Buccaneers GM Jason Licht explains surprising NFL Draft decision

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made an interesting draft decision with Emeka Egbuka, and Jason Licht explained why.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Many people thought the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were going to go defense with their first pick of the 2025 NFL Draft. Instead, they flipped the script and drafted an offensive weapon for the first time since 2014.

The Buccaneers took wide receiver Emeka Egbuka with the No. 19 pick, adding to an already-stacked wide receiver room that included Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan. It was unexpected, but according to Buccaneers GM Jason Licht, it was in the cards all along.

Licht spoke to media after the draft pick, and he stressed that this was a player that the Buccaneers had their eye on for quite a while.

"Adding another great receiver — Todd [Bowles] has said all along... a good offense can help a defense. It's about scoring points, and it's exciting to add him to the mix," Licht said. "Todd [Bowles] and I said that if this player is here, we're gonna take him."

But what about defense? Tampa Bay has holes at edge rusher, linebacker, cornerback and safety, and many fans expected them to go that route. But there's still time to do that with a number of good players falling to the second round, and the Bucs could still certainly benefit.

When Licht was asked about defense, he mentioned that there's still plenty of time to pick on that side of the ball — and that when you have a player like Egbuka, you can't pass it up.

"Yeah. Obviously, we'll see how that turns out," Licht said. "But it just felt like with him, it was too good to pass up... it was kinda a perfect pick where it helps us now, and it really helps us in the future."

Egbuka will now try to find his footing in a stacked wide receiver room, and the Buccaneers are still hunting for defensive players on Day 2.

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