“There’s Been Plenty Of Undersized Dwight Freeneys”
May 8th, 2025
Rookie pass rusher David Walker has drawn more love.
The Buccaneers’ boss has spoken more about his beloved fourth-round draft pick.
Readers here already know general manager Jason Licht needed to be restrained from trading up to draft David Walker out of Central Arkansas. Licht was an excited cat when he made Walker the 121st overall pick last month.
Today, Licht elaborated on what he loves about Walker to multimedia czar JP Peterson of Fan Stream Sports.
“He’s got tremendous instincts,” Licht began. “He’s got tremendous use of hands. He’s got an arsenal of moves. He’s got a big burst. He’s powerful and he’s got a relentless motor.
“The only thing that when you draw it he doesn’t have; he doesn’t have the size and length that the ideal edge rusher has. He’s short. On the short side but, you know, all the other things kind of make up for it. There’s been plenty of undersized Dwight Freeneys and Robert Mathis and James Harrison and on and on that kind of fit his – now I’m not putting him in that category yet.”
Licht went on to stress Walker’s extreme level of maturity and what a strong athlete he is. From soccer to other sports, Licht said, Walker has had success “in everything he’s done athletically.”
Joe can’t wait to see what Walker looks like on the field, but that does not include this weekend’s rookie minicamp.
Anyone who claims an edge rusher looked special in pads-free, hitting-permitted underwear football is running a con job or has ulterior motives.
May 8th, 2025 at 11:49 am
This is an exciting pick. Maybe another 4th round homerun for Licht. The Bucky of edge rushers, a man can dream. I hope to see him and Reddick feasting from Vita and Kancey destroying the interior. I also think the SMU kid will play some too.
May 8th, 2025 at 12:03 pm
🤞
May 8th, 2025 at 12:12 pm
With Larry Foote coaching him, I like his chances.
May 8th, 2025 at 12:18 pm
Joe,where is the “ Jpp” says he’s in the best shape of his life, possible Bucs return?” Piece. Saw the video workout online. Dude is shredded.
May 8th, 2025 at 12:28 pm
Walker’s former HS coach described him as “Ferocious – Absolutely Ferocious!”
Also added – “…the offensive linemen, wherever he goes, are going to hate him. Because of the way he practices.”
With the additions of Reddick & Walker and the further development of Diaby and Braswell – we might just have ourselves a formidable group of Edge rushers this year.
LFG!
May 8th, 2025 at 12:31 pm
Always good to address the lines. Maybe his mere addition to the roster is just what is needed to turn “underware football stars”, Marques Watts and Jose Rameriz from practice-squad players into Bruce Smith and Jared Allen.
At the very least, it should improve the level of competition.
May 8th, 2025 at 12:35 pm
@pickgrin
Absolutely sense this being a really good unit with the addition of Walker and Robert’s. Both seem like super aggressive beasts unlike some of our other edge or interior picks over the years with the exception of the last couple of drafts.
May 8th, 2025 at 12:47 pm
Physical specimens are usually projects so I’m glad Licht has learned a valuable lesson. Great football players come in all shapes and sizes. Walker seems like someone who does well no matter what. I’ll be rooting for him!
May 8th, 2025 at 12:58 pm
Quicker you can get to the QB the better. That’s a QB’s worse enemy. Sacks are nice but legitimate constant pressure will have all QB’s decline with Jared Goff being one of the worse.
To Mayfield’s credit he is one of the best against pressure. Making the decision to go to a check downs or hot route leads to more completions and YAC’s.
Just like the lack of pressure stresses the secondary so does getting pressure early.
DB’s have to play tighter right from the snap and leaves them open to getting tripped up or blown coverages.
As more and more defenses increase their pass rush offenses will be getting rid of the ball quicker. with the exception of Sam Darnold that is. Some guys are just programmed to look for the deep throws to a fault instead of the underneath stuff.
May 8th, 2025 at 1:08 pm
He must be great dropping 25 yards into empty zones, too.
May 8th, 2025 at 1:16 pm
Excited about his kid- just saw Panthers released or
Will release Jadevion Clowney. Read we have FA cash surplus- could be good on a one year for nice rotational depth. What do ya’ll think?
May 8th, 2025 at 1:23 pm
10.5 sacks, 55 pressures, 23 TFLs last year.
31 sacks, 63 TFLs in 3 years at Central Arkansas shows the consistency.
Walker LIVED in the backfield vs D2 opponents. He was also fairly unstoppable vs NFL talent at the Senior Bowl.
An impressive wingspan of 77-1/8″ along with a 35″ vertical jump means we might finally see some balls batted down at the line if Walker’s decent speed (4.69 – 40) and substantial strength (26 bench press reps) don’t get him to the QB in time on any given play….
Loving this pick! Especially in the back half of the 4th round. No wonder Licht had to be retrained from moving up for him. So glad it worked out and the Bucs now have ALL of their draft picks next year for the first time in like 3 years…..
May 8th, 2025 at 1:25 pm
Yaya, Reddick, Braz, Nelson, Watts, Ramirez, Walker
Someday one of our OLB is bound to breakthrough.
May 8th, 2025 at 1:36 pm
Someone asking about JPP? What did Shaq do at the end of the year? If there is room for Shaq as a leader and specialists, fine. I doubt it though, he did not really show anything.
JPP – 36?!!? No thanks, Shaq over him at this point.
Youth movement: YAYA, Walker, Braswell along with Reddick
May 8th, 2025 at 1:57 pm
JPP is 36 years old. I think his NFL days are over. I hope he’s not attempting a comeback because he squandered the money he made. Hopefully not. He may just need another outlet to channel his competitiveness. Just because your body is too old for the NFL doesn’t mean you don’t crave the comradery and competition. Love JPP and wish him the best. I put him in the Hardy Nickerson category. That guy who gave us everything he had on the field, tone setter, leader.
May 8th, 2025 at 2:01 pm
NFL Meme’s on X wrote this which cracked me up…
“The city of Chicago produced a Pope before it produced a quarterback who threw for 4,000 yards”
May 8th, 2025 at 2:06 pm
Clowney suddenly available
May 8th, 2025 at 2:17 pm
Sorry to interrupt the circle jerk, but this is a ROOKIE EDGE RUSHER. Set all production hopes aside till 2026 please and thank you. I’m also optimistic, but he’s coming from the football powerhouse of *checks notes* Central Arkansas. Sorry, make that 2027.
May 8th, 2025 at 2:29 pm
Mort – You are correct in that you should never expect much production out of a rookie edge rusher, however he is an older prospect with a lot of playing time – meaning he’s physically ready to go. As for discounting him because he’s a small school player – there’s a saying that pass rush skills don’t care about the level you’re playing at, so long as you have the physical abilities, those skills transfer, and he showed at the Senior Bowl he’s got that. I think he will actually do pretty well as a rookie – he’s not a project player like Braswell or JTS – but even with what I think, I’m not going to write him off as a bust if he doesn’t produce. The Bucs have their two starting edge rushers already and hopefully won’t need to rely on Walker, but we’ll see what happens.
May 8th, 2025 at 3:15 pm
He is in a perfect situation to thrive because he feels no pressure as a 4th rounder.
He can sit and learn or take over. Who knows.
We do need a rotation and he will provide that.
The pass rush is gonna look different too.
I trust in Bowles.
May 8th, 2025 at 3:20 pm
Walker is the pick I’m most intrigued with. What clips I’ve seen of him he looks relentless and violent.
May 8th, 2025 at 3:20 pm
And ferocious.
May 8th, 2025 at 4:42 pm
He’ll fill the JTS Casper role quite nicely.
Disappears on game day.
Absent in pass coverage.
Bowles will infect him with the Swiss cheese scheme.
Just wait.
May 8th, 2025 at 4:49 pm
I’m impressed with what Walker brings to the table, but I suspect that he’ll be hard-pressed to get much more than the 300-350 def snaps that Braswell got last year (Todd Bowles seems to insist that OLBs be able to play the run FIRST before he gives them a bunch of game snaps).
Walker’s Combine results were incredibly impressive … 4.69 sec 40 yd with his power could well get him put into some special blitzing situations designd to free him up. Of course, Chris Braswell had an even better time (4.60 sec 40 yd) but still had trouble getting on the field. In any event, both of those OLBs are FAST. Braswell is just 2″ taller than Walker, but he’s also about 10 lbs lighter. And from what I read, Walker has ‘outstanding power in his lower half’, which could make him a nightmare for tackles to block. Time will tell.
May 8th, 2025 at 4:57 pm
Jadeveon Clowney was released by Carolina today. Bucs cannot have enough pass rushers. Bet Bucs can get him on a cheaper one year deal? What do you think Joe?