Rueben Bain’s Rough Rookie Season Continues
October 10th, 2026
Bucs need results.
Joe is starting to feel sorry for Bucs rookie Rueben Bain.
The No. 15 overall pick has been as invisible as Joe has seen from a Bucs pick who was selected that high.
In four games, Bain has five tackles. Bain, a ferocious pass rusher at Miami, has yet to touch an NFL quarterback. No quarterback hits. No sacks.
Yesterday, KitKat-eating Bucs coach Todd Bowles was asked for a review of Bain’s play in Dallas. Bowles raved about the defensive front’s pressure.
But what about Bain, Bowles was asked again. Bowles had to stretch a little.
“He looked good. He looked good,” Bowles said. “Got to knock the rust off some technique-wise.
“But he looked good and he played hard.”
Well, Joe would hope Bain played hard. But at some point, don’t the Bucs need Bain to produce? Two assists in a game, hell, a practice squad dude could do that.
Joe feared after Bain was drafted he would have an uphill climb with the Bucs, despite all his talent. This Bowles defense simply is not made for an edge rusher. Bowles has said many times an edge rush is overrated.
When Bowles next develops a rookie edge rusher into a double-digit sack guy, it will be his first.
Too often, when Bain runs a curl stunt to the inside, he looks just like a muscular Chris Braswell. He just gets lost in the wash. You really don’t know just how much Joe hopes to be dead wrong about Bain and the Bucs.
But until Bain figures it out, and with the Bucs’ playoff hopes hanging by a thread, David Walker needs to be on the field more than Bain.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:06 am
Ive been saying it…he’s a fingers in the dirt, all up on the o line and using his trunk power…he’s a 4-3 DE
heck, at this point put him at DT and see what happens.
Dont count him out, he’s not being used correctly…. at 3-4 at least put him in closer!!
October 10th, 2026 at 8:08 am
Hopefully, the next DC will use Bain correctly, and then Joe can start referring to him as the Miami Mauler again.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:10 am
How is the other rookie UM defensive lineman doing, the older guy with the longer last name who was presumed to be the Bucs’ plan A before Bain fell to them?
October 10th, 2026 at 8:15 am
He’s playing a totally different position than he did in college. There is a learning curve BUT this staff want guys to play a different way than they did in college. His game film doesn’t lie but I believe this staff sometimes is trying to reinvent the wheel with some guys and it’s not working. He was a 4-3 guy now in a 3-4 and sometimes hybrid scheme and yes dropping back too. I get that tactic sometimes but only sometimes. What is it we hear the coach’s say all the time, ” We want to play guys to their strength’s and what they do best, not what they don’t do well”? Maybe the coaching staff should adhear to that statement.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:15 am
@Joe(s): Mauling college kids is a whole lot different from facing giant NFL offensive linemen, isn’t it??????????????
October 10th, 2026 at 8:28 am
Extremely odd !
Not looking natural is all I can conclude from my couch
Especially compared to the bullet points from TC …
Glass half full maybe it’s just part of this teams slow development
October 10th, 2026 at 8:28 am
I always give rookies 2.5 seasons before I criticize them too harshly…
You usually will know what you got about halfway through their second season.
Looking at you Calijah Kancey – or as I call him the “BUS”
I won’t add the “T” until after this season.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:31 am
Walker is in year 1. And he’s all over the place, making tackles, interfering with passing lanes, and getting sacks.
Bain? A lot of hype he apparently believes but no results.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:32 am
Watched him intently during the game Thursday and Bowles had him dropping into coverage over half of his snaps. Complete waste of his talents.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:34 am
Unfortunately the coach isn’t smart enough to put Bain in position to succeed.
Sure he lucked up into a victory against a defense that is actually worse than his own scheme.
But when I watch Bain he looks completely out of sorts and incapable of getting to the QB.
How do you go from the Miami Mauler to the Tampa mirage? It’s coaching.
Fire Bowles and the defense will look 100% better.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:37 am
Dropping into coverage or standing around playing the run. I saw him actually rush the passer on a few times. Wasted talent so far.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:40 am
How can you guys be down on Bain, but praise Walker? & then You say it’s coaching? Isn’t TB coaching Walker & Bain in the same system? You guys never played organized football in your lives…… Madden doesn’t count!!!LMAO!!!!!
October 10th, 2026 at 8:47 am
All the failed edge rushers can be looked at in a vacuum, but at some point the common denominator is Licht. He’s tried taking soft guys with great measurables (JTS, Braswell) to no avail, and now looks like he might’ve whiffed on a “football player” who doesn’t have the measurables. Maybe he ought to give Greg Hardy or Daquan Bowers a call
October 10th, 2026 at 8:48 am
Bain is like a dodge challenger hellcat but Bowles is using him as if he is a pick up truck.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:53 am
He’s 21. He’s not even a man yet. His frontal lobe hasn’t finished expanding. Not until 25.
He needs to put 20 pounds of muscle on the next 2 years and move to DE/DT.
I don’t think he’s made for OLB.
He belongs in the trenches.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:58 am
Four games into a rookie’s career and we’re already writing his obituary? Thank God we didn’t apply this standard to every Buc legend.
Maybe the problem isn’t Bain’s motor. Maybe it’s asking a bulldozer to perform ballet and wondering why nobody’s getting flattened.
October 10th, 2026 at 8:59 am
Rookie edge rushers take time and considering he is not getting the opportunity to rush in over half his snaps, it will take more time. Bain has to learn how to cover and get acclimated to the NFL. Give him some grace….
October 10th, 2026 at 9:00 am
i spotted him on the back of a milk carton flo@ting in the keys……conveniently in alligator alley…
at least it was a nice photo 🙂
October 10th, 2026 at 9:01 am
bowles neutered bain
October 10th, 2026 at 9:01 am
With statements like that .. Bowles’ Dallas reprieve is ending.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:05 am
He’s a rookie with short arms. If he fails it’s adios amego for guys like him. I’m skeptical if Todd Bowles can make him relevant or not.
He simply may not fit in a Todd Bowles system.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:07 am
A lot of rookies start slow. Sapp and Barber come to mind. Give him time and let’s see what happens.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:17 am
Right now he is more Miami Mush!
October 10th, 2026 at 9:25 am
Correct! He is not being used in the same way he was in college. Same as Brasswell, Diaby and many others. He may be having doubts because this is where quality college edge rushers come to die. He is playing an OLB and not DE and in Todd’s defense the OLB drops into coverage a significant percentage of snaps. I rewatched the game and saw VV dropping into coverage many times.
I bet Bain is more frustrated with his play than we are.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:27 am
I thought 7 seven sacks as a rookie would be a great season. I’ll hold firm to that expectation a little longer.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:27 am
Outrigger … ‘Watched him intently during the game Thursday and Bowles had him dropping into coverage over half of his snaps. Complete waste of his talents.’
Bucs’ defense held what was the #2 scoring offense in the NFL to 14 points. Had Bowles rushed Bain on all the snaps he was out there instead of using him as a LB (half the time), good chance Dallas would’ve scored more. That’s the only way Bowles’ 3-4 defense works.
I’m a lot more concerned about how many points our defense allows as a TEAM than I am about individual stats. Do you remember the year when Shaq got 19 sacks? Great for Shaq (he made a bundle off that), but the Bucs went 7-9 that season.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:28 am
i’m not really down on bain…
i look at it more like i’m in bust balls mode, lol…after all he is a rook…
everyone is well aware that d-linemen don’t usually break out in year one…or even year two for many…
please just don’t let this young phenom turn into a busteroonie…that’s all i ask…
the game is clearly moving at a speed that bain is yet to grasp on even the most rudimentary level…
so until it slows down for big bain, he will be floating at sea on the back of a milk carton in the gulf
#DeeLineRookieLife
October 10th, 2026 at 9:36 am
Adam from NY … ‘bowles neutered bain’.
All 3-4 defenses use their OLBs in similar ways Adam. The bigger question is ‘Should the Bucs have drafted Bain in the first place?’
Another question to ask is ‘Why did 14 NFL teams pass over Bain?’ Other teams need OLBs & DEs like us. So why did he fall to #15? I used to ask the same question about OJ Howard; why did he fall to #19? Everyone thought he was the quintessential TE at 6’6″ & 250 lbs & speedy. He lasted 5 years with the Bucs, then 1 year with the Texans, then out of football. Never really stood out, did he.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:37 am
It took Sapp a bit to really get going. Although he did record a sack in his first 4 games. That being said, it seems like his natural instincts and abilities are not being used correctly. Sometimes you just let the players do what they do. That applies to Winfield too. Let him loose!
October 10th, 2026 at 9:38 am
seems like most of the mid-lower 1st rd edge’s aren’t doing much
welcome to the nfl…
October 10th, 2026 at 9:39 am
Yo!
Buccaneers Observer has his ( the best post game Bucs breakdown) up on YT
Barton is playing his last year as center, IMO.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:42 am
Dallas Turner took 3 seasons to breakout
Abdul Carter looked horrible last season, lost and slow. This year he looks really comfortable and fast.
Let’s pump the brakes on calling Bain a bust. Kid forced the last interception against Dallas and almost had his first sack on a crucial final drive for Dallas, he will figure it out.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:45 am
The young man is a rookie! You have to learn the game first! He’s been hurt and he’s just getting back! How were you when you first started writing? I see typos all the time at Joebuc.com, so let the man develop! We just said Jordan Love was getting the ball out quick, and so let him develop. I did see some positive things he did in the game but he will get better and all of you will eat your words!
October 10th, 2026 at 9:46 am
He’s being used wrong. Most people know it. He won’t change his scheme for no one which is why he’s a bad coach!!
October 10th, 2026 at 9:48 am
Tom, I would conjecture that giant NFL offensive lineman were previously college offensive lineman, I.e, the guys that Bain went up against in college. I don’t think that’s the issue. I do think it’s scheme and the expectations of said scheme. That, and I agree with teacher above that as he gets a bit older and stronger. We will see more. Hopefully very soon.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:52 am
Agreed, he is a 4-3 defensive end and he’s being used as a speed rusher wide angle, I have no concerns about him, he drops into pass coverage half of the game, so essentially in this defensive system if a team wants to take a primary rusher out of the game they just have a tight end run a route in front of them and they do not rush, pretty easy to to manipulate this defense. His former Miami Hurricane teammate isn’t faring so much better with the San Diego Chargers
October 10th, 2026 at 9:53 am
Quite literally every time I focused on him in the game…he ran backwards into coverage.
October 10th, 2026 at 9:54 am
Sapp only had 3 sacks …
October 10th, 2026 at 9:59 am
He did everything he was asked to do as an OLB in Bowles system. As another mentioned he’s a 4-3 DE. Bowles has him setting the edge, and dropping him in coverage. He did what he was told.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:01 am
Coaching matters. Ask Gerald, he knows
October 10th, 2026 at 10:02 am
Marine Buc … ‘Looking at you Calijah Kancey – or as I call him the “BUS”. I won’t add the “T” until after this season.’
Kancey really is a guy playing out of position. From Day 1 everyone thought Calijah would be the next Aaron Donald because they’re the same size & from the same college. Not even close.
Donald is strong as an ox; he benched 225 lbs 35 times at his Combine. Kancey isn’t anywhere near as strong. Donald can succeed with power & technique where Kancey has to rely on much more on technique IMO. Doesn’t fly nearly as well in the NFL as it does in college.
Kancey gets lost in the shuffle far too often. Move him further outside and he’ll be more productive tahn he is in the middle. We’ve seen that act now for 4 years. Calijah’s got 11.5 sacks in 1406 def snaps to date; that’s 1 sack every 122 snaps. That’s not really all that bad, but it could be a lot better.
In comparison, Vea has averaged 1 sack every 140 def snaps. Diaby 1 sack every 120 snaps. Nelson 1 sack every 130 snaps. Shaq averaged 1 sack every 91 snaps. Suh averaged 1 sack every 124 snaps. McCoy averaged 1 sack every 108 snaps.
So Kancey is ‘in the discussion’, but he’s not really excelling. I’m convinced he’d have a much better chance of getting more sacks & QB hits if they slid him down the line 1 position further to the outside.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:04 am
The entire fan base can see he is not been used properly, but Bowles does what Bowles always does. Its great they beat the Cowgirls, but Bowles still needs to go!
October 10th, 2026 at 10:09 am
Like others have commented, I noticed that Bain dropped back into coverage a lot. He also looked lost sometimes, not knowing who to cover. Bowles’s defense doesn’t seem to be a good fit for the talents of this young man. The front office got caught up in drafting a player with high name recognition and upside, but it is not on the same page as the head coach’s defensive scheme.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:09 am
He’s a bust.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:12 am
Hodad … ‘He (Bain) did everything he was asked to do as an OLB in Bowles system. As another mentioned he’s a 4-3 DE.’
But there-in lies the problem; Bowles doesn’t run a 4-3 defense.
You can probably answer this better than any of us Hodad: WHY did Shaq succeed in getting 19 sacks in 2019 in Bowles’ 3-4 defense? Has Bowles changed the way he uses OLBs? Was it the OTHER personnel in that defense that allowed Shaq to get to the QB so much?
Shaq lived in the opponents’ backfield that year. Not only did he get 19.5 sacks, he also got 51 QB hits, 19 TFLs, 6 FF plus 1 INT. Interestingly though, he was credited with blitzing 174 times that year (huh? Is that like a pass rush for an OLB?) and also had 2 PDs. He was also officially targeted 11 times, and they completed 9 of those. So he apparently was in coverage SOME.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:16 am
He will be just fine once TB is gone. He is a 4-3 DE, period. No need to drop him back into coverage on half of his plays.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:16 am
Bowles says he looks good. He’s doing all the other things. Don’t question the undisputed defensive mastermind.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:16 am
It’s those small hands!
October 10th, 2026 at 10:21 am
I am more concerned with
Graham Barton “ playing center “
He doesn’t have the build to play center.
He should play guard where he can use his fast feet and strength.
He can’t hold his ground at center.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:33 am
Bain isn’t the only OLB not getting sacks……we had zero sacks in the last two
games.
We have a total of 6 sacks in 4 games…….and 3 of them don’t come from OLBs.
We have 2 from Walker & 1 from Nelson.
Ya Ya & Muhammed have zero sacks.
Give the kiid some time..
October 10th, 2026 at 10:34 am
6 sacks in 5 games….
October 10th, 2026 at 10:40 am
@ Fishhawkbuc: You wouldn’t know a bust if they hit you in the face! (yes, a boob joke….for a BOOB of a fan)
October 10th, 2026 at 10:43 am
He’s dropping back most of the time.
October 10th, 2026 at 10:50 am
To use Bain like this makes no sense. This kind of production could have come from a 3rd round pick and they might have had a true replacement for Evans.
I wish the Bucs would get a plan then the players that fit it, or build a plan around the roster they have, but somehow they magically do neither
October 10th, 2026 at 11:11 am
@ DR
“CK playing out of position”
I agree and we have brought this up before…
Maybe that’s why CK is also having so many injury issues?
Perhaps after Bowles is released from his duties we shall see a change.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:14 am
He’s young and he’s playing small. Give him the year to get accustomed to the NFL level and hopefully next year’s DC will put him in the position to succeed. Bowles can’t do that.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:15 am
Why did Shaq succeed? His head coach was Arians not Bowles. Leftwich’s offense looked good when Bruce was HC, but fell off a cliff after he left. No coincidence the defense did the same. My guess is if Bruce was still the HC, Bain would rush more, drop less.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:25 am
They have him playing so wide also he is a 4-3 DE let him hunt not drop into coverage
October 10th, 2026 at 11:27 am
He may be being used incorrectly BUT regardless he hasn’t made a single solitary play so far this season. That’s shocking to me. Even if your being used incorrectly you would think he’d make a splash play by now. He’s been utterly insignificant. And that’s a big deal as far as im concerned.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:30 am
Looked to me like the Defensive Coordinator was having #3 dropping back against the pass Quite a bit. Seems to me it would be hard to put pressure on the Quarterback when you are being told to drop back into the secondary.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:43 am
It’s quite simple really. The more sacks you get, the more Bowles has you rush.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:52 am
Assignment matters. Bain’s job appeared to be taking away flat and slant routes over the middle from the Y receiver. Cowboys had a TE or slot receiver on the right side of the formation often. This is why the strong nickel is becoming so vogue: you’re not going to rush your OLB assigned to the Y, so why not have a big DB in? We can say this a Bowles thing, but most of the 3-4 schemes in the league do the same thing. That’s why the salaries of DTs jumped in the past couple of years because they are the primary pass rush weapons. Most of your successful edge rushers come out of 4-3 schemes bc DEs never have a cover responsibility. Raiders might run a 3-4 base, but Crosby gets his sacks when he’s a down DE. Not when he’s a standing OLB.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:52 am
Any constraints that the Bowles defense puts on Bain will be gone next season bc there is no chance Bowles is coming back.
October 10th, 2026 at 11:55 am
Could the Tampa Bay Buccaneers be the mystery team trading for Marvin Harrison Jr?
October 10th, 2026 at 12:43 pm
Bain did what he was coached to do. Our defense handed Dak a rough night. Bain played a role in Dak’s rough night. He is a rookie doing what the coach tells him to do. The coach is happy with how he played. Give the kid a break.
October 10th, 2026 at 12:48 pm
On another note. The defense didn’t seem to miss AWJ much Thursday night. Secondary was flying around all game
October 10th, 2026 at 12:50 pm
Watched a video that showed every snap for Bain, and he didn’t do much of anything.
October 10th, 2026 at 1:01 pm
He s been in 3 and half games. That s resulted in zero. Thats not
A slow start. Thats non existent. He looks under sized and doesnt
Have the technique for what bowels has him in. He gets handled
By tackles and tight ends. Maybe the new dc next year will adopt
A 4 3 scheme or a hybrid.
October 10th, 2026 at 1:11 pm
As many have already said, I think Bains is more suited to a 4-3 defense. He’s essentially being asked to be an OLB in a 3-4 and it’s just not his strong suit. He’s 3 games in. Give him some time…
October 10th, 2026 at 1:13 pm
I don’t think it’s Bain as much as it’s the scheme. Bowles drops out his pass rushers a lot and edge rushers are always slow to adapt to the NFL. I don’t trust these coaches to develop anyone at this point. Especially edge rushers which Licht and Bowles have failed at for years. They can’t even get to a QB with a 4 man rush they have to blitz to do it.
October 10th, 2026 at 1:24 pm
Played 1 game of pass rush rest are run plays or dropping
October 10th, 2026 at 1:32 pm
@ madmax You are Correct ……. he’s literally playing three yards off his first contact !! not his game !!
October 10th, 2026 at 1:41 pm
Bain is like a shelby mustang that got a 2.3 liter motor in it. What happened? The dude just didn’t have that motor that’s needed.
October 10th, 2026 at 2:11 pm
It’s just a matter of time before Bain breaks out !! Obviously he’s dealing with the HUGE difference in playing defense in college and the NFL.
Go Bucs !!
October 10th, 2026 at 2:13 pm
Oh no, the rookie who just turned 22-years old and has been injured isn’t an ALL-PRO 5 games into his career. BUST!
October 10th, 2026 at 2:46 pm
Todd’s ruining him. Speaking of sackless, YaYa doing? What’s his excuse? His best play, he was in coverage! Not rushing the passer. If you watch Walker, who did get heat on the QB, he was to Bowles credit schemed doing twists to get home. Check it out, Todd called plays for him.
October 10th, 2026 at 3:09 pm
Can’t wait for a new DC coming in next year who lets players do what they do best instead of forcing guys to do a bunch of crazy shyte to fit into Bowles’ over-gadgetry defense.
October 10th, 2026 at 3:11 pm
B Rex went extinct in 2026
October 10th, 2026 at 3:38 pm
So the Bucs are ranked #6 in defense in the NFL and Todd’s ruining Bain ? Did you see the way the defense played Americas team ?
Bain will benefit from playing under Bowles whether Bowles stays or goes !!
Go Bucs !!
October 10th, 2026 at 4:03 pm
The defense did its job against Dallas. In spite of zero sacks our pressure effected Dak.
Compare our D to Houston a week before when C. D. caught 17 passes.
Defensively trending in the right direction…. Good job Todd.
Bain will get his in time. Sacks will start coming in bunches as the year goes on.
October 10th, 2026 at 6:07 pm
Kinda feel bad for Bain. Man, he had such hype coming out of camp. I thought he was a lawrence Taylor type dude.