3 Buccaneers undrafted rookies who are guaranteed a roster spot after stellar preseason
A few undrafted rookies earned roster spots this preseason with absolutely stellar performances.
By Josh Hill
We've officially reached the end of the preseason, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers still have some work to do before Week 1 rolls around.
Rosters need to be cut down to 53 players by Tuesday afternoon, which means there are some tough decisions left to be made. For the Bucs, the decision is being made even more difficult thanks to the crop of undrafted free agents who were brought to training camp.
Over twenty undrafted rookies were invited to Bucs camp this offseason, and a high number of them impressed enough to be in consideration for a roster spot. A handful of them likely require little discussion based on what they did this preseason and have no doubt played themselves into roster spots on the Bucs final roster.
Sean Tucker, RB
Not only was Sean Tucker one of the most impressive rookies at Buccaneers training camp this offseason, he's one of the best stories too.
Tucker probably could have been drafted had it not been for a heart condition that caused teams to red flag his medicals in pre-draft evaluation. The Bucs didn't use a pick on him, but they still took a chance on the youngster from Syracuse and the gamble is already paying off.
In three preseason games, Tucker totaled 81 yards on 23 carries, outplaying everyone else that saw action. Heading into training camp there was an outside chance that Ke'Shawn Vaughn might catapult himself into the RB2 role behind Rachaad White, but it was Tucker who has put himself in that position instead.
He won't start the year as the backup to White, that role belongs to Chase Edmonds, but he'll get his fair share of carries and opportunities to prove he should be part of the long-term future. Last year the Bucs had the league's worst rushing attack, something that the team consciously tried to repair with the moves it made this offseason. Dave Canales' run-heavy offense and the hiring of Skip Peete were steps in the right direction, but it seems signing Tucker and allowing him to prove himself was among the best decisions the Bucs made all offseason.