GM Jason Licht Excited About 'Sneaky' Buccaneers In 2025

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Adam Schultz | Last updated Jun 24, 2025 11:53 PM ET

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, for some reason, continue to go under the radar when being talked about as an NFC contender.

While some consider the Buccaneers a dark horse in 2025, others believe the Atlanta Falcons will emerge as the team to come out of the NFC South, which might be true; however, Tampa Bay boasts the talent that others envy.

Granted, it all has to come together, but an offseason that has seen the offense add Emeka Egbuka and the defense add Haason Reddick, plus drafting a couple of young corners in Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish, it all leads to Tampa having a rather solid roster.

So much so that general manager Jason Licht, when speaking with Rick Stroud on the Sports Day Tampa Bay podcast, thinks his team will be sneaky good in 2025.

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

The offense won't be an issue with Baker Mayfield having an abundance of weapons to utilize both in the run and passing game, which makes the unit a dual-threat with players able to get after a defense in a host of ways.

Defensively, with the need for more pass rush juice, Reddick, who will be playing for a new contract, either with Tampa Bay or another team, should bring the standard up a notch, and Morrison and Parrish loom as two solid acquisitions to bolster the secondary.

The Buccaneers, for some, are the favorite for the division yet again, and based on their offseason's work, it's easy to see why.

And we think Tampa Bay won't be "sneaking" up on anyone in 2025 - the NFL knows they're coming.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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