All eyes are on the Bucs’ 2022 draft class as multiple players from that group are extension eligible. By the close of training camp any or all of Luke Goedeke, Cade Otton and Zyon McCollum could have long-term extensions in place. Pewter Report documented projected valuations on a recent Pewter Report Podcast. But as hard as this may be to believe, it is smart to start thinking about the potential cost of the 2023 draft class. I can guarantee you Bucs assistant general manager Mike Greenberg is already thinking about it.

Teams work on multi-year plans, and for those individuals charged with keeping the books in order, they have to keep one eye on the expenditures they are likely to have to give out in up to three years into the future. As good as the 2022’s draft class has turned out, 2023 could be more valuable.

Calijah Kancey

Bucs DT Calijah Kancey – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Kancey has quietly become one of the more productive interior pass rushers in the NFL. And pass rushing is a valuable commodity. Since entering the league, he has recorded 73 pressures, 12 sacks, 18 quarterback hits, 10 tackles for loss, and 43 run stops while generating pressure on almost 10% of his pass rushes. NFL teams go to exhaustive lengths to find pressure up the middle. Kancey’s best production comp is ironically a player that he is often likened to due to similar body types. Ed Oliver signed a four-year, $68 million contract in 2023. Here is how Kancey’s 2023-2024 compares to Oliver’s 2021-2022.

While he trails Oliver slightly in several categories, he ranks ahead in three of the most important: pressures, sacks and pressure rate. Comparing just Kancey’s 2024 to Oliver’s 2022 and the two are once again very close to each other in production with Kancey ahead in most areas.

Taking Oliver’s $17 million APY and moving it ahead to a potential $300 million salary cap in 2026 and Kancey has a legitimate case for $22.5 million per year as soon as he becomes extension eligible. A four-year, $90 million deal is probably the floor at the moment and there is a ton of upside based on what he does this year.

Cody Mauch

Bucs RG Cody Mauch – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Mauch showed a lot of promise despite an up-and-down rookie season. Last year he improved considerably. His pressure rate allowed dipped precipitously from 7.00% in 2023 to 2.59% in 2024. And his run blocking jumped as a component of the Bucs’ overall run game improvements. Mauch paired with Goedeke to become one of the most dangerous double teams in the league. Behind Mauch and the rest of the offensive line, Tampa Bay’s run game jumped from bottom of the barrel to one of the league’s best.

Never updated for the end of the 2024 season. Pretty sure we have a new normal for Cody Mauch. This is a 3-game rolling pressure allowed. Clear drop from year 1 to year 2. https://t.co/OwgSx5oldJ pic.twitter.com/palMZ7JEGb

— Joshua Queipo (@josh_queipo) June 30, 2025

In 2024, Mauch ranked 6th in Pro Football Focus’ pass block grade, 23rd in run block grade, and 15th in overall grade among qualifying guards. His 98.5 efficiency rating was 3rd overall. These, along with other correlating production have Mauch’s valuation at $15.65 million based off of this year’s salary cap. Looking at his overall profile for last year and there are some really strong comps setting up his value, although they aren’t quite as aggressive as my models.

Another strong season from Mauch and he could have Quinn Meinerz’s $18 million APY in sight.

Yaya Diaby

Bucs OLB Yaya Diaby – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Diaby’s rookie season had many excited due to an inflated sack production on the back of several unblocked quarterback takedowns. In 2024 Diaby leveled up in terms of his consistent play-to-play consistency. He was 7th in pressures (70) and tied for 6th in quarterback hits (15) while ranking in the top 10 in pass rush win rate last year. Diaby is also an extremely capable run defender, utilizing his large frame to set a heavy edge.

His 41 defensive stops were bested by only two other edge rushers last year. The one thing that was missing from Diaby’s 2024 resume was the one thing that he overperformed in the year prior. He only got to the quarterback six times. All of this paints the picture of a talented pass rusher who is ascending.

With the arrow pointing firmly up for Diaby, so is his price tag. His 2024 is eerily similar to Chase Young’s.

Young becomes an extremely important data point when determining Diaby’s value going forward. He just signed a multi-year deal at $17 million per year. This pegs Diaby’s value at $18.25 million starting next year. And if Diaby tops double digit sacks in 2025 then $20 million will be an easy ask for Diaby in a potential extension negotiation.

Can The Bucs Afford All of This Success?

The projected APY’s I have projected for Goedeke, Otton and McCollum add up to 18% of this year’s salary cap. Kancey, Mauch and Diaby are trending to eclipse that number. Acquire enough good-to-great players and tough decisions will eventually be on your doorstep. The Eagles just let Darius Slay, C.J. Gardner-Johnson and Josh Sweat move on after their Super Bowl success last year.

For most NFL teams, including the Bucs, cash spent is the main constraint on their year-to-year roster building more so than available salary cap space. Tampa Bay’s current active cash spending is sitting just under $300 million. This number may grow to $350 million next year, but I doubt the Glazers would go much higher than that. Based on the contracts already on the books, they have just over $215 million in cash commitments for 2026.

Add in the projected contracts for the 2023 draft class and that number grows to $265.25 million. Kancey, Mauch and Diaby would push those obligations to $320.75 million. And that doesn’t include possible contract renewals for Mike Evans, Lavonte David and Haason Reddick or an extension for Baker Mayfield. In short, it’s possible. But those tough decisions begin to loom closer.