By: Jake Rajala

The Philadelphia Eagles have an Invincible (hi, Vince Papale) record 6-0. With that said, there is no reason that Philly should take their foot off the pedal in their stride to win a Lombardi trophy in 2022-2023. I believe they want to seek to add another face at WR for their up-and-coming QB Jalen Hurts. Hence, I’m going to untwine five potential WR trade options for the Philadelphia Eagles — as the November trade deadline mightily approaches (November 1st).

• Trade for Russell Gage

The Eagles don’t have the sexiest WR3, Quez Watkins (6 catches, 88 yards, and 1 TD), so it may be wise for them to shop for another face at wideout. Russell Gage was favored to be a threat in Tampa Bay until Julio Jones ruined his party. I still believe that Gage has a potent ceiling & that he can dominate his match-ups from the WR3 spot.

• Trade for Mecole Hardman

The speed-demon Mecole Hardman doesn’t quite fit in with Kansas City, but he could be a superb gift with Jalen Hurts. Hardman, who has clocked a 4.33 40-yard dash, is also 24 years old — which is a year younger than A.J. Brown. Hardman has 1,977 receiving yards and 14 TDs in his short career to this point.

• Trade for Kadarius Toney

The underperforming Kadarius Toney is a popular pick to be shipped away from his squad. After Toney collected 420 yards in 10 games last season (which was honestly underperforming), Toney has only registered two catches this season. The GMEN and the Eagles compete in the same divison, so the Giants may not be overly open to traded him to the Eagles, however.

• Trade for AJ Green

After the Arizona Cardinals brought in Robbie Anderson, it may be time for them to move on from the veteran WR AJ Green. The Bengals legend has only hauled in 10 catches for 56 yards this season, but it may be a better picture for him in the Eagles offensive attack.

• Trade for K.J. Osborn

K.J. Osborn managed to unleash 655 yards and seven touchdowns in his sophomore campaign, but he’s taken a step back this season: 19 catches for 177 yards and 1 TD. Osborn could look to resurrect his career in the frigid NFC East.

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By: Jake Rajala

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers display a Prometheus-like wide receiver group. The mighty Mike Evans, elusive Chris Godwin, and underrated Russell Gage are expected to be major receiving weapons for Tom Brady. PFF ranked the Bucs WR group as the second-best WR unit in the league. It’s clear that the almost 45-year-old Brady should feel thrilled about his weaponry – as he chases Michael Jordan and seeks one more Super Ring in the near future.

Evans is the only WR in NFL history to have registered eight straight 1,000+ receiving yard seasons. He will turn 29 in August, but it seems clear that he should unveil a few more Pro Bowl-caliber seasons in Tampa. Meanwhile, his sidekick, Godwin, unveiled 1,103 yds in his last 14 games, while garnering an 81.3 grade by PFF.

Antonio Brown may be an enemy of the Florida State, but he certainly was an x-factor for the Bucs offense in their recent Super Bowl victory. Russell Gage (averaged 778 receiving yds in past two seasons combined) needs to excel with his match-ups as the WR3.

The Bucs have numerous underrated wideouts after their big-three WRs. Tyler Johnson, Breshad Perriman, and Scotty Miller will be quality depth pieces. Johnson ousted 360 yds with the Brady bunch last season. Perriman knocked out a career-high 645 receiving yds and 6 touchdowns in 2019. He could be a productive deep-threat weapon and perhaps he can help the Bucs crack a long, surprising touchdown against the stingy Saints defense. Kevin King’s worst enemy, aka Scotty Miller, may honestly spend his last season in Tampa in 2022. He hasn’t been able to keep a quality role in the Bucs offense and it will be quite difficult for him to be involved with the Bucs current talent at WR.

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By: Jake Rajala

The GOAT in the NFL is unequivocally the ageless quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Tom Brady. The Bucs QB has seven Super Bowl rings and he’s still pressing on for his eight SB victory. With that said, there has been kryptonite to Brady in recent memory: The New Orleans Saints. In particular, the Saints defense has been a personal hell for Brady — which was evident in Brady dropping a goose egg against the Saints in Week 15 of last season.

With that said, I believe the Bucs should feel more confident against the Saints and there ought to be plenty of optimism for them to at least split games against the Saints next season. It will certainly be a challenge for Mike Evans to have an outstanding outcome against Marshon Lattimore, but the Bucs will have new, numerous x-factors on their offense in Russell Gage and Rachaad White that could find success against the Saints defense. Antonio Brown was an understandable subtraction from the Bucs offense, but they did miss a strong WR3 presence against the Saints in their second battle a season ago. Gage, who might be the next Julian Edelman, could exploit the Saints rookie Alontae Taylor and be a third-down magnet for Brady. The Bucs rookie RB will also aspire to be James White 2.0 in Brady’s offense. White can certainly not excel in the rushing game, but he can also be a threat as a receiving back — which was shown with his 456 receiving yards in 2020.

The last element in the Buccaneers quest for revenge against the Saints is none other than Brady’s mindset. He has been bruised and pushed around by the Saints for two straight regular seasons. I fully expect him to have his best plan to start fast, take care of the football, and make pivotal throws against the Saints in their next bloody show-down. Perhaps the Bucs will even completely turn the table against the Saints — as the Bucs and the potential last ride of Brady could win both divisional match-ups in 2022.

The post Why the Buccaneers could beat the Saints in 2022 appeared first on Pro Football Mania.

By: Jake Rajala

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Russell Gage to a three-year $30 million dollar deal this off-season. The Bucs were all too familiar with the underrated ability of Gage, as he recorded 11 catches for 130 yards against his current team last season (aka the best game in his career). The Brady bunch knew it would be exciting if the 2022 free agent brought his explosiveness into their WR room.

Gage will aspire to be the opposite of the former Bucs WR3 Antonio Brown moving forward. Gage has clean route running ability, but he’s also only missed three games over the past three seasons combined. His motor and non-off field antics should feel like a breath of fresh air for Bucs nation.

TB12 was helping Chris Godwin have his best season from the slot last season. Godwin, who may start the season on the PUP, will witness Gage also have a lot of production from the slot. It should also be noted that Gronk (89 targets last season) is MIA for Brady at this moment. It seems that Gage will be a popular third option (at the very least) with a QB that led the league in passing yards and passing touchdowns in 2021. The Bucs also reign in a division that features the mediocre Falcons pass defense and a Panthers secondary that lost Stephon Gilmore this off-season.

Fantasy Pros has boldly stated that Gage will be a Top-15 WR in his new home in the same NFC South division next season. Rich Eisen has stated on his show that Gage is the most underrated pick-up of the off-season, as well.

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By: Jake Rajala

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers weren’t able to unveil a miraculous comeback against the LA Rams in the recent post-season, but they were still able to witness the second coming of Tom Brady this off-season. Brady was mostly able to get the band back together, as Playoff Lenny and Chris Godwin reunited with TB12. With that said, I’m going to fuel optimism for Bucs nation and untwine three reasons why the Brady bunch can return to the big dance.

Pass rush

The Bucs pass rush was paramount to their Super Bowl LV success and I honestly believe the Bucs did a fantastic job of maintaining a potent front seven this off-season. Joe Tryon will properly replace JPP at the very least. Meanwhile, the Bucs inked Akiem Hicks (3.5 sacks, 9 QB hits in 9 games last season). Of course, Shaq Barrett (10 sacks last season) will be leading the Bucs pass-rushing hunters.

WR talent

Russell Gage is truly one of the most underrated NFL WRs entering 2022. The former Falcons WR recorded 770 yards in each of the past two seasons. AB was a roller coaster, but Gage can be a consistent asset to the Bucs offense in 17+ weeks next season. Scotty Miller might have outgrown Kay Adam’s interest, but he is an excellent WR4, as well.

NFC South

The Bucs have a brutal schedule (fourth most difficult schedule) in 2022, but they should feel quite optimistic about playing opponents in their division, excluding the Saints. The Matt Ryan-less Falcons and Sam Darnold-led Panthers aren’t exactly tenacious foes. Meanwhile, the reigning Super Bowl Champions LA Rams face an incredibly difficult NFC West division.

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By: Jake Rajala

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers witnessed their bionic quarterback Tom Brady return for his last ride in 2022. TB12 and the rest of the Brady Bunch will surely aim to win their second Super Bowl in three seasons. With that said, the Buccaneers squad that will miss many faces from their Super Bowl LV could certainly benefit from ascending x-factors. Hence, I’m going to simply untwine three breakout candidates on the Buccaneers.

Joe Tryon

The tides are turning for the Buccaneers defense and they must replace old magic with young faces. The Bucs will most likely not bring back JPP and Ndamukong Suh. Tryon should nicely fill in for JPP, who fell off a cliff in 2021 (2.5 sacks). It was also noted that Tryon stayed in Tampa Bay this off-season to focus on improving his craft. Per, NBC Sports, the ILB/Pass-Game Coordinator Larry Foote stated that he’s impressed by his off-season and that “We’re expecting big things from him”.

Russell Gage

Russell Gage’s fantasy ceiling is quite exceptional, to say the least. The Bucs new WR will permanently replace AB and aspire to crack 1,000+ yards in 2022 (770 yds in 2021 and 786 yds in 2020). According to FanNation, he was the best under-the-radar FA signing this off-season. I fully expect Scotty Miller Gage to have a career season in the Byron Leftwich throw it around the yard offense.

Rachaad White

The Bucs nicely replaced Ronald Jones with the 2022 third-round pick Rachaad White this off-season. In fact, it should be expressed that White is a far more talented receiving back than the former Bucs veteran RB. The former ASU RB with 1,456 all-purpose yards (456 receiving yds) in 2021 should have a firm role as a sturdy all-purpose RB alongside the power-back Playoff Lenny. James White was the x-factor in Super Bowl LI and Rachaad White may be the x-factor for Brady in his next potential SB show-down.

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The Atlanta Falcons had the 16th ranked passing offense in 2021. It’s clear that they need to improve their passing offense in a conference that features Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford, Kyler Murray, and Dak Prescott.

I actually believe Matt Ryan played well given the lack of talent he was supplied with it. Sure, Kyle Pitts was a fine rookie and potential All-Pro player at the TE position (1,026 yards in 2021). Nonetheless, the Falcons were aching at wideout with Julio Jones in Tennessee and Calvin Ridley leaving via mental health issues. Their top WR in 2021 was Russell Gage (770, 4) and he’s actually a soon-to-be free agent. Their top RB (and common WR) Cordarralle Patterson is also a FA this offseason.

It’s clear that the Falcons need to rebuild their WR group this offseason. With that said, who could they look ink in free agency? Well, here are a few profiles that would make a ton of sense.

T.Y. Hilton

T.Y. Hilton and Matt Ryan can look to finish their aging careers together on a high note. Hilton, Pitts, and potentially Patterson would be an exciting trio of weapons for Ryan. Hilton had down season with Carson Wentz (331, 3) in 10 games, but he ousted 762 yards and 5 touchdowns in 2020. I feel like Hilton would be a great value pickup and x-factor for the Falcons team that plays in a lot of tight games.

Jakobi Meyers

I expect Jakobi Meyers to be targeted by the Las Vegas Raiders and Josh McDaniels if he doesn’t re-sign with the Patriots. Although, he would be a great, young, speed-demon with the Falcons across from Pitts. Meyers is coming off a season where he ousted an impressive 866 yards with Mac Jones. He is also a mere 25 years old. He might like the idea of playing next to Pitts and dominating for many years to come with the Falcons.

Evan Engram

I may be cheating the system by adding TE Evan Engram to this list, but he is essentially an imposing slot WR. Engram, who runs a 4.42 40 yard dash, would be a very exciting complement to Pitts in the Falcons offense. It’s clear that Arthur Smith isn’t scared to be creative, as Patterson plays RB/WR, and Pitts plays TE/WR. I’d love to see Matt Ryan have another deep-threat TE and a playmaker that can help him be more efficient in the red zone.

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