The Buccaneers Top Ten Draft Picks Under Jason Licht

The NFL draft is in just ten days Buccaneers fans. We are all trying to predict what will happen around the league and how the draft will shake out next week. And while many teams and fan bases are trying to figure out what they want to do, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and their fans get to rest easy.

This is because the Bucs have an established general manager. Jason Licht is going into his 12th NFL draft as general manager and has established himself as one of the five best general managers in the NFL. Not many teams have a longer tenured or more successful front office than the Buccaneers.

In that time, Licht has made some great picks. He’s had day three steals as well as future Hall of Famers. All of these players were the cornerstone to the Bucs 2020 Super Bowl championship or will potentially be the foundation of their next Lombardi Trophy.

So with 10 days to go before the NFL Draft, here are the Buccaneers ten best draft picks under Jason Licht.

10. Bucky Irving

Perhaps it’s a little premature for this one, but Bucky Irving is off to a sensational start with the Bucs. A 4th round pick in last year’s draft, Irving has established himself as the main ball carrier already. Even while sharing touches last year, we saw one of the most elusive and exciting running backs in the NFL.

Irving finished 10th in overall rushing yards last season and 4th among running backs in yards per attempt. This combined with his 8 rushing touchdowns landed him 6th in offensive rookie of the year votes. Now going into 2025 as the established starter, it’s fair to expect that his numbers are even better moving forwards.

9. Cody Mauch

Licht has a reputation for finding great offensive linemen from the small schools (more on that later). One such example is Cody Mauch, who was drafted in 2023 as the left tackle from North Dakota State. As Licht likes to do, he and the Bucs moved Mauch inside and developed him as a guard.

This move has worked out well for the Bucs. Mauch took a step forward last year and was one of the better guards in the NFL. While he didn’t make the pro bowl, he is well above average as both a pass blocker and a run blocker. With another year of experience under his belt, he very well could make that pro bowl jump next season.

8. Calijah Kancey

You always expect first round picks to be a key part of your team. However, when you are drafting in the middle and back end of the first round, you don’t often find the starts that can be found at the top of the draft. However, that was not the case here.

In 2023 the Buccaneers surprised many when they drafted the undersized Calijah Kancey at 19th overall. At just 6’1and 280 lbs many questioned if Kancey was big enough to translate to the NFL. As it turns out, that was plenty big enough.

Kancey has established himself as one of the most disruptive defensive tackles in the NFL. Despite missing a month, the second year defensive lineman racked up 7.5 sacks last year which led the team. Now going into year three he is looking to make that pro bowl jump and follow in the footsteps of undersized defensive tackles such as Aaron Donald and Geno Atkins.

7. Luke Goedeke

If I told you that any general manager would find one of the best right tackles in the NFL at the beach of the second round then everyone would acknowledge that it was a great pick. That’s exactly the case here with Goedeke. Licht drafted the big man out of Central Michigan University (Fire up, Chips!) with the 57th pick in the 2022 draft.

After a year of attempting to play left guard, the team moved Goedeke back to his natural position of right tackle. Since that time, he has blossomed into one of the best tackles in the game today. Even more than that, he is a tone setter on the offensive line who brings a “glass eater” mentality.

Goedeke is at his best as a run blocker. He deserves as much credit as anyone for the emergence of the Buccaneers rushing attack. He is also a good pass blocker who has more than held his own against some of the best pass rushers in the league.

6. Vita Vea

In 1995 the Bucs drafted Hall of Fame defensive tackle Warren Sapp 12th overall. Fast forward 23 years later and the franchise drafts their second best defense tackle in franchise history with that same 12th pick. Vita Vea is a game changing defender and he is the foundation of the defense today as well as that Super Bowl winning defense in 2020.

Going into his age 30 season, Vea is putting together one of the great careers we have ever seen from a nose tackle. In five of the seven seasons he has played in the NFL, the Bucs have posted a top five rushing defense. Vea is the foundation of that defense.

However, unlike some other great nose tackles in recent years, Vea brings some pass rush as well. For example, five time pro bowl nose tackle Vince Wilfork had 16.0 career sacks over 13 seasons. Five time pro bowler Haloti Ngata had 32.5 sacks over 13 seasons. So far, Vea has 30.5 sacks through just seven seasons.

5. Ali Marpet

It’s not often that your third draft pick turns out to be your best player in the class. It’s even rarer that a player from a school like Hobart becomes the best player in your draft. Well that was exactly the case with 2015 61sr overall pick Ali Marpet.

Despite making only one pro bowl in his seven year career, Marpet was consistently one of the best interior linemen in the game. His college experience as a left tackle would shine through in mirroring opponents as a pass blocker. He was also a mauling run blocker at all levels of the defense.

Marpet was a critical part of the Buccaneers offensive line in the 2020 Super Bowl win. Sadly, he chose to retire at the young age of 29. It was a shorter career than expected, but absolutely brilliant non the less.

4. Antoine Winfield Jr

If you get an All Pro in the second round then things are typically going well. That is the case with Winfield Jr. who was the 25th overall pick in 2020. It didn’t take him long to establish himself as the starting safety on what would go on to be a Super Bowl winning defense. 

However, the championship was just the start of his career. Winfield Jr. would be named a pro bowler in 2021 as well as an All Pro in 2023. He has established himself as one of the best safeties in all of football and that was only solidified when Licht made him the highest paid defensive back in the NFL last offseason.

Now going into his age 27 season, Winfield Jr. is the face of the Bucs defense. He generates splash plays such as forced fumbles and sacks which change the outlook of the entire game. There is a very real chance that he will be the team’s best defensive player when they win their next Super Bowl.

3. Chris Godwin

Godwin ranks second in franchise history in basically every Buccaneers receiving record. In receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, he only looks up at one man in the 50 year history of the team. Not too shabby for a third round pick back in 2017.

On a roster with Mike Evans, Rob Gronkowski and Antionio Brown, it was Godwin who was at the heart of the passing game in the Bruce Ariens era. His toughness and reliability out of the slot reminded many of past Arians stars such as Hines Ward and Larry Fitzgerald. This was a critical part of the Bucs 2020 championship and it earned Godwin an All Pro nod in 2019.

Godwin remains an important part of the offense even after Arians retirement. He was leading the Bucs in most receiving categories last season before his season ending injury. He continues to establish himself as half of one of the all time great receiving duos and as a franchise legend as he seeks to help the team return to the promise land.

2. Tristan Wirfs

In his young career Wirfs has been historically good. He is the first player in NFL history to be named an All Pro as both a right tackle and a left tackle. And despite only playing five seasons so far, his four pro bowls are tied for the third most by an offensive player in franchise history.

There is a strong case to be made that Wirfs is not only the best left tackle in the NFL, but also the best tackle in general. His pass blocking is in rarified air with some of the best to ever play the game. He is nothing short of a brick wall the defenders just can’t run around or go through.

It may be early in his career, but we should be looking at Wirfs as a future Hall of Famer. Wirfs is the current generation’s version of Walter Jones or Joe Thomas or Jonathan Ogden. Pick your favorite all time offense tackle and that is the type of rarified air we are talking about. Not bad for the 13th overall pick and 4th offensive tackle drafted in 2020.

1. Mike Evans

If there is an offensive record in Buccaneers history, then Mike Evans has it. Touchdowns, yards, receptions, you name it, he’s got it as a wide receiver. Few would argue that he is the greatest offensive player in franchise history.

Beyond that, Evans is climbing the all time leader boards in NFL history. He currently ranks 9th all time in receiving touchdowns, 21st all time in total touchdowns, and 24th all time in receiving yards. Realistically, most NFL teams have never had a skill player as good as Evans has been. He has and is continuing to establish himself as one of the all time greats.

 Evans likely only has a few years left to play, but he is only two seasons of 1,000 yards from cracking the top ten in all time receiving yards and he is only two seasons of 12 receiving touchdowns away from the top five in that category. He’s already locked in as a future Hall of Famer; the question left is where he will rank among the other all time greats. That is why Jason Licht’s very first draft pick all the way back in 2014 is still his best draft pick.