Bryce Boettcher & The Bucs
March 22nd, 2026

So Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht acknowledged his front office spent a little effort keeping its eyes on adding edgy dudes in free agency.

Licht wasn’t singing the ancient rock song, No More Mr. Nice Guy, but he did want to upgrade the team’s nasty meter.

So Joe assumes Licht will have the same mindset preparing for the draft.

The Bucs still have their “I Am That Man” philosophy of drafting team-first, football-loving dudes, but they want to be mindful of making sure that’s inclusive of players who might not win sweetheart awards.

That brings Joe to inside linebacker Bryce Boettcher, a prospect out of Oregon.

Former Eagles, Ravens and Browns scout Daniel Jeremiah is arguably the top year-round draft guru at NFL Network. Jeremiah pores over film and has the respect of executives around the league. So it intrigued Joe to hear Boettcher make Jeremiah’s list of top-10 “dawgs” in the draft, as he explained on The Rich Eisen Show.

Boettcher will be a mid-round draft pick, but he sounds and plays like a Baker Mayfield type in how he approaches the game: relentless, aggressive and with a huge chip on his shoulder.

Boetcher is a two-sport college star who was drafted in 2024 by the Houston Astros.

“He plays just with such an energy and physicality,” Jeremiah said. “He’s got the baseball background, but I’ve never seen anybody decleat his teammate in warmup for a Senior Bowl game. But that’s how juiced up he was.”

Here are some things film guru Lance Zierlein of NFL.com had to say about Boettcher.

Strengths

Fearless mindset to race downhill and attack blockers.
Strikes and separates from climbing blocks to stay play-ready.
Had a solid week of practice at the Senior Bowl.
Uses slow-and-go speed alterations to mirror runner’s movements.
Presses deep before hitting blocker with side-step on blitzes.
Will be an instant five-phase special teams option.

Weaknesses

Average size with below-average reactive athleticism.
More “see it” than “anticipate it” in responding to the run.
Steep downhill flow causes him to lose ability to contain.
Lacks pursuit burst to keep runners from turning the corner.
Takes big, hard bites on play-action and loses positioning.
Slow to recognize receivers in his vicinity from zone.

Joe loves the idea of a guy like Boettcher on Day 3 of the draft. Round 5? Round 4?

Obviously, the Bucs need inside linebacker and special teams help. And it appears Boettcher can tackle (136 combined tackles last year).