After Reuniting Gronkowski and Brady, Buccaneers’ Super Bowl Odds Listed at +1200
- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers traded for former New England Patriot tight end Rob Gronkowski
- Tampa’s Super Bowl odds has improved significantly, even though Gronk is coming out of retirement
- Gronkowski and Tom Brady played nine seasons together with New England
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are raiding the New England Patriots’ fridge. On Tuesday, they acquired previously retired Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski for a fourth-round pick. He’s now unretired and passed his physical. The Bucs’ Super Bowl odds have improve from +1700 all the way to +1200.
Are they worth a look at this point?
Super Bowl 55 Odds
| Team | 2019 Record | Super Bowl 55 Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Chiefs | 12-4 | +650 |
| Baltimore Ravens | 14-2 | +700 |
| San Francisco 49ers | 13-3 | +900 |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 7-9 | +1200 |
| New Orleans Saints | 13-3 | +1200 |
| Dallas Cowboys | 8-8 | +1700 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 9-7 | +1900 |
| Seattle Seahawks | 11-5 | +2100 |
| New England Patriots | 12-4 | +2200 |
| Green Bay Packers | 13-3 | +2300 |
All odds taken Apr. 21
Bucs Acquire Gronkowski From Patriots
In a move very few people saw coming, the Bucs not only convinced Gronk to unretire, they also were able to acquire him from the Patriots for a fourth-round pick. It’s also worth noting that Gronk isn’t even asking for more money; he’s going to honor the contract that he was playing under before he retired.
Breaking: The Patriots are trading Rob Gronkowski and a seventh-round pick to the Buccaneers for a fourth-round pick, pending a physical, a source tells @AdamSchefter. pic.twitter.com/J10rwU39zB
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) April 21, 2020
The Bucs had an extra fourth-round pick this year, so they’ll still have one pick in each of the first six rounds of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Bucs New Offense Looks Dangerous
We’ll see what the Bucs do at the draft but if the season started today, their offense would likely be one of the more explosive in the league. Of course, Tom Brady steps in under center and the team already had Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, two of the top four wideouts in terms of receiving yards per game last season.
NFL defenses realizing they’re going to have to cover Mike Evans, Gronk, OJ Howard and Chris Godwin all at once pic.twitter.com/qUi7OY91Mk
— NFL Memes (@NFL_Memes) April 21, 2020
Beyond that, the Bucs also have former first-round picks Ronald Jones III and O.J. Howard, and while both have underachieved, the talent is still there. If Tampa spends a first-round pick on an offensive lineman, as expected, and finds a quality running back to add to the backfield, this could be one of the top units in the NFL.
How Much Better Will They Be?
That said, I’m not prepared to hop on board with the Bucs right now; I’m not sure they’re a lot better than last season. Brady is a clear-cut upgrade over Jameis Winston because of Winston’s propensity to turn over the ball. However, the Bucs were already fourth in the NFL in points per game last season and had the league’s top passing unit.
Update: Rob Gronkowski already has taken his physical in Boston with a neutral physician and is awaiting the official results, though one source added he believes he passed “with flying colors.”
Once physical is passed, Gronkowki will be a Buc and reunited with Tom Brady.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) April 21, 2020
The Bucs need to fix their ground game, which really hasn’t been addressed, and they also need to find some solutions on defense. Of offense, they were 28th in the NFL in rushing yards per game, while the defense ranked 29th in scoring.
The Bucs haven’t done much this offseason to address the defensive side of the ball. They brought back Ndamukong Suh, but he’s past his prime. There is talent in the front seven with guys like Devin White, Lavonte David, Shaq Barrett and Jason Pierre-Paul but the secondary is among the worst in the NFL.
BREAKING: Patriots agree to trade Rob Gronkowski to the Buccaneers. (via @RapSheet) pic.twitter.com/W28QUzUNKO
— NFL (@NFL) April 21, 2020
The team is probably going to end up with a new offensive tackle and a running back like Clyde Edwards-Helaire with two of their first three picks in the draft. Can their secondary really get the job done next year without any significant changes?
What’s The Best Bet?
I do like the Bucs to go over their regular season win total of 9.0 because Brady, Gronk, Evans, Godwin and maybe even a couple more draft picks to bolster the offense has the makings of a 10-win team. However, when it comes to betting them to win the Super Bowl, I’m not so sure.
Tom Brady
Mike Evans
Chris Godwin
Rob Gronkowski
OJ Howard
Cameron Brate
Ronald JonesUnreal. The roster isn't set, but Bruce Arians is gonna have a lot of fun designing this Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense. Evans and Godwin? Gronk as a third option? Brady will post absurd numbers.
— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) April 21, 2020
If the Bucs sign a couple of defensive backs, such as Logan Ryan and/or Prince Amukamara, or sign OT Jason Peters and use their first pick in the secondary, they all of the sudden become a much more complete team in my eyes.
As it stands now, I’m hesitant to bet the Bucs to win it all. I still see flaws at running back, in the secondary, and even in the kicking game.
For over 15 years, Dave has been working in mainstream media and sports betting. He hosted a station on Sirius Satellite Radio for four years, and is currently a senior writer for AskMen. He's interviewed hundreds of hundreds of high-profile sports stars like Shaquille O'Neal and Floyd Mayweather.
