Draft day is here.
The 2025 NFL Draft began in just a few hours, and a few hours later, BUCS will be clocking for the first time on the weekend with the 19th overall selection.
General Manager Jason Licht and his scouts have been in rating and information gathering mode for several months, and it’s time for picks to be made.
The brass of Licht and The Bucs clearly know who’s zero on No. 19, but the team will be multiple players to see how the board falls within the first 18 picks. But what’s important is that the Tampa Bay front office has become a consensus on potential choices. And the staff here at Pewter Report reached General Consensus Bucs stick to select Boston College’s Edge Rushed Novan Ezellak on the first round pick.
But what about the Bucks fans and Pewter people? We’ve heard we’ve looked at our five mock drafts and countless draft-centric Pewter Report podcasts over the past few months. But in the final Pewter vote before the 2025 NFL Draft began, we wanted to ask in plain and simple terms. Who was the first round pick for the Bucks on Thursday night?
Happy Monday, Pewter people! And Happy Draft Week!
This is the last Pewter vote before the first round pick of the Bucs is beginning… So, who is it?
– PewterReport April 21, 2025
Bucs fans appear to be closed to two attractive prospects
Earlier this week, the latest Pewter vote hit social media and asked who Tampa Bay’s first round draft pick would be. After the final results came in the last few days, they revealed an interesting division.
Boston College Edge Rusherd Novan Ezellak – Photo: USA TODAY
On Twitter/X, there were 757 votes on the ballot, with 42.5% of voters choosing Donovan Ezeiruaku and 38.3% choosing Alabama Linebacker Jihaad Campbell. Meanwhile, 12.8% of voters chose Kentucky cornerback Maxwell Hairston, while 6.3% of voters responded with “other.”
The results were slightly upside down on Instagram and Facebook. Between these two platforms, a total of 536 votes came, with 43.8% supporting Campbell and 32.3% supporting Ozilak. Behind the top two options, 16.4% chose Hairston and 7.5% went with “Other.”
So, overall, it became a close call. With a total of 1,293 votes, Jihaad Campbell appeared as a small winner, accounting for 40.6% of the vote. Donovan Ezeruak won 38.3% of the vote, with Hairston earning 14.3% and “Other” earning 6.8%.
Alabama LB Jihad Campbell Photo: USA TODAY
Close splits make sense as the inside and outside of the linebacker are among the Bucs’ biggest needs towards the draft weekend. The healthy Campbell, who once came to shoulder surgery, immediately upgraded the inside linebacker room to complete a fascinating trio that included legendary Lavonte David and the promising Sirvocea Dennis. Anthony Walker Jr. concluded the room as an LB4.
On the contrary, Ozilak also makes sense as a first round selection. In particular, there is Todd Bowles’ insistence that he wants to improve the team’s four-man pass rush this offseason. The team hopes that the duo of Yaya Diaby and Haason Reddick can lead the way, but added Ezeiruaku, who last year had 16.5 bags at Boston College, adding a mix that includes Chris Braswell and Anthony Nelson.
It might be a bit surprising that Hairston only won 14.3% of the vote considering Tampa Bay’s needs at cornerback, but Jason Licht and his staff were experts who found their first caliber corner on the second day.
Some Bucs fans have other thoughts about the first round choice
Bucs GM Jason Licht – Photo courtesy of the Buccaneers
It was just 6.8% of the vote, but some BUCS fans had dissent on what the team would do on No. 19 overall pick on Thursday night.
Some answers favored Edge Rush, not named Donovan Ezellak, as some of the Tampa Bay followers are in Mike Green, Marshall. Another voter went with James Pierce Jr. of Tennessee. Michael Williams of Georgia also had supporters.
Others went on the cornerback route and voted for Wil Johnson in Michigan, Jada Evalon in Texas, or Soap Level Jr. in East Carolina. The final mock draft earlier this week. Georgia Safety Malaki Starks, Pewter Report Bucs Best Bet af Safetyand also supported by Tampa Bay fans who voted for “Other.”
The general consensus is that even among those who didn’t vote for Campbell, Ezellak, or Hairston – the team would go with the defensive player at No. 19, but there were still some standout opinions. Some Buccaneers fans went with wide receivers: Tetaro Amakumillan in Arizona, Matthew Golden in Texas, and Luther in Missouri’s Burglar III.
And finally, there were fans who believed (or perhaps wanted) to be on the card. Jason Licht traded and collected a few more picks before, right? Now, can he do that again? I’ll be looking into it in just a few hours.
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