Mina Kimes thinks Rueben Bain Jr. might be the piece that changes everything for Tampa Bay’s pass rush.
Kimes put it plainly: "It's early, but Reuben Bain Jr looks like the type of guy who could unlock the Bucs pass rush and push Tampa's defense back into the top ten this year."
That’s the kind of impact the Buccaneers have been chasing. Last season, Tampa Bay had to work hard to create pressure, and even with Todd Bowles willing to dial up blitzes, the production still lagged.
The Bucs finished 2025 with 37 sacks and ranked 24th in sack rate. Yaya Diaby led the team with seven sacks, and no other edge defender had more than three.
Bain, the 15th overall pick, arrives with a résumé that suggests he can help fix that problem. In his final season at Miami, he led all FBS edge defenders with 83 pressures and earned a 92.8 PFF grade. His blend of power, burst and flexibility from different alignments gives Bowles a rusher who can get home without needing the defense to scheme him free every snap.
General manager Jason Licht made that same point after the draft, saying that having real threats on both edges forces offenses to decide where to slide protection. If Bain draws attention opposite Diaby, that could open cleaner paths for Diaby, Calijah Kancey and Vita Vea on the inside.
There have already been early signs of what that could look like. In Bain’s preseason debut against Kansas City, he used a powerful inside hump move to collapse the pocket around Justin Fields on third down. Diaby also got pressure, and Tampa Bay’s first-team defense held the Chiefs to three-and-outs on each of its first two possessions.
The depth behind those front-line players has shown something, too. David Walker had three pressures late in the first half against Kansas City, and Anthony Nelson added 1.5 sacks.
That gives Bowles more to work with than a one-man answer off the edge. If Bain can keep winning without Tampa Bay having to blitz so often, Bowles can be more selective with his pressure calls and keep more bodies in coverage. That kind of front-seven production would mean more sacks, less time for opposing quarterbacks, and a defense that can move back toward being a strength instead of a question mark.
In Other News...
Jalon Daniels Just Put Tampa Bay's Backup QB Battle In Focus
The Buccaneers final preseason game turned into a long night for the offense, with rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels getting the start and little help around him in a 19-0 loss to the Jaguars. Tampa Bay mustered only 87 total yards, and Daniels finished 8 of 15 for 57 yards while taking three sacks, a rough outing in a game that featured scoring from all three phases for Jacksonville.
For a team still sorting out its backup quarterback picture, the performance put the spotlight right where it needed to be. The Jaguars scored on a field goal, a touchdown pass with a two-point conversion, and a punt return touchdown with another two-point conversion, leaving the Buccaneers with plenty to sort through after a preseason finale that offered few answers and raised a few more questions. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Roster Battles Took A Back Seat To One Alarming Twist
The Buccaneers final preseason game against the Jaguars was supposed to be one last chance for fringe players to make their case, and there were still a few individual auditions worth noting. Pyburn flashed, Riley Dixon had a strong showing, and the staff got a last look at a roster group that also included players like Jalon Daniels, who had a tougher night as Tampa Bays offense sputtered in a 19-0 loss.
But the bigger story quickly moved beyond the usual roster math. Tampa Bays offensive line and receivers had trouble generating much of anything, and the game took a much more serious turn when Mo Kamara went down with a knee injury that appeared severe. For a team trying to sort out the back end of its roster, the injury introduced a far more immediate concern than who made the cut. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Suddenly Face A Jack Pyburn Decision They Didn't Expect
An undrafted rookie who has already made a favorable impression in camp, Jack Pyburn has pushed himself into the Buccaneers late-summer conversation at linebacker. His preseason performance has only added to the intrigue, turning what might have been a straightforward roster call into a more complicated evaluation for Tampa Bay as it tries to sort out the back end of the defense.
Pyburns on-field case is only part of the story now. He is also tied up in a legal battle against the NCAA as he seeks to regain another year of college eligibility, even though he has already signed a professional contract with the Buccaneers, a situation that is both unusual and controversial. The NCAA has opposed players returning to college after signing NFL deals, which leaves Tampa Bay watching a precedent-setting case while still having to decide whether Pyburn is worth a roster spot. [Read more 🡒]