But based on recent reports from multiple reputable sources, the Rodriguez pipe dream might be over before it even started.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Buccaneers might pass on Jacob Rodriguez during 2026 NFL Draft based on latest reports<\/p>\n
On the Pewter Report Podcast<\/a>, longtime Bucs insider Scott Reynolds expressed doubt about the team taking Jacob Rodriguez at No. 15 overall based on his sources.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think the Buccaneers will. I\u2019ve talked to enough people over there, I\u2019ve pleaded my case. I don\u2019t think that they necessarily view him as a first-round pick,\u201d said Reynolds.<\/p>\n Nobody is more plugged into the Buccaneers than Pewter Report, so the claim that Tampa Bay doesn\u2019t view Rodriguez as a first-round talent is worth paying attention to.\u00a0<\/p>\n Another NFL insider, Tony Pauline of EssentiallySports, followed up and cast even more doubt on Rodriguez coming to the Buccaneers.<\/p>\n He named the Bucs and Cowboys as teams to watch for in pursuit of Georgia linebacker CJ Allen in the first round.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cOthers tell me that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers<\/a> and Dallas Cowboys<\/a> are real possibilities, though they mention those teams would likely trade down from their present slots (Tampa owns the 15th selection, Dallas the 20th pick), then draft Allen,\u201d wrote Pauline.<\/a><\/p>\n Reading the tea leaves, between Pauline\u2019s claims the Buccaneers are interested in drafting CJ Allen in the first round and Reynolds\u2019 report that the Bucs don\u2019t view Rodriguez as a first-round talent, it\u2019s fair to assume Allen is much higher on Jason Licht\u2019s draft board than Rodriguez.<\/p>\n Rodriguez won\u2019t be available when the Bucs are on the clock in the second round at No. 46 overall. So if they aren\u2019t high enough on him to take a swing in the first round, they almost certainly won\u2019t get a chance to draft him at all.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s a disappointing development, as Rodriguez seems to offer everything the Bucs are looking for both on and off the field. He brings elite production, football IQ, leadership, and character. He was built in a lab as the ideal successor to Lavonte David<\/a>, but the front office is seemingly content with passing on him anyway. <\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/assets.minutemediacdn.com\/platform\/google_discover_icon.svg\"){kind=icon}
Add us as a preferred source on Google