The Buccaneers selected running back Ronald Jones in the second round of last year’s draft, but hopes that he’d play a big role in their offense went unrealized.
Jones struggled throughout the preseason and was an afterthought in the regular season. He got 30 touches while appearing in nine games as a backup to Peyton Barber and Jacquizz Rodgers and his failure to launch has led to talk about the Bucs taking another running back in this year’s draft.
That may turn out to be the case, but General Manager Jason Licht spent some time lavishing praise on Jones during his press conference on Tuesday.
“Right now the guy that we’re all collectively most impressed with is RoJo, just his attitude, his willingness to do extra. You can just see the confidence rising in him,” Licht said, via JoeBucsFan.com.
There’s often a big gap between what General Managers say in pre-draft press conferences and what they actually do in the draft. We’ll find out next week if the strong feelings about Jones’ offseason work have an impact on the direction Tampa winds up taking.
