Winner: Jason Licht
June 3rd, 2025
Winning the offseason.
A month ago, Bucs fans were winding down from the draft. And after the second day of the draft, Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht was catching flowers from folks in the fourth estate.
Including one employed by the league.
NFL columnist Jeff Chadiha of NFL.com typed a winners and losers column on the draft through the first three rounds (Joe just saw it). And of the five “winners” for Chadiha, at No. 3 was Licht for how he keeps stacking his roster.
Licht doesn’t get enough credit for the job he does running this franchise. He’s kept key veterans when free agency has come around the last couple years (most notably quarterback Baker Mayfield and wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin) and he’s been pretty good at finding productive players in the draft (such as running back Bucky Irving in 2024). This year’s draft has provided another example of Licht’s skills. He used the first round to find a wide receiver (Ohio State’s Emeka Egbuka) who should contribute right away before becoming an eventual successor to Evans or Godwin. The second and third rounds delivered much needed help at cornerback in the form of Notre Dame’s Benjamin Morrison and Kansas State’s Jacob Parrish. Morrison has the skill set to thrive in the Bucs’ zone-coverage schemes, while Parrish’s speed (he ran a 4.35-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine) will help this secondary, as well. There’s a reason the Bucs have won the NFC South four straight years. They keep adding good players.
With a little luck, the Bucs may have added two starters at a critical position, cornerback, on Day 2 of the draft.
We shall see when the pads come on next month if Benjamin Morrison lives up to the hype. Many believe Licht got a steal.
But this is how you build a winner and keep the team winning. Former Bucs Super Bowl-winning coach Bucco Bruce Arians always talked about “stacking wins.” Well, Licht stacks players.
And it is because of that the Bucs keep winning, despite losing the greatest quarterback of all time.
"The way the @Buccaneers draft now is for value. They’re drafting because their roster is so good … Jason Licht is one of the best GM's in all of football." – @bykevinclark on @ESPNNFL #WeAreTheKrewe | @jasonrlicht pic.twitter.com/RMQuwoXz2o
— Buccaneers Communications (@BuccaneersComms) June 2, 2025
June 3rd, 2025 at 2:34 am
“One of the best GM’s”…he’s right
June 3rd, 2025 at 2:44 am
Agree 1000%! The Reason we are competitive IS BECAUSE OF Jason Licht! AMEN…
June 3rd, 2025 at 4:46 am
I have to salute.
June 3rd, 2025 at 5:09 am
The thing about Jason is he’s not scared to listen to us fans, including you Joe’s. Look in the archives. Theres many times he went with us and it paid off. The proof is there. Im just happy to see us succeed. He knows how and collectively, we got this 🙂
June 3rd, 2025 at 5:49 am
Jason is one of the best GM’s in the NFL. So lucky he is a Buc!
I have to say though, that Bowles has helped him with the choices too. We got Baker after Brady and that was a brilliant maneuver. Bowles admired Baker back when he was a Jets coach. It’s teamwork all around.
Agree with MadMax too. Jason seems to listen to all circles.
June 3rd, 2025 at 7:07 am
Good stuff Joe! Hope he finally found some pass rush this year as well.
Go Bucs!
June 3rd, 2025 at 7:26 am
Watching the video, I really love how the second category was “team most likely to have definitely solved their problem this time, for sure”. LOL
Recipient: Panthers
Hope they’re wrong. I would like all of our division rivals to have plenty of problems.
June 3rd, 2025 at 9:29 am
And despite having only part time help at two of the three most critical coaching jobs on the team.
June 3rd, 2025 at 9:40 am
It still feels weird to hear any national media show say the Bucs are one of the elite NFL franchises.
June 3rd, 2025 at 1:59 pm
It’s hard for me to believe that we will remain under the radar this year. When your GM gets noticed so does your team.
Go Bucs!!
June 3rd, 2025 at 9:54 pm
The fact that Jason Licht likes ACDC is not note worthy. What are we doing here?
June 4th, 2025 at 8:52 am
Tears. So proud of our beloved GM Jason Licht, this football team and the organization as a whole. Ladies & gentlemen, we have come a long way. Go Bucs.