Final 2021 NFL Mock Draft: Buccaneers make their luxury pick at No. 32
32. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Christian Barmore, IDL, Alabama
Every Super Bowl champion dreams of keeping the band together. But the truth of the matter is that’s often a hard thing to do, even for teams who just make it to the Big Game. So it’s truly remarkable that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers went out and got Tom Brady last offseason, won a Lombardi Trophy, tossed that trophy from boat-to-boat, and then are ready to do it all again.
Basically every starter that the Buccaneers trotted out last year is back in the fold for the 2021 season. Subsequently, Tampa Bay is sitting with the last pick of the first round and is operating with the ability to make a luxury pick even more so than their predecessors. So what do they do? They bank on potential with Christian Barmore.
Barmore is a large human being rife with the potential to be a game-wrecking defensive tackle. He has an innate ability to find his way into space when asked to rush the passer, even if he’s not a polished product at this point. Still, on this team, he’ll have the chance to sit and develop a bit behind Ndamukong Suh before eventually taking over that role.
For the sake of fun (and the fact that he’s a clear upgrade from Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones), I would take Travis Etienne. But general manager Jason Licht has said he drafts based on what he believes a player will be in year three. When you look at that for Barmore and the future at the position, he would make a lot of sense.
Who I Would Pick: Travis Etienne