Buccaneers Not Against Selecting 'Special' Running Back in First Round
Every year it seems, whether it's surrounding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or not, there are talks about whether the top running back in the NFL Draft is worth a first-round investment.
Seems like forever ago an NFL franchise - not the Bucs - traded every bit of draft capital it had to move up for a running back in the first round.
These days, some of the best in the league are late Day 2 picks instead.
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With the departure of veteran Leonard Fournette, however, Tampa Bay's No. 1 running back is second-year player Rachaad White who has certainly displayed loads of potential but is hardly established to the point of wiping the position off the draft needs list altogether.
But would Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht really pull the trigger on adding a running back on Day 1?
"If you feel like it's going to be a special, special player," Licht said, then he's not against the idea at all.
And if you ask NFL Draft experts to identify a 'special, special player' in this year's running back class, there's only one name you'll hear.
"(Bijan) Robinson is a three-down back with excellent size, vision and burst," says Daniel Jeremiah of NFL.com while ranking the Texas Longhorns running back as his third-best prospect in this year's rookie class. "In the passing game, he is a fluid route runner out of the backfield, boasting excellent hands...Overall, Robinson has all of the tools to quickly emerge as a top-tier RB in the NFL."
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The top tier of NFL running backs is small, and reserved for the likes of Derrick Henry of the Tennessee Titans, Saquon Barkley of the New York Giants, and Nick Chubb of the Cleveland Browns.
Last year, Las Vegas Raiders running back Josh Jacobs led the league in rushing yards but many won't put him in that tier until he does it again or at least comes close.
In his first season, White finished with 26 fewer rushing yards than Buffalo Bills rookie James White while carrying the ball 40 more times.
That's not to knock White, per se. After all, the entire Bucs' running game fell flat last season.
But if Licht feels like he can add someone to compete with the likes of Barkley and Chubb in the upper echelon of NFL ball carriers, he's going to do it.
Because if there's one luxury every team wants in this league, it's a top-tier running back.
Find David Harrison on Twitter @DHarrison82
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