The Tampa Bay Buccaneers traded down in the third round and selected Georgia State wide receiver Ted Hurst Jr. with the 84th overall pick. Hurst, a big-bodied receiver, is expected to compete for playing time in a crowded receivers room following Mike Evans' departure.
went defense with their first two picks in the NFL Draft in 2026, but that trend changed with their No. 84 pick. The Buccaneers traded down in the third round with the Green Bay Packers, giving the Packers their No. 77 pick and getting the No. 84 pick and pick No. 160 in the fifth round.
The Buccaneers went wide receiver with that pick, taking Georgia State wide receiver Ted Hurst Jr. Hurst is a big-bodied wideout at 6-3, 206 pounds, which could give the Buccaneers that X wideout they were missing with Mike Evans gone in free agency. He ran a 4.42 in the 40-yard dash and produced for Georgia State last year, catching 71 passes for 1,004 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns.
Hurst excels in his acceleration and is a good tracker deep, which the Buccaneers could take advantage of to unlock the long ball. He does struggle a bit when it comes to contested catches, though, and he has limited run blocking tape against a middling slate of opponents he played at Georgia State. Hurst joins Chris Godwin, Emeka Egbuka, Jalen McMillan and Tez Johnson in the wide receivers room.
Godwin will likely play inside in Tampa Bay in the slot, and Egbuka and McMillan will likely play outside, leaving Hurst to rotate in with one of them — if he gets playing time. Tampa Bay's receiver room is crowded, but despite that, the Buccaneers like him enough to add him to the team with their third pick in the draft. Tampa Bay will draft next at pick No. 116 in the fourth round.
There are still plenty of holes to fill for the Bucs on defense and offense, and positions like cornerback, defensive tackle, offensive guard and tight end are all in play for the Bucs as the draft rages on. River Wells is a sports journalist from St. Petersburg, Florida, who has covered the Tampa Bay Buccaneers since 2023. He graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Florida in 2021. You can follow him on Twitter @riverhwells.
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