Fantasy Football Team Preview: Bucs

With Fantasy Football season ready to kick in high gear, FanHouse is here to preview each and every team -- one per day until we've done them all.

Meet The ...
Team full of new faces both on the field and on the coaching staff. Since we last played "real" football, Tampa Bay has fired their head coach, Jon Gruden, released fan favorites like Jeff Garcia, Warrick Dunn and Joey Galloway, and saw their defensive coordinator Monte Kiffen head north to coach college football at Tennessee. The team brought in Byron Leftwich and created a quarterback competition, Derrick Ward to share rushing responsibilities with Earnest Graham, and Kellen Winslow, a huge upgrade at tight end. The front office hopes these changes help redefine the offense and give it a new energy; something many felt the offense lacked while being run by Jon Gruden.

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The Breakout
Derrick Ward is used to being the number two option. He even rushed for 1,025 yards last season as the secondary rusher behind Brandon Jacobs. In 2009, Ward gets to see what it's like to be out front. Ward should start the season as the Buccaneers number one option at running back and he'll most likely see the majority of work. He averaged 5.6 yards per carry over 182 attempts last season. If he keeps that pace up while rushing the ball in the 225 carry neighborhood, Ward could do some awesome things. Especially behind a stacked offensive line like he'll enjoy in Tampa.

The Bust
Calling Antonio Bryant a bust is more a result of draft value versus actual on the field results. Let me explain. Bryant enjoyed a wonderful comeback year in 2008 after sitting out all of 2007. He caught 83 passes for 1,248 yards and seven touchdowns. But, a lot has changed on the offensive side of things in Tampa. One of the biggest is the fact that nobody really knows who's going to be throwing the ball come regular season. If rookie Josh Freeman wins the job, the offense could be scaled back and become a run first style attack. You also have to look at the addition of Kellen Winslow. Winslow will greatly cut into Bryant's targeted numbers. To obtain Bryant in your fantasy draft you're going to have to grab him higher then he could be worth. That's never a good sign.

The Depth Chart
QB1 - Byron Leftwich / Josh Freeman
QB2 - Luke McCown
RB1 - Derrick Ward
RB2 - Earnest Graham
WR1 - Antonio Bryant
WR2 - Michael Clayton
WR3 - Dexter Jackson
WR4 - Maurice Stovall
TE1 - Kellen Winslow
TE2 - Jerramy Stevens
K - Matt Bryant

The D/ST
Monte Kiffin is no longer running the show in Tampa and the new guy, Jim Bates, tends to think differently about working the defense. Gone are the days where Tampa is a top-five passing defense (187.3 yards per game allowed in 2008) and a top-ten overall (306.1 yards per game allowed in 2008) unit. Also gone are veterans Cato June, Phillip Buchanon and Derrick Brooks. The defense going into 2009 has questions to answer at the line, back field and in the linebacker corps. They'll likely answer those questions and remain a good defense, but I'd hold off on drafting Tampa Bay as high as you did in recent years.

Clifton Smith turned himself into a Pro Bowl returner even though he had trouble holding onto the ball as a running back. He averaged 27.6 yards and scored one touchdown returning kickoffs, and averaged 14.1 yards with one touchdown returning punts. He'll be the featured return specialist in 2009 and you should expect more Pro Bowl type numbers.

The Skinny
- There is a three-way battle for the starting quarterback job in Tampa headed into training camp. It's anyones guess who'll come out victorious. Leftwich is considered the favorite over McCown, but Josh Freeman could pose a threat too, once he signs and gets to camp. If Freeman can grasp the offense in Tampa, he'll be considered for the post as early as week one. He's the future for the Buccaneers at quarterback. But, he shouldn't be relied upon in 2009 for your fantasy team.

- Earnest Graham had an injury-shortened 2008 and expects to get a good share of the carries in the backfield as he shares time with Derrick Ward. Remember that Ward is option number one and Graham is a little more then option number two but less than option one-B. I wouldn't be surprised to see Earnest Graham accumulate 185 carries and rush for 750 yards.

- It's going to be nice to see Kellen Winslow get a fresh start in Tampa. Maybe the weather will help him stay healthy, which has been his Achilles heel (pun intended). If he can avoid the IR, Winslow should give you 80-plus catches and 1,000-plus yards. If not... see 2008.