Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end O.J. Howard didn’t have the breakout third season many fans, and fantasy owners, were hoping for. The former Alabama star and 2017 first-round pick struggled to find a niche in Bruce Arians’ new offense, even finding himself in the coach’s doghouse early in the season.
It remains to be seen whether Tampa Bay keeps Howard on the roster this offseason, but you have to imagine they’ll give him at least one more season to prove himself. After all, you don’t find tight ends with his size and strength just waiting on the sideline.
While keeping him is a decision the Bucs organization is going to have to make on their own, fantasy football owners will have to decide how to approach drafting or picking up Howard in 2020. As Jenna Laine of ESPN explains, they should be cautious.
“It’s baffling what happened with Howard. He looked so solid in camp but he made some inexplicable mistakes last season. Based on conversations with him, it was a combination of a new role in a new offense, some early mistakes, the trade talk and a new staff trying to figure him out in a system not known to be tight-end-friendly. Proceed with caution.”
Howard may have struggled statistically last season, but he found a way to be an effective blocker. The Bucs just need to find a way to utilize his skill-set better. If they can, Howard could be a steal in fantasy if someone decides to take a chance on him early.
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