When the NFL free agency period officially opens up in March, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going to have to be big buyers despite a limited pool of cash because they desperately need pass rushing help - and General Manager Jason Licht isn't hiding that fact.
Speaking in an open forum at the NFL Scouting Combine this week, Licht didn't shy away from discussing the hot button issues on the minds of Buccaneers fans, and the biggest after last season's awful collapse is what to do about the defense, specifically a front seven that gave every single quarterback in this league endless time to shred them at the back end.
Licht told reporters, via Buccaneers senior beat writer Scott Smith, that in order for the Bucs to take the next step forward in the 2026 regular season, they are going to have to get better at putting pressure on the quarterback.
Jason Licht knows the Buccaneers need an edge rusher
It may be a Captain Obvious statement from the GM, but obvious is refreshing at a time when the Buccaneers are employing a head coach who can't seem to figure out the obvious - and whose firing probably should have been the obvious consequence to last season's collapse.
But the Bucs are riding with Todd Bowles at the wish of the Glazers, so Licht and the fans have no choice but to make this uncomfortable marriage work. For Licht, the path to success is clear and, ahem, obvious: go for pass rushing talent.
The two most high-end edge rushers available this offseason are going to be Las Vegas Raiders disgruntled star Maxx Crosby and Cincinnati Bengals Defensive Player of the Year candidate Trey Hendrickson. Both will be difficult to get in differing ways, as the Bengals could easily slap the franchise tag on Hendrickson while Crosby may not be traded after all.
Beyond them, the Bucs can go after a pretty intriguing secondary option where veterans like Khalil Mack and young guns like his Los Angeles Chargers breakout teammate Odafe Oweh beckon. And with YaYa Diaby as the only legitimate edge rusher on the Buccaneers roster, Tampa Bay fans wouldn't mind the team going after both.
It may be hard for the Bucs to address the position adequately in the NFL Draft this year. There isn't much depth on the edge this year, and while there are a couple of top prospects like David Bailey, Ruben Bain Jr., Keldric Faulk, and Cassius Marsh, you never know who will be available at 15 - and it's unlikely these four top prospects will be available on Day 2.