The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will likely be looking for a running back in the upcoming 2017 NFL Draft. Starter Doug Martin will miss the first three games of the season to suspension. And after that, there’s not a whole lot to write home about on the team’s depth chart.
Already potentially linked to veteran Adrian Peterson, the Buccaneers hosted troubled former Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon for a pre-draft visit this week (via NFL.com).
Extremely talented on the field, Mixon has fallen from grace big time after a video surfaced late last year of him punching a woman. The incident itself was from 2014, but has led to widespread speculation that Mixon may go undrafted later this month.
Despite all this, Mixon has taken in multiple visits with NFL teams during the draft process. There’s also recent suggestions out there that he might end up being a Day 2 pick.
Selecting 19th overall in the upcoming draft, there’s a chance Tampa Bay will be in line to pick up one of the three running backs bandied about as first-round picks, Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook and Christian McCaffrey. Should that not happen, Mixon could be an option in Round 2.