The Tampa Bay Buccaneers need to revamp the linebacker position this offseason, and drafting former Georgia Bulldog CJ Allen could be a great way to address their need.
By far and away, the two biggest dream draft targets for the Bucs with the No. 15 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft would be the Ohio State Buckeyes tandem of Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles. But Reese, since he is so good at getting after the quarterback, almost certainly isn't going to be available then and just might be a top five pick.
Meanwhile, Styles could be in play, but as the pre-draft process proceeds, it's also very likely his stock will point towards the top 10, making him hard for the Buccaneers to bank on as an option at No. 15.
CJ Allen feels like a perfect fit for what the Buccaneers need
The Bucs need to come up with a list of alternatives at the insider linebacker position. If Lavonte David decides to call it quits and hang up his cleats this offseason, then the Buccaneers need for inside linebacker help is going to go from huge to downright desperate.
Among the options the Bucs are looking at is CJ Allen, a Georgia alumn frequently mocked to the Buccaneers by draft analysts. And Allen is exactly the kind of cerebral leader in the mold of replacing David whom Bucs fans may fall in love with.
According to All 32 draft analyst Brett Kollmann, Allen told him at the NFL Scouting Combine this year that he was the one doing all the calls and checks for the Bulldogs defense in 2025. Glenn Schumann, the Georgia defensive coordinator, allowed Allen to run the show "most of the time".
That's a really interesting nugget of information, and although the skeptics will point out that the story comes from Allen, it's pretty easy for the Georgia coaching staff to confirm it if they would like to. And it's highly impressive for a college football prospect to have so much reign to call plays and diagnose plays from the coordinator, especially a program as big as Georgia with as much of a focus as they place on the defensive side of the ball.
All of that bodes well in translating how Allen will fit at the NFL level, because especially for inside linebackers, a big part of their ability to succeed in the NFL is what's above the shoulders. Allen is a great player, leader, and a smart linebacker who can handle the responsibility. The Bucs will take a long look at him in the first two rounds.