Overview
- Tampa Bay selected Miami edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. with the 15th pick, drawing praise from YaYa Diaby, who said the rookie looked hungry and ready to go during their first meeting on FanDuel TV’s Up & Adams.
- Diaby called Bain a difference maker for a pass rush that often needed extra rushers last season and topped out at 7.0 sacks from Diaby as the team leader.
- The Buccaneers also signed veteran Al-Quadin Muhammad on a one-year deal to deepen the edge group as coach Todd Bowles seeks more four-man pressure.
- Reports tied Bain’s draft slide to concerns about arm length and to his involvement in a March 2024 fatal vehicular crash, though some evaluators such as The Athletic’s Dane Brugler still graded him as a top-10 talent.
- Bain logged 9.5 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss in his final season at Miami, and DraftKings listed him early at +550 as a Defensive Rookie of the Year contender.