4 Buccaneers who deserve a roster spot after preseason opener vs. Titans

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers opened the preseason with a dominant 29-7 win over the Tennessee Titans. The team’s young talent was on full display, and four players stood out as they made their case for a roster spot.

Buccaneers who boosted their roster chances against the Titans

J.J. Roberts, Safety

Building on his strong offseason, Roberts shined in his first game action for the Buccaneers.

He finished with five total tackles and had several impressive reps in coverage. He nearly came down with an interception after making a nice break on a pass intended for Xavier Restrepo, then on the next drive tipped a pass in coverage that was intercepted by Tyrek Funderburk.

Roberts was already well on his way to earning a roster spot, but his incredible performance against the Titans — both in pass defense and as a tackler — has all but made him a lock.

Kyle Trask, Quarterback

If Trask wasn’t already cemented as the No. 2 quarterback behind Mayfield, his performance against the Titans certainly helped his case. 

Trask was extremely efficient in the first half, going 12-for-16 passing for 129 yards. On the first drive of the game, he completed two passes over 20 yards.

He also had a nice scramble to pick up the first down on 2nd-and-6 to pick up the first down, and added a successful quarterback sneak on fourth-down to keep Tampa Bay’s lone touchdown drive alive. 

Three of Trask’s four drives resulted in points, and he consistently had the offense moving. With Michael Pratt still sidelined due to injury, and Teddy Bridgewater still returning to football shape and learning the Tampa Bay offense, Trask appears to have a stronghold on the backup quarterback job.

Ryan Miller, Wide Receiver

The wide receiver room is the most crowded of any position group in Tampa Bay. Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan are locked into roster spots.

Behind them is a cluster of receivers battling for what could be the final one or two places on the depth chart, depending on how many the team chooses to keep. Tez Johnson, Sterling Shepard, Trey Palmer, Rakim Jarrett, Dennis Houston, Kameron Johnson and Ryan Miller are all on the bubble.

Tez Johnson appears safe after the team invested a draft pick in him this year, and he’s poised to take over the kick and punt return duties. That dials up the pressure even more for the rest of the group, and Miller rose to the occasion in the preseason opener. 

He led the team with six catches for 66 yards on seven targets before exiting to be evaluated for a concussion.

Miller caught 12 passes for 128 yards and two touchdowns for Tampa Bay last season in limited action. His strong showing against the Titans could go a long way toward helping him stick in one of the league’s deepest receiver rooms.

Nick Jackson, Linebacker

Jackson is an undrafted free agent linebacker who played his college ball at Virginia and Iowa. He’s competing for a potential depth spot behind the team’s first four inside linebackers Lavonte David, SirVocea Dennis, Anthony Walker Jr., and Deion Jones.

Jackson properly introduced himself to the Raymond James Stadium crowd against Tennessee. On the opening drive of the second half, he recorded a sack, and then snagged an impressive one-handed interception off a deflection by fellow undrafted linebacker John Bullock just a few plays later. 

According to the Buccaneers communications staff, Jackson became the first Buccaneer since 2017 to record both a sack and an interception in the same preseason game. 

Splash plays like that will certainly help Jackson’s case as he fights to make the roster. He also finished with a team-leading six total tackles.

Last season, the team only carried four inside linebackers on the initial 53-man roster, and it would be difficult for Jackson to overtake the four veterans ahead of him. 

But at the very least, Jackson’s strong performance likely guaranteed him a spot on the practice squad in 2025, with a chance to be elevated to the active roster if needed during the season.

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