Bucs projected to pick an ACC pass-rusher in the 2026 NFL Draft

The 2026 NFL Draft will take place in Pittsburgh in four days' time, a city where the Bucs could select the next star they add to their roster in hopes of righting the proverbial ship. Before then, though, there will be plenty of speculation and buildup for the team and who they may add to the roster through the draft. Thankfully, we now have some added context for players now that the scouting combine has come and gone.

CBS Sports' Carter Bahns recently released the latest 2026 NFL mock draft of the cycle, which has the team going in a defensive direction. He projects them landing Miami edge rusher Akheem Mesidor in one of the last projections we will see from a draft analyst this cycle.

Bahns explains the Mesidor pick, writing, "The second of two stellar Miami edge rushers comes off the board in the first half of the opening round as Tampa Bay stocks up on the defensive front. They placed a lot of attention on the linebacker and edge rusher positions in free agency out of necessity and probably are not done yet. Akheem Mesidor is an older prospect having played six years of college football and entering the draft at age 25, but it's hard not to look at his ACC-leading 12.5 sacks from a year ago and think he isn't worthy of a first-round pick."

This is a pick we have seen a lot in mock drafts over the past few weeks. It could be a safe one for the Bucs as they look to solve their pass rush issue and there is not much development left to be done for him.

This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: NFL Draft: Bucs projected to land Akheem Mesidor in latest mock draft