Buccaneers Projected to Get 'Rugged' Interior Offensive Lineman in First Round

At the beginning of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offseason, there was a vibe around the team's offensive line that basically wanted to see everyone except for center Ryan Jensen and offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs replaced.

On the eve of the NFL Draft, however, there's a bit more comfort with the Bucs' returning linemen, and as many as four starters this year could be returning players from last year's group.

At least, on paper that is.

And if there's any real glaring hole on the currently projected offensive line, it's at one of the tackle positions.

This makes Bucky Brooks' selection for Tampa Bay in his final mock draft a little confusing by selecting Florida guard O'Cyrus Torrence.

"Rebuilding the offensive line is a pressing need for the Buccaneers as they move past the Tom Brady era," writes Brooks. "Torrence is a rugged interior blocker with quick feet and a powerful punch."

Jensen missed all but one game last season with an injury suffered at the beginning of training camp and will be returning as the team's starting center.

The two starting guards figure to be returning Buccaneers Aaron Stinnie - who was also lost last year due to injury - and Robert Hainsey who filled in for Jensen at center.

Of course, Wirfs is returning, but the real remaining question is whether or not he'll play on the right side or the left. And then the follow-up to that is who will man the other side?

Right now, we'd have to pencil in second-year lineman Luke Goedeke as the top right tackle, and Torrence does nothing to erase that.

While it's true that Torrence would be an upgrade over either Hainsey - who we project would likely start opposite the rookie - and Stinnie, we question whether or not interior offensive line depth is important enough to ignore a potential starter at tackle.

Oklahoma offensive tackle Anton Harrison comes off the board at pick No. 28 to the Cincinnati Bengals and would fit a much bigger need and provide a substantially greater upgrade compared to his position mates if he were the Bucs' first pick.

Of course, either of these selections would go down smoother if it was preceded by a trade-back, but we only control what we can.

Selecting Torrence in the first round would only be confusing because it would fly in the face of everything we've come to believe these past few months about Tampa Bay's offensive line situation.

And it would be a scathing message about how coach Todd Bowles and general manager Jason Licht truly feel about the state of the Buccaneers' offensive line.

Find David Harrison on Twitter @DHarrison82

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