Jason Licht: Ted Hurst Has “All The Traits”
May 5th, 2026
Rookie Bucs receiver Ted Hurst.
When the Bucs draft a receiver, the guy is usually productive and, at worst, a sound pick.
That’s been the history of Jason Licht era, starting with 49ers star Mike Evans.
The Bucs even got big postseason contributions from the likes of Scotty Miller, Tyler Johnson and Trey Palmer, all Day-3-of-the draft picks.
This year, the Bucs drafted big, fast and athletic receiver Ted Hurst out of Georgia State, an unknown outside of the world of draft nuts and gurus.
Licht had an extended chat today on The Pat McAfee Show on ESPN TV about the choice of Hurst. He hearkened back to a star from the 2015 draft.
“When [Hurst] went to the Senior Bowl, he dominated there. The practices, he stood out,” Licht said. “And, you know, sometimes you have to take a little bit of a roll of the dice.
“We did it several years ago with [Super Bowl guard] Ali Marpet. We moved up in the second round and took him out of Hobart [College]. And those were the days before NIL and transfer portals. But we saw everything [from Hurst] that we thought, all the traits that he needed to be successful at some point. Like I said, sometimes you got to roll the dice a little bit. But we saw [all the traits] and we’ve got a great coaching staff to develop [Hurst,] too.”
Hey, if Hurst is as successful as Marpet was, the Bucs will be in great shape. Marpet made a Pro Bowl and won a Super Bowl before he retired after seven seasons at 28 years old.
Like with their history of drafting and developing offensive linemen, the Bucs have done a very strong job at the receiver position.
Licht added that Hurst can ease in to a crowded recievers room and play without pressure this year. He’s right, but Joe wonders how it will go if Hurst is a hit-the-ground-running kind of rookie who tears up competition in training camp.
May 5th, 2026 at 5:54 pm
Bro.
He stayed at Georgia State and denied the NIL money!
To honor his commitment!
That shows character!
So we drafted another WR with integrity!
Like Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Emeka, and even Joe Jurevicious!
I hate divas. Especially WR divas.
I suspect Licht does as well.
Hurst will fit into the Brotherhood very well.
Even if King Mike Evans has left.
Go Bucs!
May 5th, 2026 at 6:00 pm
Yeah all these high character guys lead by Bowles and no Tom Brady.
And what has that gotten us so far?
One lousy playoff win in four years.
Simply not good enough for a team that won the SB in the 2020 season.
Licht’s philosophy doesn’t work in tandem with a busted pass defensive scheme.
May 5th, 2026 at 6:00 pm
Licht sucks
May 5th, 2026 at 6:04 pm
Bucs will not win 5 games.
May 5th, 2026 at 6:17 pm
Not hardly…
May 5th, 2026 at 6:24 pm
Ted Hurst will be a starter before mid- season, if not before
If Mayfield can get the ball to him, he will be a star
I’m sold on him, he could be our best WR
I’m sure he will be sooner than later
May 5th, 2026 at 6:25 pm
I’ve read in other places the same thing Licht said, that Hurst tore up the Senior Bowl. It was a BPA pick, but I would have preferred ILB or CB there. Let’s see if WR coach B-Mac can get Hurst up to speed.
May 5th, 2026 at 6:40 pm
Lynch Mob
Tom Brady is also a high character Irishman.
Hurst showed true integrity and loyalty to stay at Georgia State and honor his word.
He never gave up despite his team going 1-11.
Chris Godwin is our #1 WR now.
Hurst is a true X.
He reminds me of a skinny DK Metcalf mixed with Randy Moss.
May 5th, 2026 at 6:58 pm
Some people act like we have other receivers who can play the X Receiver position effectively.
News Flash: we don’t.
Hurst is the guy.
Mayve that guy Sills we signed from Atl can play some X, but nobody else on our team can get open when being guarded by the other team’s CB1.
They’ve all shown that inability, unfortunately.
May 5th, 2026 at 7:08 pm
Don’t know much about this guys but on this website haters are going to hate. After all why wouldn’t you go to a fan website to show how miserable you are. Someday they will find out you can get medications to help you.
May 5th, 2026 at 7:28 pm
SC Bucs Fan Says:
May 5th, 2026 at 7:08 pm
Don’t know much about this guys but on this website haters are going to hate. After all why wouldn’t you go to a fan website to show how miserable you are. Someday they will find out you can get medications to help you.
======================================
Social media is loaded with haters. You can dislike a coach and a player without nastiness.
May 5th, 2026 at 7:29 pm
And what has that gotten us so far? One lousy playoff win in four years.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Some people don’t remember or weren’t here for the lost decade! SMFH!
May 5th, 2026 at 7:36 pm
I love the Ken Gainwell pickup! Hes the sleeper.Great ball player!
May 5th, 2026 at 8:00 pm
Time will tell if this is a good pick. Let’s not overhype any of these new players
until they make it through training camp and get on the field opening day. I’m optimistic Ted Hurst can be a good addition to the team. I’m feeling pretty confident about the offense with Zac. It definitely will be better than the Grizzard
Experiment.
May 5th, 2026 at 8:00 pm
If its not interesting no one would be talking about all the picks! personally I love the Ken Gainwell pickup Great ball player!Nobody’s talking about him.
May 5th, 2026 at 8:03 pm
Anyhony..
The kid wasn’t born yet. LynchMob figured out his mom’s phones password again I see.
What a loser
May 5th, 2026 at 8:25 pm
That one handed TD catch at the senior bowl probably sealed the deal. Sick grab.
May 5th, 2026 at 8:28 pm
I would still bring Shepard back this year in case of injury. Cheap insurance.
May 5th, 2026 at 8:36 pm
Wouldn’t it be great that Hurst follows ♥️ in the footsteps of Mike Evans and Godwin. Jason and staff have had great success 🙌 in drafting receivers
May 5th, 2026 at 8:47 pm
None of the receivers mentioned at the beginning of this article is still with the team and does anyone remember how the Bucs tried to jam Marpet into the center position, further retarding his development as a guard.
May 5th, 2026 at 10:12 pm
Lynchmob is a total ass 🤡 clown
May 5th, 2026 at 10:27 pm
“Simply not good enough for a team that won the SB in the 2020 season.”
________________
You can’t be as dumb as you sound man 🙄
May 5th, 2026 at 10:44 pm
I think Baker’s new Teddy Bear may just be your new number 1, with Emeka and Godwin. He should easily replace ME13 last year production. Evans was hurt all season and missed games. It was his worst year by far. But every year had hamstring issues. He was still magic but I feel his best years are behind him. It was a blessing he left to make room for the kids to take over. This could possibly be Licht’s best draft yet. I’m excited to see them all play. That is if Bowles doesn’t screw it up. lol
May 5th, 2026 at 10:46 pm
Btw, don’t feed the trolls.
May 5th, 2026 at 11:04 pm
I wonder if they’re gonna just give the kid #13 right away or save it for later. Or do they do a quiet retirement of the number and not let anyone use it. Or…. Pull a Dallas and use that number for all the great receivers going forward
May 5th, 2026 at 11:37 pm
This kid was an unbelievable steal.
Size, Speed, fluidity
Got a big adjustment ahead- but I think he will be a starter, after a year with the Coaches.
May 5th, 2026 at 11:39 pm
We will see what needs to be seen in preseason. WR and football podcaster Steve Smith is very high on him.
May 6th, 2026 at 12:40 am
Capt. Tim,
I’m pretty sure he’ll be a starter after this offseason, training camp, and preseason with the Coaches.
We have nobody else who can effectively play the X Receiver position.
May 6th, 2026 at 1:00 am
Erik,
Time will tell. He’s really raw, and no where near used to this level of competition.
May 6th, 2026 at 1:48 am
@ Steve V. Says: Says: “Personally I love the Ken Gainwell pickup Great ball player!Nobody’s talking about him.”
Nobody is talking about him because he is “Kenny Gainwell.”
May 6th, 2026 at 5:14 am
H C Grover Says:
May 5th, 2026 at 6:04 pm
Bucs will not win 5 games
10k that they will win 5 games HC, you taking the bet?
May 6th, 2026 at 6:33 am
Sadly, they already gave him Sterling Shepard’s number 17. I know there are Shepard haters here but re-watch the games last year. You’ll see more than a dozen crucial third down catches by Shepard.
May 6th, 2026 at 6:58 am
Sills will probably start the beginning of the season
May 6th, 2026 at 7:08 am
Erik with UniqueModernArt.com and I certainly see to disagree with what is the most important trait to play X receiver.
It seems he thinks it must be size wins out over everything else.
I think getting off the line of scrimmage beats everything else and the guys who either win the hand fighting like Mike Evans or have elite footwork like Jefferson and Chase are the keys.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:03 am
The knock on Hurst was that he drops too many balls.
Perhaps I’m wrong but aren’t the WRs supposed to catch passes?
Bud Licht strikes again. He’s just a barrel of bad decisions.
This guy will be bagging groceries at Publix in a few years.
“Paper or plastic sir?”, drops the eggs on the floor.
May 6th, 2026 at 9:10 am
Hurst should be good on slants and shallow crosses. Those are routes that Baker throws well to. It may take a bit longer for he and Hurst to build the long ball chemistry. Baker has the arm for them, but not the greatest touch.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:02 am
Junior college receivers with a high drop rate are an excellent investment. The #1 big school guys get tired legs, hit the rookie wall and disappear after half the season because other teams have figured out how to shut them down. This kid will be able to drop his passes wide open and that’s exciting.
May 6th, 2026 at 10:17 am
It’s not Licht’s philosophy. How the defense is being run is the problem!
May 6th, 2026 at 10:32 am
Give the kid (young man) a chance. The biggest adjustment will be timing and reading defenses; that is not going to happen day one. The rookie of the year from Carolina started slow and came on strong in the end, and that is what we need to see. CG, Jmac, Tez, and EE should be able to hold it down, plus all of our backs can catch the ball and run with it.
May 6th, 2026 at 11:08 am
JOE again this is why I’m not concerned with ME13 bolting. Olineman and WR have bin a strong suit of this team since Jason became GM. Dude knows his stuff. I totally forget we have Palmer too. 🤡 like 3.28 , HC , Melvin, mob and get rid , have very low IQ just trolls. There deff saints fans with their 💩🤡 takes. Their comments are literally so trash it’s hilarious. 😂
May 6th, 2026 at 11:38 am
Dropped passes = Pro Bowl appearances. #CommonSense
May 7th, 2026 at 10:15 pm
Steve Smith has Hurst as his 10th on his top 20WRs in that draft. Ahead of some big names. On Steve’s breakdown video of him, he has great things to say. I trust his evaluation. He was spot on with Coker who is on Carolina now doing good and I’m sure he hit on others as well.