With just over a month remaining until the release of Madden NFL 21, fans of the Buccaneers and all other teams know the actual season remains in flux. Time to play some Madden with the Bucs:
10. C – Ryan Jensen – 82 OVR
Jensen has started all 32 games since joining Tampa Bay ahead of the 2018 season. Having previously held down the line for Jameis Winston, Jensen will have to adjust to the commanding presence of future Hall of Fame quarterback Tom Brady behind him.
9. ROLB – Shaquil Barrett – 85 OVR
It appears that the Madden raters kept Barrett's entire career in perspective ahead of this designation. There was no pass rusher more fierce during the 2019 year than Barrett, who led the league with 19.5 sacks during his first year as a Buccaneer.
He will be playing this upcoming season under the franchise tag, but his ranking has an excellent chance of surpassing the 90 mark.
8. RE – Ndamukong Suh – 86 OVR
Once hailed as a ferocious presence on the defensive line, Suh has crested into the latter stages of his career. A stalwart who has appeared in every game since the start of the 2012 season, Suh's game-wrecking days as a pass-rusher are likely behind him, but he remains a force on Tampa Bay's defensive line. Few can clog an offensive line's plan of attack like Suh, which earns him much respect from the Madden rankers.
7. DT – Vita Vea – 87 OVR
Vea completes quite the 1-2 punch for Madden players looking for flexibility along their defensive line.
Much like Suh, Vea is a blocking nightmare for opposing O-linemen. Entering his third year in the league, the vote of confidence in his rating is indicative of the small ways the team's 2018 first-round selection can disrupt games.
6. WR – Chris Godwin – 88 OVR
Godwin reaped massive benefits in 2019 with Winston airing the ball out at league-high rates. Selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time, Godwin amassed 86 receptions for 1,333 yards and nine touchdowns in 14 games.
He has entered the upper-echelon of fantasy receiving targets, which translated into a career-best Madden showing.
5. LG – Ali Marpet – 89 OVR
The backbone of the Buccaneers' offensive line for most of the past half-decade, Marpet is expected to remain in the left guard spot in 2020. He is a destructive blocker no matter where he shifts on the line, but with an 89 run block and an 87 pass block rating, he is sure to be a treat for Buccaneers fans.
4. QB – Tom Brady – 90 OVR
This rating may come as something of a surprise to those who watched Brady on a game-by-game basis last season with New England. Despite entering the year in a completely new offense during his age-43 season, Brady can still claim his Brady-esque mystique. Head coach Bruce Arians will likely look to Brady to air the ball out (maybe not at the same rate as Winston) consistently, which could allow him to justify his rating.
As far as in-game play goes, Brady's 99 stamina and injury make it assured that he isn't going anywhere as the team's signal caller.
3. MLB – Lavonte David – 90 OVR
Tackling at the rate that David has produced over his career will lend credence to 90 overall ratings, which he has notched this season. Playing in all 16 games last year led to 123 total combined tackles, his most in a year since 2015.
Only Bobby Wagner of the Seahawks is rated ahead of David for middle linebackers across the league. David's blend of 86 speed, 90 acceleration, 92 awareness and 89 tackle ratings will make him a hot commodity for users to lock in on defensively.
2. WR – Mike Evans – 92 OVR
Evans' upper-echelon talent has been obvious over the years during his pairing with Winston, but he joins forces with Brady this season, which could allow him to tap into potential previously not explored. He reeled off his sixth consecutive season with more than 1,000 receiving yards last year despite missing three games.
Evans checks in tied for the seventh-highest overall of any wideout in the game, with an immense 97 jump rating for those who will enjoy lofting deep balls from Brady down the field in Evans' direction.
1. TE – Rob Gronkowski – 95 OVR
Gronkowski's ranking after a year on the sidelines was one of the more surprising numbers from around the league. Despite that, it's an indication of his immense talents and established rapport with Brady.
Will Gronkowski's production mirror his third-ranked tight end status? That remains to be seen, but a future Hall of Famer working in an up-tempo offense alongside enormous play-making threats will likely lend itself to a season of production.
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