Jason Licht Names 5 Young Bucs He Expects To Improve Significantly
April 8th, 2026
Buccaneers Ring of Honor Jason Licht has put the NFL on notice.
Licht always seems high on all his players. Heck, if he’s not, then who would be? But Licht always has favorites he can’t wait to see on the field.
During a sitdown last week with Kevin Clark of BSPN, Licht was asked to name a Buccaneer “who would make a leap in 2026.”
Licht squirmed and said he couldn’t name just one because “there are a lot.”
Instead, Licht spit out five: receivers Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan, running back Bucky Irving, edge rusher YaYa Diaby and safety Tykee Smith. Maybe Licht would have named more but he was interrupted by Clark.
“We’ve got a lot of good young players I feel like that have a lot to prove and will prove a lot of people wrong,” Licht said.
Licht didn’t offer many specifics but said he’s confident Egbuka will build on his strong rookie year, and he called McMillan “a young rising star” and said Irving “is ready to shine again and show what he is.”
April 8th, 2026 at 11:35 am
Surprised he didn’t name Chris Baswell
April 8th, 2026 at 11:43 am
Didn’t Licht say the same thing about JTS?
April 8th, 2026 at 11:45 am
Graham Barton should have been the 1st guy mentioned
I’m expecting a lot of him this season
I’m expecting a lot from these young guns
David Walker
JJ Roberts
Graham Barton
Benjamin Morrison
Tez Johnson
April 8th, 2026 at 11:45 am
Learned his lesson on Braswell apparently.
April 8th, 2026 at 11:46 am
We need A LOT of improvement from the young guys if we want to make it to the playoffs. Mayfield needs to improve too and if all that improvement comes from simply staying healthy that’s fine.
April 8th, 2026 at 11:51 am
Expecting and happening are two different things
April 8th, 2026 at 11:56 am
Oh!? LoL. Here we go again. Only the same old homers are going to continue buying THIS. Hook. Line. And, Sinker. EVERY. TIME. They luvs dems some Lickt and Bucs Propaganda.
April 8th, 2026 at 12:00 pm
Mel, I’m a homer. And I assume you are as well. Do you buy it? Because I don’t. I’m not sure who would. Anyone who follows the team knows this is the standard line going into a new season.
April 8th, 2026 at 12:05 pm
@lakeland
i agree
id add kancey to that list as well….need to see a full season out of him in 26
GO BUCS!!!!
April 8th, 2026 at 12:11 pm
813bucboi
If we can get 15 games out of Kancey
There will be no limit for this defense
April 8th, 2026 at 12:24 pm
LAKELAND
AGREED LOL
15 is the sweet spot
imo, he’ll only make 15+games if he plays on the edge on 1st & 2nd down…what you think?…
GO BUCS!!!!
April 8th, 2026 at 12:27 pm
Yeah they need to rotate Kancey more
April 8th, 2026 at 12:50 pm
Bee Says:
April 8th, 2026 at 11:43 am
Didn’t Licht say the same thing about JTS?
+++++++++++++++++++±+++++
No, he said JTS had to step it up.
Thats why he is no longer a Buc.
April 8th, 2026 at 12:55 pm
The guys he named have all proven to be pretty good already, or at least decent contributors when healthy. As someone else noted, he must have learned not to make any more Braswell-type claims.
Elijah Roberts is a player I’d like to see improve and contribute a lot. Benjamin Morrison, too.
April 8th, 2026 at 12:56 pm
Did he say anything about Bowles improving?
April 8th, 2026 at 12:58 pm
Pointed this out previously, but McMillan looked awesome once he came back from injury. Such a shame that Teddy ‘Hospital Ball’ Bridgewater ruined his season, as McMillan looked special in limited snaps. Based off how good he looked at the end of the season, it wouldn’t shock me at all if he ends next year as the Bucs top receiver – and that would be a fantastic thing since e2 is already a star, and Godwin was starting to look like himself by the end of last year. Of course any success by McMillan, e2 or Godwin is dependent on Baker having a bounce back year, so hopefully that happens.
April 8th, 2026 at 1:00 pm
Licht evaluating his picks that he is destined to over pay like he did with Winfield, Dean, Davis and McCullom is laughable at best
April 8th, 2026 at 1:03 pm
No Braswell? He was supposed to shock the world, lol.
April 8th, 2026 at 1:03 pm
For the low low price of $19.99, you too can own your very own cliche machine. You can generate unsubstantiated meaningless quotes just like Jason Licht (and just about every other GM, Coach, or player who does not have a mental disorder- see AB). Get quoted on blogs, podcasts, even television. Let your mouth move as you say absolutely nothing. In fact, you can blather on, until interrupted by Clark, and somebody is sure to find significance in your ramblings. Better yet, just use the built in speaker and place it next to a canned ham and watch your scientifical leading poll ratings soar
April 8th, 2026 at 1:05 pm
Ah Rod Munch…The guy/gal that strongly dislikes Baker because he threw 11 interceptions last season, yet LOVES Jameis, who had 30 in a season.
April 8th, 2026 at 1:07 pm
McMillan might just be the best receiver we have.
Gonna be interesting.
I think Bucky is too small to feature.
Start, ok, but not 20 carries unless the team sucks.
15-18 with 4-6 for Gainwell and Tucker.
April 8th, 2026 at 1:22 pm
I predict the entire team is better. Why?
Because they set such a low standard last year.
April 8th, 2026 at 1:25 pm
“We expect to improve significantly” is a euphemism for draft bust. Ex: Chris Braswell, JTS, Devin White, Logan Hall, Calijah Kancey.
April 8th, 2026 at 1:28 pm
There’s a nice mix of youth and experience on this current team.
It will definitely be interesting to see who emerges as the #1 WR option as the year progresses. Godwin, EE and JMac are all legitimate candidates…. Just 18 months ago, before he got injured, Chris Godwin was looking and performing like one of the best receivers in the league…
April 8th, 2026 at 1:41 pm
If the Bucs draft a Edge Rusher early in the draft
Chris Braswell might not make the roster
April 8th, 2026 at 1:43 pm
What about Braswell, Walker, Morrison, Greene, Parrish, Roberts ? Even SVD? lol.
April 8th, 2026 at 1:52 pm
Don’t agree that YaYa will improve unless Bowles brings in a coach or changes his scheme, both unlikely. Yaya has the heart and desire but that’s not enough to up his game.
April 8th, 2026 at 2:00 pm
Any given sunday
April 8th, 2026 at 2:05 pm
I’m surprised he didn’t name the cheerleaders. They’re young Bucs. We’d like to see them improve even more, too!🙏😀
April 8th, 2026 at 2:07 pm
If the o line is healthy they will all look better.
April 8th, 2026 at 2:16 pm
“”Pointed this out previously, but McMillan looked awesome once he came back from injury.””
I was stunned how good JMac looked when he finally came back. It was remarkable following that kind of injury. He was one of the few that looked like he gave a $hyt still. Hoping for big things from him this year.
April 8th, 2026 at 2:31 pm
Fred has lost all credibility…
Flintstone
🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱🥱
The GM that let Liam Coen get away while Fred had one foot on the dock and the other on the boat… splash
CYA’n advising the 3 Blind Mice to keep TB
Quagmire Daze
April 8th, 2026 at 2:45 pm
If you’re not a homer you’re on the wrong website. This team’s record will reflect their overall health and how well they upgrade the backups of key players. Our starters are plenty good to win a lot of football games, but you can start ticking down from their highest possible record based on how many players they lose long term and don’t have backups like 90% as good.
April 8th, 2026 at 2:59 pm
Buccaneer Bonzai Says: “Because they set such a low standard last year.”
As if that ever mattered before…
April 8th, 2026 at 3:05 pm
I really think if we add Jacob Rodriguez, a new corner (to pressure existing corners to try to keep their starting jobs), and a DLineman/Edge will instantly make this defense 15-20% better. That will raise the D up to somewhere around 10th overall. Couple that with healthy offensive line and receivers and we win lots. Should be fun to watch, too.