Bucs Strengths And Weaknesses: OL
Pewter Report analyzes each position’s strengths and weaknesses in Tampa Bay, as the Bucs attempt to three-peat as NFC South champions.
Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers
Tight Ends
Next up is the offensive line, which will feature two newcomers, two position changes and the return of Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen. The Bucs parted ways with left tackle Donovan Smith and right guard Shaq Mason. Smith had a terrible season and was plagued by personal problems that unfortunately affected his play. He was cuty due to performance and because Tampa Bay needed to create some salary cap space. The Bucs wanted to get bigger and younger, which led to Mason being traded to Houston.
The Bucs added veteran Matt Feiler will start at left guard and drafted Cody Mauch in the second round to replace Mason at right guard. All-Pro Tristan Wirfs is being moved from right tackle to left tackle to replace Smith. Luke Goedeke, last year’s second-rounder who struggled mightily at left guard, is going to replace Wirfs at right tackle. The return of Jensen, who missed the 2022 regular season with a serious knee injury, should provide a boost of talent and leadership to the revamped offensive line.
The Strength of Bucs OL: Size, Speed, Star Power
Tampa Bay’s retooled offensive line features a massive left side with 6-foot-5, 345-pound Tristan Wirfs at tackle next to new left guard Matt Feiler, who stands 6-foot-6, and weighs 330 pounds. The Bucs will be running a lot of mid-zone and wide zone in Dave Canales’ new offensive system, which comes from Seattle. Wirfs and Feiler should create a moving wall and allow the Bucs to run equally well to the left and to the right, as well as up the middle.
Wirfs is one of the league’s most athletic offensive linemen and it shouldn’t take him long to master the left tackle position. In fact, don’t rule out another Pro Bowl season for Wirfs at his new spot. If his knee holds up, Jensen should return with a vengeance in 2023 after missing the entire regular season. He became a Pro Bowler for the first time in 2021 in helping the Bucs go 13-4, which set the single-season franchise record for wins. Wirfs and Jensen are great leaders along the offensive line, with the long-haired ginger center being the tone-setter up front.
The right side of the line is very inexperienced, as second-rounder Cody Mauch moves from left tackle to North Dakota State to right guard in his rookie season. The Bucs have had success moving small school left tackles inside, and believe that Mauch’s career will end up somewhere between that of Ali Marpet and Alex Cappa. Mauch is a very good athlete and moves well in space. He needs technique work in pass protection, but should be an ideal fit in Canales’ zone run game.
Luke Goedeke started at right tackle for two years at Central Michigan, and also started at right tackle in Week 18 at Atlanta in place of Wirfs. He looked more natural there and the Bucs believe he’ll thrive at his more natural position. While inexperienced, the right side of the offensive line with Goedeke and Mauch is pretty athletic and aggressive.
The Bucs have some solid, young talent to provide some depth. Gone is swing tackle Josh Wells, but backup Robert Hainsey started every game at center, Nick Leverett started half the season at left guard and Brandon Walton was a fill-in at tackle and is also capable of playing guard. Justin Skule and undrafted free agent Silas Dzani could square off in camp for the right to replace Wells as Tampa Bay’s swing tackle.
Best-Case Scenario at OL
Tampa Bay’s offensive line features a former first-rounder in Wirfs, a pair of second-rounders in Goedeke and Mauch and the league’s highest-paid center in Jensen. The talent is there for the Bucs O-line to be equally adept at pass protection and run blocking this year if it all comes together and this group can stay healthy and find cohesion.
The Weaknesses of Bucs OL: Shuffling The Deck
The Bucs won’t have a single starter returning in the same spot as a year ago. Robert Hainsey started at center all year in place of Jensen, and it remains to be seen if the 32-year old can come all the way back from season-ending knee surgery. Jensen returned for the Bucs’ playoff loss to the Cowboys, but struggled in his first action back. Yet he’ll be the only mainstay on the line.
Can Tristan Wirfs make a seamless switch to left tackle in 2023, or will it take him a full season to fully adjust and return to playing at a Pro Bowl level? Can Matt Feiler bounce back from a down year with the Chargers at age 30? Will Luke Goedeke find success at right tackle, or will he become a bust in Tampa Bay? How will rookie Cody Mauch handle the transition from North Dakota State to the NFL, and the move from left tackle to right guard?
There are a lot of question marks surrounding the Bucs’ shuffled offensive line heading into training camp. If the Bucs’ coaches can put this puzzle together Tampa Bay’s offensive line has the potential to once again become one of the league’s best units. But if any of the puzzle pieces doesn’t fit, it could make for an ugly picture up front.
Worst-Case Scenario at OL
Tampa Bay’s revamped offensive line could run into some serious problems if the inexperience on the right side shows up in a bad way, and if Jensen doesn’t return to his Pro Bowl form. This group has the potential to make the running game take off in the new mid-zone and wide-zone scheme, but it could take some time to really master the new system.
