2021 NFL Draft: 3 best defensive linemen for the Buccaneers
By Rob Leeds
The Buccaneers can take the best IDL in round one of the 2021 NFL Draft
Death, taxes, and Alabama pumping out starting-caliber defensive linemen are some of the only things we can consistently count on in this life. Barmore is the consensus best lineman in this class, and the Buccaneers could lock him down with the 32nd pick.
Barmore is likely the only IDL from this class with the talent to start in year one. Even then, he would be better off to fall to a team that can let him ease into the starting role behind a veteran, and there is no team better than the Buccaneers.
Ndamukong Suh will likely only remain in Tampa for one more season at this rate. Win or lose the Super Bowl in 2022, the Buccaneers will have to get younger in an attempt to keep the franchise afloat down the road, and Barmore would be a much cheaper option than Suh after a year learning as the fourth guy.
Todd Bowles could get creative and find defensive fronts that fit Barmore and allow him to grow in a way that will make him a dominant force when Suh leaves or retires.
The only takeaway from this pick is that Barmore stands almost no chance of starting, and using a first-round pick on a bench player feels wasteful. Barmore has a much higher ceiling than the likes of Onwuzurike, but the Bucs could decide to go with a position of greater priority with their first-round pick.