Buccaneers: At the wire final 53-man roster prediction
By Cory Kinnan
Safeties
Justin Evans
After starting from day-one for the Buccaneers after being taken in the second round of the 2017 draft, Justin Evans looks to be the starter again now that he is finally healthy. While he has missed the majority of camp recovering from his foot injury that landed him on the injured reserve a year ago, Evans will step in for a battered position group week one.
Jordan Whitehead
Taken in the sixth round a year ago, Jordan Whitehead was forced to take some lumps as a rookie after being thrust into the starting lineup. The injury to Chris Conte forced the Buccaneers to start Whitehead earlier than expected, but now this summer he looks much improved and won a starting job. Evans and Whitehead look to head up the third level of the Buccaneers’ defense once again this year.
Mike Edwards
No rookie had a better start to their career as a Buccaneer than Mike Edwards did after being selected in the third round out of Kentucky. However Edwards has been sidelined for over two weeks now as Evans has gotten healthy and Whitehead has been thriving. Edwards now looks relegated to a big nickel role once he returns to the field.
Kentrell Brice
The last safety roster spot will go to Kentrell Brice, who signed a one-year deal with the Buccaneers this summer after starting for the Green Bay Packers over the past two seasons. Brice beats out Darian Stewart for the last spot as the Buccaneers look to roster younger players with a higher ceiling.