So it’s a very safe bet the Bucs select an offensive lineman in the draft next week. The Bucs didn’t do that last year and Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht has never gone two consecutive drafts without picking an O-lineman.

Joe already wrote about Febechi Nwaiwu out of Oklahoma being a Licht kind of guy.

The dude was a walk-on at the University of North Texas and was All-Conference USA as a freshman guard. He bounced to tackle and then went back to guard and transferred to Oklahoma. Nwaiwu thrived as a Sooners guard and very successfully made his first start at center last season — emergency duty against LSU.  Maybe he’s a fourth-round pick.

But another Licht kind of guy could be Kage Casey out out Boise State.

Bucs fans know well how Licht likes to identify college tackles and turn them into guards. Well, Casey may fit that mold.

Casey is 6-6, 310 pounds and has been a durable beast for Boise State, starting every game of the last three seasons at left tackle.

Per Sumer Sports, the analytics outfit run by former NFL executives and launched by former Falcons GM Tom Dimitroff, Casey has a top-tier trait: after two seconds on run blocks, he’s consistently still blocking and improving the outcome of that play. Sumer also rates very highly the initial quickness of Casey in the run game.

During the 2024 season, Casey did not allow a sack, per various reports.

Joe is intrigued, in part, because former Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter called plays for Boise State in 2024, and was an offensive consultant there in 2022 and 2023. So Licht should get excellent intel on Casey.

The Beast draft guide, behind a paywall at TheAthletic.com, projects Casey as a fourth- or fifth-round pick.

Casey is a tough, veteran blocker who relies on technical savvy and play recognition to keep defenders occupied. Despite some drifting and stiffness in his lower half, he is athletic enough to stay square in pass protection and has strong hands to combat what rushers throw at him. He doesn’t overwhelm targets in the run game but works himself in position to wall off and seal lanes. With a potential move inside to guard or center looming, he will need to learn how to fire his feet quicker to combat immediate contact in his face.

Joe sees Casey as a slightly bigger and stronger version of Robert Hainsey.