Tampa Bay Buccaneers Land LSU TE Bauer Sharp With No. 185 Pick

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers get their tight end with the LSU Tigers' Bauer Sharp.

LSU Tigers tight end Bauer Sharp (10) during warmups before the game against the Southeastern Louisiana Lions | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers needed a tight end in the 2026 NFL Draft, and they traded up in the draft to make sure they got him.

The Bucs traded their No. 195 pick and their No. 229 pick, their seventh rounder, to the Las Vegas Raiders to move up to No. 185 and select Bauer. Bauer is the third offensive player that the Buccaneers drafted this year, joined by Georgia State wide receiver Ted Hurst and Notre Dame guard Billy Schrauth.

Sharp has good size at 6-5, 249 pounds. He played three seasons at Southern Louisiana, one at Oklahoma and one at LSU — he had 24 catches for 252 yards and two touchdowns last year for the Tigers. He's a decent blocker with strong acceleration.

Sharp isn't particularly strong, though, and he isn't very quick on his blocks. Numerous scouts have also shown some concern for his ball security after the catch.

The Buccaneers' tight end room now consists of Sharp, Cade Otton, Payne Durham, Devin Culp and Ko Kieft. There aren't enough spots on the 53-man roster to be able to field all of them, so Sharp, Culp and Kieft will likely compete for two spots on the 53-man roster — and only one of those spots are likely to dress on game day.

With that pick, the Buccaneers are seemingly done with the 2026 NFL Draft. Tampa Bay picked at least once at every notable position of need, and Sharp rounds out a class that must hit if the Buccaneers are to improve in a big way in 2026 and beyond.

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