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Chris Long Stands Firm On Tampa Bay Super Bowl Pick

September 11th, 2025

Two-time Super Bowl-winning defensive end Chris Long is one of the more Bucs-friendly guys in the national media.

Former Bucs defensive tackle Beau Allen is a fill-in host on Long’s popular Green Light podcast, and Long seems fully appreciative of the Bucs’ culture and Baker Mayfield. It also helps that the Bucs have owned Long’s beloved Eagles over the past handful of years.

Regardless, the reasoned and seasoned Long (when he’s not making wagering suggestions) picked the Bucs to get to the Super Bowl. And Long is not waffling after a Week 1 win for Tampa Bay at Atlanta.

A guest on The Rich Eisen Show this week (Joe listens on the SiriusXM app), Long backed up his Bucs pick.

“I just think they quietly got so much better,” Long said. “Not only that, they’ve kind of owned the matchup with Philly, which pains me to say. But like, historically, recent history, they’ve owned that matchup.”

Long went on to talk about how the Bucs’ long list of injuries was overlooked last year, and how he thinks the return to form of Antoine Winfield Jr. is a massive difference-maker. He also raved about the defensive line and the addition of Haason Reddick, who had a critical red zone sack on Sunday in Atlanta.

Long also praised the new cornerbacks depth and the smart drafting of Emeka Egbuka.

“Again, Tampa’s one of those like true programs,” Long said. “Jason Licht does a fantastic job. So I think last year they were closer than people thought but they weren’t healthy. And then this offseason they’ve filled a lot of the holes.”

In the mind of Long, the Bucs winning in Atlanta while playing rusty and messy is a great sign against an Atlanta team he believes has improved.