Rookie Rueben Bain Jr. is one of the biggest reasons for excitement for Buccaneers fans heading into the 2026 season.
Many have regarded Bain Jr.’s selection as one of the best picks of the 2026 draft or a steal at No. 15. His selection has changed many people’s opinions on the outlook of the Bucs this season.
However, we still haven’t seen Bain Jr. take the field in a red-and-pewter jersey. And just by looking at Tampa Bay general manager Jason Licht’s track record of drafting edge rushers, there’s a reason to be concerned.
Can Rookie Reuben Bain Jr. Become Jason Licht’s First Elite Pass Rusher?
Licht took over as Tampa Bay’s general manager in January 2014. He’s helped lead the Bucs to five playoff appearances, four NFC South titles, and the franchise’s second Super Bowl title.
During his time constructing Bucs rosters, Licht has been highly regarded as one of the best at finding talent in the NFL draft.
Licht has consistently found standout players on Days 2 and 3 of the draft. He’s found Pro Bowlers like Antoine Winfield Jr., Chris Godwin Jr., Ali Marpe,t and Kwon Alexander on those days, among a plethora of other quality players.
Licht has also shown the ability to make the right call with Tampa Bay’s first-round pick. He took wide receivers Mike Evans and Emeka Egbuka, offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs, linebacker Devin White, and defensive tackle Vita Vea in the first round during his tenure.
Just like most general managers, Licht has had his fair share of misses in the draft. He took cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III and selected tight end O.J. Howard in the first round of back-to-back drafts in 2016 and 2017. Both never found their footing in the NFL.
Who could forget Licht’s decision to draft Florida State kicker Roberto Aguayo in the second round of the 2016 draft that absolutely blew up in his face?
But amidst the good and bad during Licht’s tenure of drafting, one thing has remained constant: his inability to find a star pass rusher in the draft.
Licht has drafted a plethora of different outside linebackers and edge rushers during his tenure as general manager. None of them has turned out extraordinarily well.
Jul 31, 2026; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Rueben Bain Jr. (3) participates in training camp at AdventHealth Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Noah Spence (2016: Round 2, Pick 39)
Noah Spence was the first edge rusher Licht drafted.
Spence had a promising beginning to his NFL career. He played in all 16 games and made three starts in his rookie season, recording 22 tackles, 5.5 sacks, and two tackles for loss. He even won the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Month award in November 2016.
However, that promise came to a screeching halt after Spence sustained multiple shoulder injuries in 2017. Spence only played in six games that season.
Those injuries ended up derailing Spence’s career. In 2018, when he returned, he was far less effective. He only played in 12 games and didn’t make a start or record a sack.
The Bucs waived Spence on Aug. 31, 2019, as Tampa Bay transitioned into a 3-4 defense under new defensive coordinator Todd Bowles. Spence struggled mightily in the preseason as an outside linebacker, which led to his Bucs career ending before the regular season started.
Devante Bond (2016: Round 6, Pick 183)
Devante Bond was drafted in the same draft as Spence and had similar struggles.
Considering he was a sixth-round pick, Bond was likely never expected to be a star on the Bucs’ defense. However, Bond only played two and a half seasons with the Bucs, appearing in 32 games and starting just six.
Bond never recorded a sack during his NFL career and only had one tackle for loss in his Bucs tenure.
Bond had a strong senior season in 2015 with Oklahoma. He had 43 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, and three sacks. But he never translated that success to the NFL level.
He was waived by the Bucs on Oct. 15, 2019, after just two and a half years with the team.
Anthony Nelson (2019: Round 4, Pick 107)
Anthony Nelson is still on the Bucs’ roster heading into his eighth season in the league.
Throughout his career, Nelson has been a reserve front-seven player that the Bucs have felt they can trust with sparing playing time. He has 21.5 sacks and 29 tackles for loss in his career.
Nelson transitioned from defensive end to outside linebacker in 2022. He has appeared in 15 or more games in each of the last six seasons.
Nelson’s most starts in a single season came in 2022 when he started eight games due to Shaq Barrett sustaining a season-ending torn Achilles in Week 8.
While Nelson has been around for a while, he’s never been trusted as a primary starter, and it doesn’t look like that will change anytime soon.
The highest point of Nelson’s NFL career came last season when he won NFC Defensive Player of the Week in Week 8 against the Saints, recording two sacks, a forced fumble, and a pick-six.
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka (2021: Round 1, Pick 32)
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka was one of Jason Licht’s biggest misses as Bucs general manager.
Licht selected Tryon-Shoyinka with the last pick of the first round, even after he sat out the 2020 college season due to COVID-19.
In Tryon-Shoyinka’s redshirt sophomore season in 2019, he was stellar, recording eight sacks and 12 tackles for loss en route to a second-team All-Pac-12 selection.
Tryon-Shoyinka was never able to find that type of success in the NFL. He started 45 games with Tampa Bay but never had more than five sacks in a season, which came in 2022.
Tryon-Shoyinka never finished a season with a Pro Football Focus grade over 70.
Tryon-Shoyinka was supposed to be the Bucs’ pass rusher of the future as Jason Pierre-Paul and Barrett’s Tampa Bay careers came to a close, but he never became that.
After the 2024 season, the Bucs let Tryon-Shoyinka walk in free agency, and he signed with the Cleveland Browns.
Yaya Diaby (2023: Round 3, Pick 82)
Yaya Diaby has been Licht’s best edge-rusher draft pick.
Diaby has racked up 19 sacks in three seasons. He’s started the last 41 games at outside linebacker for the Bucs.
Last season, Diaby led the Bucs with seven sacks and 13 tackles for loss. He’s recorded 89 quarterback hurries combined over the last two seasons.
While it likely wasn’t planned that way when he was drafted in the third round, the Bucs have leaned on Diaby as their best outside pass rusher since drafting him. No other Bucs outside linebacker has had more than five sacks in a single season since Diaby was drafted.
Heading into 2026, Diaby is looking for a long-term contract extension and to take the next step as a pass rusher. It’s not outlandish to think that Diaby could post double-digit sacks this season with some added help on the other side with Bain Jr. and free-agent acquisition Al-Quadin Muhammed.
Jan 3, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Sirvocea Dennis (8) and linebacker Yaya Diaby (0), and defensive end Elijah Roberts (95), and defensive tackle Vita Vea (50) tackle Carolina Panthers running back Rico Dowdle (5) in the first half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Jose Ramirez (2023: Round 6, Pick 196)
Jose Ramirez never found his footing with the Bucs and only appeared in four games in 2024, with the rest of his time being on the practice squad.
Ramirez had a strong preseason last year, but he wasn’t able to separate himself from other edge rushers and was released in August before the regular season started.
Now Ramirez plays for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the Canadian Football League.
Chris Braswell Jr. (2024: Round 2, Pick 57)
Chris Braswell Jr. rivals Tryon-Shoyinka as Licht’s most disappointing edge-rusher pick during his tenure.
Braswell Jr. was regarded as a high-upside pass rusher coming out of Alabama. He played a reserve role with the Crimson Tide but showed flashes of production when given the opportunity.
However, those flashes haven’t turned into production in the NFL. Braswell Jr. hasn’t made a single start in his first two seasons in the league. He’s recorded 2.5 sacks and five tackles for loss in 34 games.
Now, Braswell Jr. seems in danger of being waived before the 2026 season starts. He struggled in the Bucs’ preseason opener against New York, and with all of the edge rushers Tampa Bay has brought in this offseason, his days in pewter and red could be numbered.
Aug 23, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Miami Dolphins tight end Jody Fortson Jr. (88) is brought down by Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Chris Braswell (43) in the third quarter during preseason at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
David Walker (2025: Round 4, Pick 121) and Reuben Bain Jr. (2026: Round 1, Pick 15)
Both Bain Jr. and David Walker have yet to play a game in the NFL.
Walker tore his ACL in training camp last year and missed the entire 2025 season. However, Walker has impressed in training camp, and he had two quarterback pressures that led to two interceptions Friday against the Jets.
While Licht has tried with numerous other edge rushers in the draft, none have come into the NFL with as much hype as Bain Jr.
Multiple sportsbooks have Bain Jr. as the odds-on favorite to win Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2026. It has also been widely reported that Bain Jr. has had a strong training camp. He was listed as a starter on the Bucs’ initial depth chart released last week.
Could Bain Jr. finally be the star edge rusher Licht has been trying to draft for more than 12 years?
Only time will tell, but Bucs fans will get a taste of what Bain Jr. can produce when he makes his NFL debut Saturday against the Chiefs at Raymond James Stadium.
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