Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles told reporters Monday that rookie pass rusher David Walker has torn his ACL, and will miss the 2025-26 season.

Bowles said: “He was making a big impact early. Obviously, we were counting on him doing a lot of things, but other guys are going to have to step up. I told him he has to look at this like a redshirt year. It’s unfortunate. It didn’t look like it was too much on film, but it ended up being that.”

Walker joined the Buccaneers as a fourth-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, and was expected to get reps behind Haason Reddick and Yaya Diaby. Anthony Nelson and Chris Braswell are among the Buccaneers’ other outside linebackers.

Walker was honored as the top defensive player in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) last season when he earned the Buck Buchanan Award. He totaled 10.5 sacks and an FCS-high 23 tackles for a loss in 2024 at Central Florida.

The Buccaneers will host the Tennessee Titans in their preseason opener Aug. 9 in Tampa, Fla.

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