Will Bucs make deal or choose to pass?

There are at least five players who could change teams on draft day.

By RICK STROUD
Published April 22, 2007

TAMPA - Pretend for a minute the general manager is Howie Mandel and not Bruce Allen. There are at least five players who could change teams on draft day. Deal or no deal?

TRADE THE RIGHTS TO JAKE PLUMMER: The former Broncos quarterback says he's taking a knee. But he hasn't filed retirement papers, and the Bucs are willing to forgive the $7-million prorated signing bonus they could ask for if Plummer would just come to training camp. Almost everyone from Mike Shanahan to Gary Kubiak thinks Plummer will play this fall. So far, he has shown no interest in doing so in Tampa Bay. The Dolphins and Raiders still could be in the hunt for a quarterback on draft day.

TRADE FOR SAINTS DE CHARLES GRANT: The Bucs made a big pitch to Grant, the Saints' franchise player. He was wined, dined and given the red carpet treatment during a weekend visit to the new training facility. They planted a seed. New Orleans could demand two No. 1 draft picks if the Bucs signed Grant to an offer sheet, so that won't happen. But that doesn't mean a deal can't be struck for a combination of picks and players.

TRADE BRIAN KELLY ABOVE TO LIONS: The Bucs will work feverishly to strike a deal with Detroit to move from No. 4 to No. 2 if Georgia Tech receiver Calvin Johnson is on the board. Of course, that's assuming Lions general manager Matt Millen doesn't want the best player in the draft because of his history with No. 1 picks such as receivers Charles Rogers and Mike Williams. The Bucs would have to swap first-round picks and probably throw in another draft choice. Kelly is thought to have had some heated discussions with Jon Gruden this offseason and won't be attending any workouts that aren't mandatory. The Bucs did pay his roster bonus. But having re-signed Phillip Buchanon and Sammy Davis, they have options. The Lions need to replace cornerback Dre Bly.

TRADE DE SIMEON RICE: At 33, Rice's days in Tampa Bay are numbered. He's coming off shoulder surgery that limited him to eight games and two sacks last season. Rice has one year left on a deal that will pay him $7.5-million. He has been shopped around, perhaps as part of a trade with Detroit, where he would be reunited with Rod Marinelli. But the Bucs are thin on the defensive line and need Rice's 12-14 sacks.

TRADE CHRIS SIMMS: The unlikeliest scenario, but follow the logic. Plummer says he will compete with Jeff Garcia for the starting job. That gives Gruden the green light to draft Notre Dame's Brady Quinn or LSU's JaMarcus Russell, giving the Bucs a solid quarterback for the future and eventually ending the merry-go-round at that position. Simms is in his fifth season in Tampa Bay and still not established.

Rick Stroud can be reached at stroud@sptimes.com.

[Last modified April 21, 2007, 23:28:20]