Although they don’t currently have a first-round pick after trading it as part of the Darrelle Revis deal, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers still will hold their draft party at Raymond James Stadium on Thursday night.
According to the team, Revis, Dashon Goldson, Mark Barron, Doug Martin, Lavonte David, Josh Freeman, Gerald McCoy and Adrian Clayborn will attend. The team also says there will be an “on-field presentation’’ at 7 p.m. Other festivities also are planned.
But I wouldn’t be surprised if the biggest event comes very late in the night. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the Buccaneers trade back into the latter stages of the first round.
One thing we’ve learned about general manager Mark Dominik is he’s a creature of habit. He drafted receivers Mike Williams and Arrelious Benn in the same year and took defensive tackles Gerald McCoy and Brian Price in the same draft.
Dominik set a precedent for trading into the first round last year. After taking Barron with the seventh overall pick, he traded back into the first round to get Martin.
It could happen again. The Bucs currently have seven picks. If you look at the trade value chart, they could package their second-round pick (No. 43) and third-round pick (No. 73) and get to somewhere in the bottom five or six picks in the first round.
Dominik acknowledged Monday that he at least has thought about scenarios where he would consider getting back into the first round.
One other thing to keep in mind: When Dominik drafted Martin last year, he explained that part of the reason he made the deal was because players that are drafted in the first round can be given five-year deals, while anyone after the first round can’t get anything more than a four-year deal.
That’s important to Dominik.
That’s why I wouldn’t be surprised if he makes a trade to get back into the first round.
