Rueben Bain Jr. sends a hidden and scary message to the rest of the NFL with his jersey number selection
The Buccaneers recently released Rueben Bain Jr.’s jersey number, along with the rest of the Bucs’ 2026 NFL Draft class, and there’s a hidden message if you stop and think about Bain Jr.’s selection.
We all saw how motivated Rueben Bain Jr. was once his named was called on the first night of the 2026 NFL Draft.
Bain Jr.’s decision to skip the vanity mirror and instead just rip the hat off its stand and go straight to the stage was applauded by many. It showed not just the intensity everyone loves to see in a new player, but a prioritization, so to speak, when it comes to what actually matters.
In other words: Bain Jr. doesn’t care about the glitz and glam. He wants to kick the ass of the guys that’s lined up across from him on the football field.
And in a perfect twist, Bain Jr.’s new jersey number reflects his exact mindset from that night and his football career, as a whole.
Rueben Bain Jr.’s jersey number selection has a hidden message that should also scare the NFL
Bain Jr. was obviously upset (in a good way) when he fell into the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ laps at No. 15. That’s a good thing for the Buccaneers, as they now get an extra-motivated Bain Jr. that was already motivated enough.
Bain Jr. picked No. 3 as his jersey number and the key with that is the fact he was the third pass rusher taken off the board (counting Arvell Reese as an EDGE) in the first round of the draft.
Yep. Message sent and received, my guy. Bain Jr. is clearly ready to go out and show the NFL it made a big mistake letting him fall as far as he did. That’s worrisome for the 31 offenses that will eventually face him and the rest of the Buccaneers defense.
There are a couple other noticeable anecdotes regarding the jersey numbers: Josiah Trotter will wear former top-5 pick Devin White’s old No. 45 jersey. DeMonte Capehart will wear the recently-departed Logan Hall’s No. 90 and Bauer Sharp will wear 84, which was once worn by the sturdy Cameron Brate.
Bain Jr. has set the table – now it’s about making it happen on the field.