Hidden Bucs Employees Get Spotlight – JoeBucsFan.com

Bucs assistant GM John Spytek was a key figure in the latest “In the Current” that focused on how a draft class is built.

Yes, Joe already wrote about the latest episode of the Bucs’ “In the Current,” which looks at Bucs scouts and takes fans behind the current series of interviews with prospects at the combine in Indianapolis and team meetings where Bucs scouts and staff members, including Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht, discuss the pros and cons of various Bucs players before they were drafted.

Joe’s favorite was the discussion of Georgia safety Tykee Smith. The video shows Smith breaking down tape for the Bucs in Indianapolis. At one point, Smith asks outside linebackers coach and pass game coordinator Larry Foote what he’s looking for.

Foote nodded toward the screen showing Smith’s play for Georgia and said, “We need that kind of physicality.”

The scene then cut to a meeting where the Bucs were discussing Smith’s merits. Senior personnel executive Byron Kiefer banged on the proverbial table for Smith with an impassioned defense.

“I just like that, we have culture, you can put slogans all over the building and stuff like that,” Kiefer began. “Whoever we bring in, supports that. If we don’t bring in players that support that, those (slogans) are meaningless, right?

“They (players) carry what we try to be. We say this is what we want to be and so if we bring in a guy who doesn’t want to put his face in the fan, then it’s about me and all that (it destroys the credibility of the team).

“We bring this son of a bitch in (Kiefer sticks his finger in the air), and they say, ‘Oh, they’re right.’ Players know it. You can’t fool the players.”

Licht responded to Kiefer’s advocacy for Smith by saying, “You can’t go wrong with the right kind of guy.”

Apparently Smith is the right person.

Some other highlights:

* In Graham Barton’s combine interview with the Bucs, he was asked what he knows about the Bucs. Barton responded, “I know you’ve got a pretty freaky tackle in Wirfs.”

* Assistant general manager John Spytek was a key figure in this 34-minute video. In meetings leading up to the draft, Spytek discussed pass rushers. He said of YaYa Diaby, “I think we found one. We’ve got to find one.”

* When putting together the draft board, Spytek said, “The only guy I think we should put here is (Chris) Braswell.” Licht can be heard muttering under his breath, “Oh, yeah.”

Later, Spytek elaborated on Braswell.

“Every time I looked for Dallas Turner… this guy (Braswell) would walk past someone’s face and make jokes.”

A selling point for the Bucs was the pressure Braswell put on his quarterback.

“He had the most pressure in the SEC,” said director of player personnel Rob McCartney. “And for him to play in a rotation, that says a lot.”

* This video wasn’t just about the rookie draft class. There were also nuggets about Bucs veterans. While it’s unclear exactly when these meetings with Bucs personnel staff took place, it was pretty clear from the conversations that the Bucs were planning on re-signing Baker Mayfield, who became a free agent last spring.

* It’s not clear who was speaking when it came to Chris Godwin, but it was clear how much respect the Bucs have for Godwin and that they believe he makes a quarterback better, regardless of who that quarterback is.

The responses showed that Godwin provides a security blanket to the quarterback who is playing at the time and gives quarterbacks the confidence that Godwin can always bail them out.

“He’s going to be where he’s supposed to be. He’s going to catch it.”

Overall, this was probably one of the best videos the Bucs have produced in this series. It was an excellent behind-the-scenes look at how a draft class is made. It’s definitely worth your time.