6 Winners (and 4 losers) from Buccaneers 17-14 preseason win over Steelers

For the most part, Saturday night was another success for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The team came away with a 17-14 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, improving to 2-0 in the preseason after last weeks win over Tennessee.

It’s not the final score that matters, though, rather the nuance within that and how certain players performed knowing that roster cuts are looming on the horizon.

While the starters saw limited action early, much of the spotlight was on players battling for roster spots and opportunities to move up the depth chart. Some Bucs made the most of their opportunity, while others failed to capitalize on their moment.

Winners and Losers in Buccaneers’ Preseason Victory Over Steelers

Winner: Emeka Egbuka

Egbuka didn’t see much action, but in his limited sample size, he scored his first NFL touchdown on a reception from quarterback Teddy Bridgewater. Egbuka has shined all offseason, and seeing him find the end zone was a sight Bucs fans should get used to.

Winner: Kindle Vildor

Vildor is battling for the final cornerback spot on the depth chart, and he did all he could against Pittsburgh to stick aroundon the 53-man roster. Vildor tied for the team lead with four total tackles. He also came down with an interception, and added a huge pass break up to prevent a big play for Pittsburgh. 

Loser: Jamel Dean

Dean had a rough showing against the Steelers. He got beat deep by wide receiver Roman Wilson for a 42-yard gain. On the very next play, the Steelers targeted Dean again and drew a pass interference call to gain another 19 yards. He also gave up a touchdown in coverage to close out the nightmare drive.

The only positive for Dean is that with second-round rookie Benjamin Morrison missing the entire preseason due to a tweaked hamstring, there is nobody who could really unseat Dean from his starting job just yet, despite his poor performance.

Loser: Buccaneers rushing attack

The Buccaneers really struggled to establish the run against Pittsburgh. The team generated a measly 41 yards on 24 carries, averaging at a dismal 1.7 yards per carry. 

Half of those yards came on behalf of Josh Williams, who was by far the most productive running back of the night for Tampa Bay. Remove Williams, and the Buccaneers registered just 20 yards on 19 carries for just over one yard per carry. 

Bucky Irving picked up just 12 yards on eight carries while Sean Tucker gained just 6 yards on four carries. Owen Wright, who was impressive last week, had three yards on four carries.

This is less an indictment on the backs, and more a failure on behalf of the offensive line. The Buccaneers had one of the league’s worst rushing attacks for years before Liam Coen took over as offensive coordinator and led the Bucs to a top-four rushing attack. 

With Coen gone for a head coaching job in Jacksonville, Saturday’s awful rushing performance could be cause for concern that Tampa Bay’s rushing attack could become a weakness again in 2025.

Winner: Jacob Parrish

Parrish has been one of Tampa Bay’s most impressive players this preseason.

He made an impressive pass break up in coverage against Steelers wide receiver Roman Wilson, and on the next play came into the backfield to make a tackle for loss on running back Kaleb Johnson. 

Parrish is poised for a massive role as a rookie, as the presumed starting nickel cornerback.

Winner: John Bullock

Bullock had a strong performance against Tennessee in the preseason opener. Though Nick Jackson got the headlines for coming down with an interception, Bullock is the one who deflected it to his teammate for the big play.

Bullock played well again against the Steelers, tying for the team lead in tackles, while picking up a sack and a quarterback hit. He’s making a strong case for the final inside linebacker spot, but he should be a shoe-in for the practice squad at the very least.

Winner: Nick Jackson

After leading the Buccaneers with six solo tackles, and adding an interception and sack in the preseason opener against Tennessee, Jackson followed up his debut with another strong performance against Pittsburgh.

Jackson picked up three solo tackles, and registered a sack for the second consecutive week. Jackson and Bullock, the two undrafted free agent linebackers, are both doing everything they can this preseason to carve out a roster spot.

Loser: Kyle Trask

After a strong outing against the Titans in the preseason opener, Trask came back down to Earth this week against the Steelers.

Trask finished just 3-for-10 with 19 yards and took a sack. With Teddy Bridgewater tossing two touchdowns in his solid Buccaneers debut, the pressure is again dialed up on Trask.

It wasn’t just Bridgewater who outperformed Trask either — undrafted quarterback Connor Bazelak had an efficient performance and even led a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter. 

Trask will need a strong final preseason game next weekend against Buffalo to reclaim his stronghold on the No. 2 quarterback job behind Baker Mayfield.

Winner: Buccaneers helmet decals

The Buccaneers came out for their preseason debut last week with a surprise uniform change, as the helmet logo decals were significantly smaller than usual. 

The change caused an uproar among Bucs fans, and the team heard the noise. According to Greg Auman of Fox Sports, the shrunken helmet logo was just a one-time trial for Tampa Bay, and they went back to their regular giant flag tonight. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! The helmets look much sharper with the giant Buccaneers flag that fans have come to love.

Loser: Buccaneers secondary depth

After injuries ravaged Tampa Bay's secondary in 2024, things aren't looking much better so far going into this season. Antoine Winfield Jr. is dealing with hamstring tightness that has kept him sidelined as a precaution.

Standout undrafted defensive back J.J. Roberts, who was on pace to make the roster and earn a significant depth role, will miss the entirety of the 2025 season with a knee injury he suffered during joint practice against the Steelers

Rookie second-round pick Benjamin Morrison is dealing with a tweaked hamstring and won't play at all this preseason, missing out on valuable reps.

Now, versatile backup Christian Izien is dealing with an oblique injury he suffered against the Steelers. The team's depth, especially at safety, is incredibly thin and the team can't afford to keep dropping like flies.

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