Feb 25, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht speaks during the NFL Scouting Combine at the Indiana Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Buccaneers GM Jason Licht is fired up heading into 2025 NFL season

Originally posted on Tampa Bay Buccaneers on SI
By Collin Haalboom | Last updated Jun 24, 2025 3:30 PM ET

Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht has taken full advantage of his opportunity to lead one of the most inept franchises in the NFL back to relevance since taking over the job back in 2014.

Although his success in Tampa wasn't immediate, his development as a front-office executive over the past decade has translated into great success for the Buccaneers on the field. Licht's roster-building philosophy, hiring and delegation tactics, and the organizational emphasis on character and culture specifically over the last five years have resulted in four consecutive NFC South titles and one Lombardi Trophy for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Although Jason Licht has never been shy about expressing his belief in his teams, he has remained relatively modest and unassuming when it comes to discussing their outlook prior to the season. Which makes some recent comments made by the Bucs' GM all the more interesting, as he expressed a level of confidence in this year's team that seems greater than ever before.

As a guest on the Sports Day Tampa Bay podcast with Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times, Licht could not contain his excitement regarding the team he has assembled for the 2025 season.

"I think we have a sneaky, very sneaky, very talented, young team. I know we’ve got some veterans like Mike, Chris and Vita, Lavonte, but we’ve got some answers behind them too. I’m very, very excited about this team.”

After gushing about this year's rookie class, as well as an OL group that he believes has the potential to be best unit in the entire league, Licht continued to express his optimism about this year's team with great enthusiasm and sincerity.

"I like our team. I like it a lot. We’ve got a lot of talent but more importantly I think we’ve have the right kind of people and this team has a lot of chemistry right now" said Licht.

Licht also went out of his way to credit his head coach, Todd Bowles, for being instrumental in developing the positive culture the Bucs have established with this current group of players.

"And the culture, because of the type of players we have, but the type of culture that Todd manifests and fosters here as the head coach, because I mean, he’s the leader of this team.... I’m very, very excited.”

Jason Licht has always been a positive supporter of his players and coaches. That said, the way he approached this conversation with Rick Stroud represents a different, more palpable level of confidence. Of course, Jason Licht's excitement for this year's team does not guarantee a certain threshold of success for this season. However, if nothing else, his confidence should at least justify some of the optimism coming from the Buccaneers' fanbase heading into the 2025 NFL season.