Bucs use team effort to make tough decisions on final roster cuts
Just like every other NFL team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will have some tough decisions to make over the next couple of weeks, as they whittle down their roster from 85 players to the final 53-man list they’ll take into the regular season.
Those last few spots are determined by a wide range of variables, from positional depth to special teams value.
For the Bucs, the process of making those decisions is a team effort that no only involves general manager Jason Licht and head coach Todd Bowles, but a long list of other stakeholders in the front office and on the coaching staff.
“They have a great deal to do with it,” Bowles said Sunday about the level of involvement his assistant coaches have in that process. “Me and Jason [Licht], as well as [John] Spytek and [Mike] Biehl – we sit in these meetings and listen to the assistant coaches. We talk about fit – how they fit, where they fit, how versatile they are, how much they play [special] teams and how we are going to use them. With the starters and key backups, you want the best 53. Then for the rest of the makeup of the team, you want the right 53. There is a lot that goes into that and there are ongoing conversations all the time.”
(AP Photo/Chris O’Meara)
One area that could provide the Bucs with some of their most difficult roster decisions this year is at wide receiver, where a long list of experienced players has been challenged throughout training camp and the preseason by a promising group of undrafted free agent rookies.
Bowles says those final decisions at receiver will be a simple matter of who they believe is the best player, rather than which pass-catchers might already have more of a rapport with Bucs quarterback Tom Brady.
“Well, it’s competitive,” Bowles said of the receiver battle. “If they’re good and make the team, they will mesh with Brady. It’s not about who he likes – it’s about who is the best player and who is the best fit for the team. If they’re the best fit for the team, they will be the best fit for the quarterback. We have a lot of competition there – every week has been a battle and it’s going to come down to the last week. It’s going to be hard either way, but a lot of guys can do a lot of things.”
(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Tampa Bay’s top four receivers appear to be set (Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Julio Jones, Russell Gage), leaving just a couple of spots on the final roster. Tyler Johnson, Scotty Miller, Breshad Perriman, Cyril Grayson Jr. and Jaelon Darden have all flashed potential, but undrafted rookies Deven Thompkins, Jerreth Sterns and Kaylon Geiger have made their own compelling cases to make the roster.
Saturday’s preseason finale against the Indianapolis Colts will give those players still on the bubble one last opportunity to prove they belong as the Bucs look ahead to Week 1 against the Dallas Cowboys.
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