B
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Buccaneers let Fields fall and pounced. Final grade: B.
by stestansfield ·
2026 NFL Draft
· 6 picks
· 4 steals
· 1 reaches
The Buccaneers did not reach, did not trade up, did not blink. They just waited, and Malachi Fields fell into the 116th pick.
Overpaying at the table undid a lot of the good work elsewhere. The tight end spot stays a question, and it was the one they most needed an answer at. The Quincy Williams deal gives the class an established piece to lean on.
They left with interior defensive lineman solved and the rest of the wish list mostly ticked off.
Solid rather than spectacular, and there is nothing wrong with that.
Pick-by-Pick
The board had CJ Allen higher than pick No. 46, and the linebacker fell to them anyway. A quiet depth add at a thin-ish spot.
Somehow Emmanuel McNeil-Warren was still sitting there in the Round 3 slot, and they pounced on premier safety value. Useful depth more than a marquee fix.
They barely believed it either: Malachi Fields still on the board at the 116th overall pick. One more legitimate question on the roster, answered.
Jaeden Roberts at Round 5, Pick 15 is a sound buy, the sort that quietly helps a class. This was priority one on the needs board, and now it is handled.
A reach on David Gusta in No. 195; the board had better options right there. It also answers one of the loudest questions on the roster.
TJ Hall at the 229th pick is money in the bank, a cornerback taken below his worth. It patches a soft spot without any drama.