The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are approaching a crossroads at outside linebacker. They will soon have to decide what the future of their edge defender position will look like, and that requires considering adding talent in the draft.
The Bucs’ edge rushers come from two different ends of career spectrum. Shaq Barrett is the decorated veteran approaching the twilight years of his career, while Joe Tryon-Shoyinka is the former first-round pick entering a pivotal third year of his NFL career. Barrett is coming off an Achilles tear and Tryon-Shoyinka has yet to record more than five sacks in a season.
There is a chance both prove to be high-quality starting outside linebackers in 2023, but there is also a chance that only one or even neither of them proves they can be long-term answers for Tampa. The Bucs have little choice but to hedge their bets and invest in the position in this year’s draft.
Fortunately, it is a great year to look for edge talent. While the top-tier talent is a little thin and certainly out of the Bucs’ draftable range, there is an embarrassment of riches to be exploited across any of the first three rounds.
Tampa’s needs at other positions may prevent the Bucs from taking an edge rusher with their first pick, but the talent may be too good to pass up. In any case, there are likely to be a variety of options with their second or third round pick.
Here are the edge rushers the Bucs could target in the 2023 draft: