The 2024 NFL Draft represented Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht's 10th draft, so not only was history a guide for what he may do – there were plenty of obvious needs to address, as well. 

Now that the dust has settled, let's go ahead and dive into the final grades and discuss the job Licht and co. did before any of these guys even step onto an NFL football field.

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Round 1, No. 26 overall: OL Graham Barton, Duke Blue Devils

Breaking down the pick: In all my years of covering the NFL, I don't think I've ever handed out an A+ draft grade, but alas, here we are.

There's a reason why Jason Licht wasted no time in getting his pick in at No. 26 – Barton was the best player on the board, at the time, and filled a position of need: center. That's a rather important position to man, too.

Now, the Buccaneers have a shot at building one of the NFL's best offensive lines for the next half-decade. Tristan Wirfs, Luke Goedeke, Cody Mauch, and now Barton, have the potential to take this offense to elite levels on a yearly basis.

Final Grade: A+

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Round 2, No. 57 overall: EDGE Chris Braswell, Alabama Crimson Tide

Breaking down the pick: Braswell has all the tools to make it at the NFL level, he just has to keep refining his craft.

He'll have that exact opportunity in 2024, as he joins a crowded, but non-dominant EDGE room in Tampa Bay. The only starting spot that is wrapped up, right now, is YaYa Diaby's spot. After him, it's currently a three-way battle between Anthony Nelson, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, and Randy Gregory.

But even if Braswell doesn't win the starting job, or even a role where he's playing the majority of snaps among the others, he should at least find his way onto the field, in some capacity and that should lead to positive results.

Final Grade: B

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Round 3, No. 89 overall : DB Tykee Smith, Georgia Bulldogs

Breaking down the pick: Smith played safety at West Virginia for a few years before transferring to Georgia, where he moved into the STAR/nickel position. That's the same spot he's expected to play in Tampa under Todd Bowles.

Christian Izien showed flashes in the slot last year, but the Bucs also added Tavierre Thomas over the offseason, so it's clear Izien isn't the full answer, right now. Smith has a chance to be a Day 1 starter, like Izien was last year, out of the gate.

Worst-case scenario, the Bucs should have a couple of guys manning the slot position and if it's Izien and Smith – both guys have the ability to slide back to safety if/when needed.

Final Grade: B

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Round 3, No. 92 overall (from DET): WR Jalen McMillan, Washington Huskies

Breaking down the pick: McMillan gives the Bucs a playmaking threat out of the slot, which melds nicely with arguably the NFL's best receiving duo in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. 

The Bucs now have a 4-man set where they can line up Evans and Trey Palmer on the outside, with Godwin and McMillan on the inside, whether it's a 2×2 set or a 3×1 set. Whew. The ability to stretch a defense in those packages will be a nightmare-level experience for whomever is on the other side of the line of scrimmage.

It will be interesting to see how McMillan holds up against the more physical nickelbacks in the league, but the Bucs could slide Godwin or Evans inside during those instances, which won't take anything away from the offense, in the big picture.

Final Grade: B

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Round 4, No. 125 overall: RB Bucky Irving, Oregon Ducks

Breaking down the pick: Iriving is a very interesting pick. He's kind of like a quarterback that needs things to go right around him in order to have success. He's not athletic enough, fast enough, or powerful enough to make plays "out of structure" when things go wrong.

But, he does have very good vision, good feet, and he can make guys miss in the open field. If the offensive line is doing its job in front of him, or even if it's kind of doing its job, he should have success.

At the same time, it'll be interesting to see what happens when things don't work, which happens pretty often in the NFL. That's the risky side of this pick, but fortunately, the Buc should have a good offensive line.

Final Grade: C

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Round 6, No. 220 overall: G Elijah Klein, UTEP Miners

Breaking down the pick: Look, I'm not gonna blow smoke: I don't know anything about Klein as a prospect and The Athletic's Dane Brugler didn't have a draftable grade on him. 

Still, this is a Jason Licht pick, through and through, and Licht's track record with small school linemen is good enough to where it would not surprise me if he sticks around as a backup for the duration of his rookie deal.

Final Grade: B

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Round 7, No. 246 overall (from SF/comp pick): TE Devin Culp, Washington Huskies

Breaking down the pick: The second Huskies tight end drafted by the Bucs in three years, Culp joins former Washington teammate, Cade Otton, in Tampa Bay.

Culp is a blazer and he can make some pretty impressive catches, but his overall skill set and the most important traits -route running, hands, and blocking- needs work. If he can develop and improve his flaws, he'd be an excellent "move" tight end in the Bucs' system, but it's going to take some time to get him to that point.

Either way, it's a very low risk, very high reward pick and that's just fine at No. 246 overall.

Final Grade: B

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Final Grade: A

There's really no arguing with this draft class. Sure, the Bucs could've grabbed an outside corner at some point, maybe on Day 2, but outside of that, there's zero reason to feel any pessimism about this draft class.

Especially if the first two picks hit as soon as 2024. Both Barton and Braswell have the ability to take their respective position groups to new heights and if Tampa Bay improves along the interior line and on the edges – then this team will be right back in the thick of things come playoff time.

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