Bucs Have A Top 30 Visit With DT Draft Prospect

The Bucs entered 2023 free agency with five defensive linemen scheduled to be free agents. Tampa Bay already lost top reserve Rakeem Nunez-Roches to the Giants, and Will Gholston, Akiem Hicks, Pat O’Connor and Deadrin Senat remain unsigned.

Only two defensive linemen with playing experience – Pro Bowler Vita Vea and Logan Hall – remain on the Bucs roster as of right now. Even if the Bucs re-sign a few defensive lineman – perhaps Gholston and O’Connor – they’ll still need to add at least one more defensive tackle body up front in this year’s draft.

The 2023 draft crop at defensive tackle is not good at all. There might only be two or three defensive tackles drafted. Georgia’s Jalen Carter and Clemson’s Bryan Bresee carry first-round grades and Pittsburgh’s Calijah Kancey might sneak into the first round, too.

But one of the defensive tackles the Bucs have their eyes on is Bowling Green’s Karl Brooks. He has a Top 30 visit with the Bucs later this spring, according to The Draft Network’s Justin Melo. Brooks is the second known Top 30 visit the Bucs have scheduled. The first is Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker.