With just one preseason game remaining, Friday night at home against the Dolphins, cuts to the Buccaneers’ roster are coming up soon, after which Todd Bowles and the Tampa Bay front office will need to trim the roster down to 53 players, including the 16-man practice squad.
Sure, the Buccaneers have several Pro Bowl and All-Pro caliber players and talent across their team, but when it comes to depth, do they have top-tier quality?
Is Todd Bowles happy with the Buccaneers roster?
Coach Todd Bowles was asked if this is the deepest team he has had since taking over as Tampa Bay’s head coach, and apparently this team is far from that.
“No, absolutely not,” Todd Bowles said, “I think we’re deep in a couple spots, but not that deep anywhere else. We’re trying to find those guys.”
Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
That makes the preseason finale against the Dolphins even more intriguing, as it gives several players a chance to solidify their roster spots. Position Competition are a little tougher than the others, and Bowles specified which teams he would watch more closely.
“There’s a few things,” Todd Bowles said, “there’s a couple of wide receiver positions at the end, how many running backs do we have left, how many tight ends do we have left, the offensive line is still moving and shaking at the end. We’ll see how it goes, who’s healthy and who’s not. It’ll be very interesting to see the depth on the defensive line this week.”
As for receivers, it will depend on whether the Buccaneers keep the five or six, with Cody Thompson, Rakim Jarrett and Kameron Johnson being considered.
The running back position will depend on the Buccaneers being able to keep it for three of the four games. With Chase Edmonds injured and missing almost all practice except the first day, Sean Tucker was essentially in charge of the third-string position, but he earned the spot with his preseason performance. Does Tampa Bay want to entrust a valuable roster spot to a veteran like Edmonds, or would he be better off on the practice squad? That’s a decision the Buccaneers will have to make.
Tight end is a similar topic. The biggest battle is between rookie Devin Culp and third-year player Ko Kieft. With all three left, one of them will likely end up on the practice squad. Defensive tackle has a variety of options, including Ernest Brown, Luwal Uguak and C.J. Brewer. I’ve done theatre. All throughout training camp.
Bowles continued to talk about the competition, implying that it could be anyone who wins.
“We’ve got some guys that have a chance to stay on this team,” he said. “We want to keep the guys that are playing for the first time this week until the end. We want to get the uniforms ready, make good substitutions, not take penalties even if they get less playing time, not take as many penalties and get them in the flow of the game.”
The most difficult downsizing decision
The next day, Bowles was asked again which positions would be the hardest to cut, and he listed a couple more than he’d mentioned previously.
Buccaneers OLB Jose Ramirez – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
“I think outside [linebackers]”Safeties and cornerbacks are going to be tough,” Bowles said. “When you have those guys and they can all do so much, it’s going to be tough. Defensive line depth is going to be tough. The last one or two guys on the offensive line … how many tight ends we have, [running] We’ll protect our backs and [wide] “Receiver Spot”
Injuries to Yaya Diaby and Joe Tryon Soyinka have hindered the Bucks’ plans at outside linebacker, but fortunately, they are likely to return for the start of the regular season. Other outside linebackers, namely Chris Braswell, Jose Ramirez, Marquise Watts Jay Person also impressed and made the most of it.
The Buccaneers have a lot of decisions to make, and while Todd Bowles isn’t all that happy with their depth, that doesn’t make the choices any easier.
