Five Potential 2025 First-Round Targets for Buccaneers

This isn’t exactly a sleeper pick. If you’ve read 10 mock drafts in the last week you’ve probably seen five that matched Campbell with the Buccaneers. It’s a very popular pairing. Of course, there are good reasons for that.

First of all, it’s an obvious team needed, whether for the moment or the near future. The ageless Lavonte David is thankfully back for a 14th season in 2025, but there will come a time when he completes his illustrious career. The Buccaneers made sure they weren’t desperate at any position by signing Anthony Walker to pair along with the SirVocea Dennis, who is returning from injury, and can reasonably expect some combination of the two to hold down the spot next to David. It still makes sense to add some dynamic athletic talent to a position that hasn’t seen any early-round attention in recent years.

Campbell ran a 4.52-second 40, has an 80-inch wingspan and has good size (6-3, 235) for the linebacker position in the NFL. He’s very rangy, both laterally and vertically and is good in pass coverage, which the Bucs’ crave at that position. He was productive at Alabama and rarely missed tackles. In addition, Campbell has some clear pass-rush ability and could be useful in that area as well. That causes some to label him as a ‘tweener, but that versatility could also help him get on the field more quickly and more often for the Buccaneers.

The Buccaneers have an opening at safety next to Antoine Winfield Jr. They could fill that with either Tykee Smith or Cristian Izien, but the team could also have other roles in mind for those two versatile players. Bowles would find ways to get all of them involved.

The idea of pairing Winfield and Emmanwori is intoxicating. Winfield was a 2023 first-team All-Pro and is looking to get back to that level in 2025 after a season marred by injuries. He’s big-time playmaker, as was Emmanwori at South Carolina, so it’s possible the two could form one of the most dynamic back-end duos in the NFL.

Emmanwori demolished the Combine, essentially rating as the most athletic safety ever tested, but he’s no workout warrior. He was very productive for South Carolina; last season he combined four interceptions (two returned for touchdowns) with 83 tackles. When Emmanwori plays the run he almost looks like a linebacker, so it’s intriguing to consider Winfield patrolling centerfield while the rookie serves…