Considering how much the Tampa Bay Buccaneers struggled rushing the passer in 2025, there’s little doubt edge rusher David Walker would have found his way onto the field at some point during his rookie season.
Instead, Walker got robbed of that opportunity after a devastating knee injury during the 1st week of training camp. Now, the 2025 4th round pick is set up for a big comeback in 2026, where he could very well crack a 2-deep that could be unexpectedly formidable after the Buccaneers drafted All-American Rueben Bain Jr. in the 1st round.
“A healthy David Walker will be a CHEAT code for the Buccaneers,” Sleeper Bucs wrote on its official X account on June 13. “Vita Vea, Calijah Kancey, YaYa Diaby, Bain Jr. and Walker will be (a movie).”
If Kancey and Walker can truly stay healthy, and with free agent Al-Quadin Muhammad in the mix, the Buccaneers might finally turn things around following several uninspiring years on the defensive front.
David Walker Called ‘Biggest Steal’ of 2025 Draft
A to Z Sports NFL Editor Evan Winter called Walker the “biggest steal” of the 2025 NFl draft.
“Had the #Bucs taking David Walker at No. 121 in my final mock draft,” Winter wrote on his official X account on April 26. “They really liked him throughout the process and it’s easy to see why. He could easily become one of the bigger steals of the draft.”
While a typical path for some draft picks in the NIL era is to start their careers at a mid-major then transfer up to a Power Four school once they show even the faintest sign of promise, Walker’s path was different.
That’s because the Stuttgart, Arkansas, native started even lower than a mid-major. Walker, 6-foot-1 and 263 pounds, spent the first 2 seasons of his college career at NCAA Division II Southern Arkansas. Walker, like the rest of NCAA Division II, didn’t even have a season in 2020 because of the pandemic, then had 52 tackles, 19.5 TFL, and 8.0 sacks in 2021 before transferring to Central Arkansas.
Walker proved to be just as dominant on the FCS level, where he was a 3-time All-American and finished with 191 tackles and 31.0 sacks over 3 seasons, including winning the Buck Buchanan Award as the nation’s top defensive player in FCS.
Walker was also the Atlantic Sun Defensive Player of the Year in 2022, then the United Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2023 and 2024.
Competition Will Be Stiff for Bucs in 2026
If Walker does end up in the field, he will have to have certainly earned it — and beat out several veterans in the process.
Assuming the Buccaneers do use 4 edge rushers, and we assume Diaby, Bain, and Muhammad own 3 of those spots, that leaves a knock-down, drag-out competition between Walker, Anthony Nelson, and 2024 2nd round pick Chris Braswell competing for that final spot.
One scenario that could help Walker somewhat would be if the Buccaneers find a trade partner for Braswell, who might still bring back a Day 3 pick.
Pro Football Focus NFL reporter Bradley Locker put Braswell on his list of the NFL’s top trade candidates ahead of training camp.
“The Buccaneers landed upgrades to their defensive line this offseason, but those new faces may block Braswell from seeing meaningful playing time,” Locker wrote. “A second-round pick in 2024, Braswell has demonstrated sound pass-rush acumen by producing 35 pressures on 322 pass-rushing snaps in his career. His underlying efficiency has also been good, reaching a 16.8% pass-rush win rate last year. However, he hasn’t been the same level against the run after earning a sub-60.0 grade in that category twice.”
Buccaneers Urged to Use ‘Cheat Code’ Edge Rusher After Injury