The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have taken part in 50 NFL Drafts since they first began building their roster in 1976. Some of those drafts have been good, some not so good. And some have been great. The same can be said for the Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Rams or any team in the league. The draft is unpredictable, like trying to hit a high-90s fastball. There's always the chance that you swing right through it, but sometimes you barrel it up and it leaves the park.

When during those 50 draft weekends have the Bucs made their best swings? That's my task today: Identify the five best draft classes in Tampa Bay history…or, to be more exact, one man's opinion of the five best classes. You are free to disagree. I'll also be listing some honorable mentions.

A couple of notes about the methodology here: First, I'm not considering the three most recent drafts. I don't think we have enough evidence yet to decide how good those classes are. Maybe we'll look back at Graham Barton, Tykee Smith, Jalen McMillan and Bucky Irving in a few years and decide that 2024 was a very good draft. For now, though, the 2023-25 classes are not under consideration for me.

Second, depth of good picks matters, but absolutely nailing a couple high picks was very convincing to me, as well. You'll see a bit of both types of evaluation in the top five list below. On the other hand, one great pick does not a great draft make. How can we not consider a draft that started with tackle Paul Gruber as one of the all-time great classes in franchise history? Well, Gruber is indeed one of the top Buccaneers of all time, but the rest of that class didn't produce much of anything. Four of the Bucs' five Hall of Famers are represented in the top five list below, but safety John Lynch is not. Obviously, getting Lynch for a third round pick was one of the best single picks in Buccaneer history, but he rest of the 1993 class, which started with the selections of Eric Curry, Demetrius DuBose and Lamar Thomas, doesn't clear the bar.

Finally, I didn't take trades into account. The 2000 draft starts with guard Cosey Coleman; wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson, acquired for the Bucs' two first-round picks that year, was not taken into consideration.

Okay, first some honorable mentions:

- 1979: No first-round pick hurts, but Greg Roberts, Gordan Jones and Jerry Eckwood were all productive picks in the first three rounds, and then along came David Logan in Round 12

- 1981: This one was highlighted by linebacker Hugh Green, running back James Wilder and cornerback John Holt

- 1996: This one would have been in top five consideration thanks to Mike Alstott, Donnie Abraham and Jason Odom, but the first-round duo of Regan Upshawn and Marcus Jones was a little underwhelming

- 2010: Gerald McCoy and Mike Williams started this one off well but what really makes it stand out is getting three solid contributors in the seventh round in Cody Grimm, Dekoda Watson and Erik Lorig

- 2015: This probably depends on how successful you think the Jameis Winston pick is, but he was a starter for most of five seasons and holds a lot of Bucs all-time passing records. He was followed by Donovan Smith, Ali Marpet and Kwon Alexander

- 2018: Vita Vea, Ronald Jones, Carlton Davis, Alex Cappa, Jordan Whitehead – a lot of Super Bowl starters and contributors

- 2022: The jury is still out a little bit on this class, and top pick Logan Hall is gone after four years, but Luke Goedeke, Cade Otton, Zyon McCollum and Ko Kieft are still in prominent roles and Rachaad White was a solid contributor for four seasons

Now my top five, counting down to the number-one spot.

5. 1976 Draft Class

Key selections (round taken): DE Lee Roy Selmon (1), RB Jimmy DuBose (2), LB Dewey Selmon (2), C Steve Wilson (5), CB Curtis Jordan (6), RB George Ragsdale (12)

A half-century later, and the first college draft pick the Buccaneers ever made may still be the most consequential one in franchise history. We can quibble over who the greatest player in franchise history is, but Lee Roy Selmon is definitely in the conversation. More importantly, he was the man the Buccaneers chose to build their foundation around, and he proved more than up to the task, both on and off the field. He was the first Buccaneer admitted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995 and remains the franchise's all-time sack leader.

The Bucs had a lot of picks in 1976, though they used a handful of them to trade for some much needed veteans. There were no other superstars after Lee Roy Selmon, but there were plenty of other players who helped get the team from the bottom of the league barrel to the playoffs in just four years. Selmon's brother, Dewey played five seasons and made 65 starts on a very good defense. Steve Wilson was listed a tackle when drafted and played a little guard as a rookie but he eventually settled in as the team's starting center for most of a decade. George Ragsdale was the rare 12th-round contributor, sticking around through 1979 as a return man.

4. 2020 Draft Class

Key selections (round taken): T Tristan Wirfs (1), S Antoine Winfield Jr. (2), RB Ke'Shawn Vaughn, WR Tyler Johnson (5)

This one could still finish higher when it's all said and done, but that will all rest on the shoulders of just two men and what they will continue to accomplish in Tampa. General Manager Jason Licht started this draft as well as one possibly could by landing Tristan Wirfs with the 13th overall pick (after a small trade up) and Antoine Winfield Jr. in the second round. Both started on the 2020 Super Bowl championship team and by their shared second season they were already considered among the very best in the NFL at their respective positions.

In my opinion, this was the best opening two picks of a Buccaneer draft class save for the 1995 class, which we'll be getting to shortly. No, there was not much lasting impact from the rest of the class, but if you can land two potential Hall of Famers, that's enough to make it a great class overall. Ke'Shawn Vaughn and Tyler Johnson had a couple big moments each during the 2020 Super Bowl season.

3. 1987 Draft Class

Key selections (round taken): QB Vinny Testaverde (1), CB Ricky Reynolds (2), LB Winston Moss (2), WR Mark Carrier (3), TE Ron Hall (4), WR Bruce Hill (4), DT Curt Jarvis (7), DE/T Harry Swayne (7)

This one makes the list largely out of volume, and if you want to disqualify it because the first-overall pick of Vinny Testaverde failed to produce a long-term franchise quarterback, I would understand. Still, Testaverde and remains second in team history in passing yards.

Meanwhile, the 1987 draft produced one of the better cornerbacks in team history in Ricky Reynolds, a pair of starting wide receivers in Mark Carrier and Bruce Hill, a starting tight end in Ron Hall and a four-year starting linebacker with pass-rushing skills in Winston Moss. Even the seventh round produced a couple of useful players. Curt Jarvis started 36 games over four seasons in Tampa and Harry Swayne contributed on both sides of the trenches as a defensive end for two years and an offensive tackle for two more. Swayne never broke into the starting lineup for Tampa, but he would go on to play 15 years in the NFL and start 113 contests.

Reynolds is tied for 10th in team history with 17 interceptions. Carrier made the Pro Bowl in 1989 – the first Buccaneers receiver ever to do so – and held the team record for receiving yards in a season (1,422) for almost three decades before Mike Evans broke it. He is third in team history in receiving yards and Hill is 12th. Hall's 2,422 receiving yards are the third most by a tight end in Buccaneer annals.

2. 1997 Draft Class

Key selections (round taken): RB Warrick Dunn (1), WR Reidel Anthony (1), T Jerry Wunsch (2), G Frank Middleton (3), CB Rondé Barber (3), LB Alshermond Singleton (4), TE Patrick Hape (5)

This class has both depth and Hall of Fame representation. We'll start with the latter, as cornerback Rondé Barber made it into Canton with the Class of 2023 and is the holder of multiple Buccaneers and NFL records. Perhaps most notably, he's the only player in NFL history to record at least 40 interceptions and at least 25 sacks (he finished with 47 and 28). He also ranks fourth in NFL history with 14 non-offensive touchdowns, and that doesn't even include the pick-six in the 2002 NFC Championship Game that is considered the most important play in franchise history. He is the Bucs' all-time leader in interceptions, non-offensive touchdowns, passes defensed (197), seasons played (16), games played (241) and games started (232) and he never missed a game due to injury in his entire NFL career.

Meanwhile, Warrick Dunn would be giving Mike Evans competition for the title of best offensive player in franchise history had he played his entire 12 seasons in Tampa rather than splitting it right down the middle between the Bucs and Falcons. Still, he ranks third in team history in rushing yards (5,088), fifth in receptions (2,704) and third in yards from scrimmage (7,690). Anthony didn't provide the same return on first-round investment, but the Bucs wen on to get two multi-year starting offensive linemen in Jerry Wunsch and Frank Middleton.Singleton, the best player the Bucs have ever landed with a compensatory draft selection, spent a couple seasons as a special teams ace before becoming a starter on the 2002 Super Bowl squad.Hape was an accomplished blocker who moved around from tight end to H-back to fullback and played four seasons and 61 games for the Bucs.

A footnote: This class would be even stronger if sixth-round pick Al Harris, a cornerback, had stuck in Tampa. Harris spent his rookie season on injured reserve and then was cut before the start of the 1998 season, after which he went on to a strong 14-season career, much of it in Green Bay. Harris made two Pro Bowls for the Packers and was a second-team All-Pro in 2008. Alas.

1. 1995 Draft Class

Key selections (round taken): DT Warren Sapp (1), LB Derrick Brooks (1), S Melvin Johnson (2)

No, there's not much to this class after the first round, but that's like complaining that the best steak you've ever eaten had forgettable side dishes. Rich McKay famously maneuvered the Bucs up and down the draft board in the first round to land two players who, to this point, are the only two first-ballot Hall of Famers in franchise history. This is just one of three times in NFL history that a team has drafted two Hall of Famers in the same Round, joining the 1965 Chicago Bears (Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers) and the 1996 Baltimore Ravens (Jonathan Ogden and Ray Lewis).

Sapp and Brooks formed the backbone of one of the greatest defenses in NFL history, which peaked in 2002 and led the Buccaneers to their first Super Bowl championship. Each won an NFL Defensive Player of the Year award, Sapp in 1999 and Brooks in 2002. Sapp went into the Hall with the Class of 2013, Brooks a year later. Sapp trails only Selmon in team history with his 77.0 career sacks and Brooks holds the team record and is tied for 17th in NFL history with 11 Pro Bowl selections. Their list of accolades only goes on from there, but you get the point. It was one of the greatest rounds of drafting in NFL history and that's enough to make it the top overall draft class in the Bucs' first 50 seasons.