The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are in the process of cutting their roster down to 53 ahead of Sunday’s deadline.
The Bucs held several position battles that remained highly-contested throughout training camp and the preseason. Now, they’ll have to make some difficult decisions on who stays and who goes.
How will the final 53-man roster shake out in Tampa Bay?
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 53-man roster prediction
QB (2): Baker Mayfield, Jalon Daniels
Until now, Jake Browning was a shoe-in for the backup quarterback role behind Baker Mayfield.
But Daniels flashed so much potential during the preseason that the team simply can’t leave him off the roster. They could keep three quarterbacks — something they haven’t done since 2022 — but that takes away from other positions on the roster.
Browning is the safer option with his experience, but Daniels has the long-term upside to be the QB2 of the future, and the Bucs are embracing that future now.
Browning can still be retained on the practice squad and the emergency gameday QB3 if he goes unclaimed on waivers.
RB (3): Bucky Irving, Kenny Gainwell, Josh Williams
The big surprise here is moving on from Sean Tucker. But Williams has proven to be a comparable player, and at a fraction of the cost.
As a restricted free agent, Tucker would cost the Buccaneers $3.52 million. That’s a costly price tag for a third running back. Not to mention, Tucker will be a free agent next offseason, while Williams still has two years left on his rookie deal. Tucker simply didn’t separate himself enough from Williams to be guaranteed the third spot.
WR (6): Chris Godwin Jr., Emeka Egbuka, Jalen McMillan, Ted Hurst, Tez Johnson, Kam Johnson
This is the easiest position to project for Tampa Bay.
The top five wide receivers are all set in stone, with no true threat to challenge any of them for a roster spot.
With Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan each dealing with injuries, the team would be wise to keep a sixth on the roster. That would be Kam Johnson, who had a solid preseason in the passing game and is also the returner on special teams. No surprises here.
TE (4): Cade Otton, Payne Durham, Bauer Sharp, Ko Kieft
It was once thought that tight end would be one of the most hotly-contested position battles during the preseason, but things didn’t really pan out that way.
Cade Otton is the runaway TE1, and it’s the pecking order behind him that needs to sort itself out.
Payne Durham looks to be the No. 2. He has some receiving ability but shines as a blocker where PFF ranked him the NFL’s best run-blocking tight end a season ago.
Ko Kieft was the team’s highest-graded offensive player in two of the preseason games. His blocking and special teams ability makes him a crucial part of the roster.
Bauer Sharp has impressed all offseason as a rookie, and he’s not going anywhere. That means the end of the road for Devin Culp.
OL (9): LT Tristan Wirfs, LG Ben Bredeson, C Graham Barton, RG Cody Mauch, RT Luke Goedeke, OT Ben Chukwuma, OT Justin Skule, G Dan Feeney, G Luke Haggard
The Buccaneers’ starting offensive line is set in stone, and they form a top-five unit in the league when healthy.
The backup spots are where things get interesting. The reserve offensive line was dreadful all offseason long, so the coaching staff likely isn’t standing on the table for any of them.
But for the remaining backup spots, Dan Feeney leads the way at guard after starting 10 games for the Bucs last season, with Luke Haggard also making the roster after a strong performance in the preseason finale. The team is very high on Ben Chukwuma, and Justin Skule was brought back to bring a proven veteran presence to the reserve offensive line.
They’ll likely try to hold on to Elijah Klein and rookie fifth-round pick Billy Schrauth on the practice squad.
DT (6): Vita Vea, Calijah Kancey, A’Shawn Robinson, Elijah Roberts, Rakeem Nunez-Roches, DeMonte Capehart
The Bucs are extremely deep at defensive tackle.
Vita Vea, Calijah Kancey, and A’Shawn Robinson will make up the starting three-man front. Elijah Roberts was very impressive throughout the preseason and is heading for an increased role in his second season. The team brought back Rakeem Nunez-Roches this offseason, and he’s listed as the backup nose tackle behind Vita Vea.
DeMonte Capehart showed flashes during the preseason. He will have the luxury of learning and developing behind some seasoned veterans during his rookie season.
OLB (6): Yaya Diaby, Rueben Bain Jr., Al-Quadin Muhammad, David Walker, Anthony Nelson, Jack Pyburn
The outside linebacker spot is one of the deepest positions on the roster, which makes it one of the most difficult for the front office to narrow down.
The top four spots are solidified with Yaya Diaby, Rueben Bain Jr., Al-Quadin Muhammad and David Walker.
Based on how the preseason went, the fifth spot will come down to Anthony Nelson and Jack Pyburn. I ended up keeping both.
Nelson is a proven veteran that the coaching staff loves, and he’s notched at least three sacks in five consecutive seasons. Pyburn is an undrafted rookie who recorded four sacks in three preseason games. He’s worthy of a spot in the rotation, and if Tampa Bay tries to stash him on the practice squad, he’ll be claimed by another team.
ILB (4): Alex Anzalone, Josiah Trotter, Christian Rozeboom, SirVocea Dennis
Alex Anzalone and Josiah Trotter are locked in as the starting linebackers, and Christian Rozeboom’s spot feels solidified as well.
The final linebacker spot could very easily go to Caden Fordham over SirVocea Dennis. Fordham has been impressive for Tampa Bay during the preseason while Dennis has been dealing with an injury. For now, I’ll project the team sticks with Dennis and tries to stash Fordham on the practice squad.
CB (6): Zyon McCollum, Jacob Parrish, Benjamin Morrison, Keionte Scott, Ayden Garnes, Pepe Williams
The starters have been set in stone, but depth at the cornerback spot was a big question for the Buccaneers this offseason, but it doesn’t seem as dire now as it once did.
Ayden Garnes has made himself undeniable with one of the best preseasons of any Bucs player. He made at least a play in all three games, and is a lock for the roster.
Pepe Williams has been impressive as well, and will get a chance to close out the cornerback room. This means the end for Josh Hayes, who has primarily stuck around due to his elite special teams play.
S (4): Antoine Winfield Jr., Tykee Smith, Ifeatu Melifonwu, Miles Killebrew
The Bucs have one of the best starting safety tandems in the NFL in Antoine Winfield Jr. and Tykee Smith, but the depth behind them remains a question mark.
The toughest decision on this entire depth chart was leaving JJ Roberts off the roster. He looked so promising last preseason before suffering a season-ending knee injury, and he spent much of this offseason working his way back. There could still be a spot for him in Tampa Bay, but he’ll likely spend this year on the practice squad.
Ifeatu Melifonwu is a proven veteran with 22 starts in his career and will hold down one of the backup safety spots.
The Bucs brought in Miles Killebrew primarily for special teams, where he’s a former All-Pro and has played for Danny Smith. He’s not going anywhere.
Specialists (3): Chase McLaughlin, Riley Dixon, Evan Deckers
The three specialists are locked in, as the Bucs run it back with the same group as last season.
Chase McLaughlin is, of course, here to stay as one of the best kickers in the NFL, and Evan Deckers is entering his third year as the team’s long snapper.
Riley Dixon hasn’t been perfect in Tampa Bay, and he could be on a short leash if he doesn’t improve on last season. But for now, he’s the starting punter for the Buccaneers.
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