Do the 2023 Buccaneers Have a Better Cast of Playmakers Than the Defending Super Bowl Champions?

In a recent ESPN ranking, Tampa Bay's group of playmakers was ranked higher than the Kansas City Chiefs.

It's a bold headline, I know. But it's important to remember that any ranking of playmakers is exactly that, a specific ranking of playmakers. 

Recently, ESPN's Bill Barnwell undertook the challenge of ranking which NFL teams have the best collection of running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends. 

So for the Kansas City Chiefs, that means Patrick Mahomes does not enter the equation. And for the Buccaneers, the underwhelming quarterback competition between Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask was also void from this particular exercise. 

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According to Barnwell, the Buccaneers have an edge over the defending Super Bowl champions in this department, though not by much. 

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers came in at 18 on Barnwell's list, with the Kansas City Chiefs just behind, at 19. 

For the Bucs, here's what Barnwell had to say:

"The 2021 version of the Buccaneers had younger versions of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin and overqualified third wide receiver Antonio Brown. They went three deep at tight end with Rob Gronkowski, Cameron Brate and O.J. Howard, and could count on a solid running back coming off a successful playoff run in Leonard Fournette. Even the guys buried on Tampa's bench -- Tyler Johnson, Scotty Miller and Gio Bernard -- had plausible roles to play. The Bucs were stacked."

"Now, it's Evans and Godwin and not much else. Tampa Bay imported Russell Gage from the Falcons last year, but he averaged 8.4 yards per reception while battling various injuries, most notably a scary concussion in the playoff loss to the Cowboys. Gage missed OTAs because of another issue, and there's little behind him on the depth chart. Cade Otton, forced into the starting lineup as a rookie by an injury to Brate, is the most notable of the three Day 3 selections at tight end who will take the majority of snaps at the position for Tampa Bay."

It's obvious that despite ranking higher than the Chiefs, Barnwell thinks the Buccaneers' playmakers' best days are behind them.

"Can Evans and Godwin carry them? Evans made it over 1,000 yards for the ninth consecutive season, but he also turns 30 in August and needed a 207-yard explosion in Week 17 to get there. Godwin is younger (27), but the explosiveness we saw during the 2019 season hasn't really been there since. He averaged 11.1 yards per reception and 1.93 yards per route run during the Tom Brady era, virtually identical to the numbers Jakobi Meyers posted in New England over the same time frame. This offense will be different with Brady and offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich leaving town, but the Bucs need the old version of Godwin to overcome what they've lost elsewhere."

When you read the whole article, it's clear that Barnwell doesn't have lofty expectations for Rachaad White, and he seems to forget Godwin was still recovering from a devastating knee injury while playing last year.

I think as long as the quarterback and offensive line play in Tampa proves to be competent this season, there's no reason to believe that the combination of Mike Evans and Chris Godwin won't be highly effective. 

If Cade Otton and Rachaad White are able to take the step that many in Tampa believe they're capable of, this group of playmakers could surprise plenty of people... including Bill Barnwell. 

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