles because of it, making him the second highest tackler in the secondary.

The first was safety Bradley McDougald. 79 tackles is how you support run defense, but he also came up with two interceptions as well.

There’s no telling how the starting safeties will align when the 2017 regular season, but one of the least talked about members was one of the more consistent.

For this group, the year started rough, and they gave up two 300-yard passers and nine touchdown passes in the first quarter of the season.

During the rest of the year however, they allowed just two more 300 yard passers and ten touchdown passes over their last nine games while falling one interception shy of the NFL lead in the category.

Oct 30, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers punter Bryan Anger (9) punts the ball against the Oakland Raiders during the second half at Raymond James Stadium. Oakland Raiders defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30-24 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

SPECIAL TEAMS: D

Here we go. The Bucs traded back into the second-round of the 2016 NFL Draft and picked kicker Roberto Aguayo from Florida State.

If there isn’t enough scrutiny on a kicker in the NFL, try being a high draft pick on top of it. Still, he had a job to do, and most of us know exactly how it went down.

For the season the rookie made just 71% of his kicks and 94% of his extra points. These numbers place him 18th in the NFL for extra points, and last among qualifying kickers. In fact, the only kicker who had a worse made field goals percentage was the Browns’ Patrick Murray who went 1-for-2 on the season.

In a nutshell, it was bad. There’s hope though, at least for the Bucs fan base there is. Coach Koetter has already announced the team will be bringing in competition at the position during next year’s camp. So college football’s most accurate kicker is going to either have to figure this out, or he’ll be Kyle Brindza before he can spell Sebastian Janikowski.

Now for the good news. Punter Bryan Anger is really, really good, and has recently been re-signed for the next five years.

Spending his first season with the Bucs, Anger finished third in net average with 42.7 yards per punt, and pinned opponents inside their own 20-yard line 37 times while allowing just five touchbacks.

In fact, only 27 of Anger’s punts were even returned meaning nearly 65% of his punts were fair caught or downed by his own teammates.

He accomplished all of this despite the fact he was actually called upon less often than most of his NFL peers considering 18 punters had more kicks than he did in 2016.

If the Bucs have a history of anything it’s defense, and certainly not returning kicks or punts.

This year was more of the same and again the team will be looking to find someone who can be an effective return man for them in 2017.

Adam Humphries showed flashes of ability as a punt returner, but if his role in the offense increases next season, coach Koetter will almost certainly have to find someone new to put back there.

The Josh Huff kick-return experiment was short-lived and totally unsuccessful, and in fact hurt this overall grade similarly to the way Aguayo’s made kicks percentage has.

This will wrap up our season grades and our series for the 2016-17 NFL season.  I hope you enjoyed watching your Bucs run out to a 9-7 finish like I have, and I truly appreciate all who have come back here every week to catch these and comment on them.

The off-season is easing out of the station as it waits for the rest of the league to catch up, but until then we’ll continue bringing you all we can to prepare you for the free-agent madness to come and the NFL Draft just around the corner.

As always, feel free to reach out and share your grades or thoughts on the grades you see here. Let me know in the comments below or on Twitter anytime!

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