Why the Buccaneers won in the 2025 NFL Draft

It's hard to judge an NFL Draft class right after it happens. Certainly teams can appear to win and lose, but the only thing that matters is the result on the field — and Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht happens to be pretty good when it comes to that sort of thing.

Last year, four of Licht's picks found the field for Tampa Bay as immediate impactors — center Graham Barton, running back Bucky Irving, wide receiver Jalen McMlllan and defensive back Tykee Smith all got starting reps and made the most of it in 2024. Barton held down the offensive line, Irving became Tampa Bay's first 1,000-yard rusher since 2015, McMillan caught eight touchdown passes and Smith did some great work at the nickel position on defense.

Now, the Bucs have a new draft class. They've selected wide receivers Emeka Egbuka and Tez Johnson, cornerbacks Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish, edge rusher David Walker and defensive lineman Elijah Roberts, and all of them have the potential to make an impact with Tampa Bay. While some were puzzled by the wide receiver pick in Round 1 and thought the team should have gone defense sooner, the Bucs covered their bases and improved their team vastly during the draft, and here's how:

Why the Buccaneers won in the draft

There's a place for everyone the Buccaneers picked in this draft. And while later picks have a smaller chance of making the team, there's a realistic chance that every single one of these draft picks will contribute to the team in some way.

Egbuka is a very talented receiver with a high floor who will likely slot in at WR3 ahead of Jalen McMillan. Egbuka holds the Ohio State school record for receptions and caught 10 touchdowns last year, and he offers insurance for an offense that needs to utilize a Chris Godwin-type wideout on every down. Johnson, meanwhile, will have a hard time cracking the offense as a legitimate receiving threat — he could end up as a special teams returner, however, and that could cause an immediate impact with the way he worked in space at Oregon. Johnson is very small and ran a slow 40 time, but his tape was electric at Oregon and he could apply his agility to the return game immediately.

The Bucs didn't ignore defense, however, and they could get production out of their defensive players sooner than later, too. Kansas State defensive back Jacob Parrish is set to start immediately after Tykee Smith moves up to safety, and his 4.3 speed and aggressive playstyle should suit him well in that role. Benjamin Morrison could see playing time on the outside in rotation with Jamel Dean and Zyon McCollum, and he's a great option if either are injured. On the defensive front David Walker fits right into the edge rotation alongside outside linebacker Chris Braswell and Anthony Nelson to create a staunch second line on the rotation, and Elijah Roberts will likely see a few snaps early as a replacement for William Gholston, who will likely retire this offseason. Roberts can also do a little bit of what Logan Hall does on the defensive line, but he's a bit smaller than Hall is.

To make a long story short — the Tampa Bay Buccaneers not only got great value with their picks, they can use them immediately. That's how Jason Licht wins the draft, and time will tell if his picks are indeed able to see the field when the 2025 season rolls around and the Bucs attempt to capture their fifth NFC South title in a row.

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