Buccaneers Set 53-Man Roster
Following the retirement of Tom Brady, the Buccaneers will be facing a pseudo-rebuild in 2023. Before they get to a challenging regular season, the team was forced to cut down their roster to 53 players today:
Released:
- CB Anthony Chesley
- LB Ulysees Gilbert
- RB Patrick Laird
- WR David Moore
- DL Patrick O’Connor
- DL Deadrin Senat
Waived:
- WR Taye Barber
- LB Brandon Bouyer-Randle
- DL C.J. Brewer
- RB Ronnie Brown
- LS Evan Deckers
- T Silas Dzansi
- WR Kaylon Geiger
- G Luke Haggard
- CB Keenan Isaac
- WR Cephus Johnson
- S Richard LeCounte
- WR Ryan Miller
- G John Molchon
- G Michael Niese
- T Raiqwon O’Neal
- DL Willington Previlon
- OLB Jose Ramirez
- OLB Hamilcar Rashed
- LB J.J. Russell
- OLB Charles Snowden
- TE Tanner Taula
- S Nolan Turner
- WR Kade Warner
- CB Rodarius Williams
Waived/injured:
- TE Dominique Dafney
- CB Don Gardner
- S Kedrick Whitehead
Waived/failure to disclose physical condition:
- C Chris Murray
After sitting out the 2021 campaign, Deadrin Senat got into 12 games for Tampa Bay in 2022. The defensive tackle ultimately finished the campaign with 17 tackles, one sack, and a pair of QB hits. The former third-round pick got into 22 games for the Falcons to begin his career.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/27/23
With the preseason over for 30 of the NFL’s 32 teams, many have begun the process of working their rosters down to the eventual 53-man rosters they will open the season with:
Indianapolis Colts
- Waived: WR Tyler Adams, WR Kody Case, G Emil Ekiyor, TE Nick Eubanks, K Lucas Havrisik, TE Michael Jacobson, T Matthew Vanderslice
- Released: CB Teez Tabor
Las Vegas Raiders
- Placed on IR: RB Brittain Brown, TE Jacob Hollister, WR Isaiah Zuber
- Waived/injured: WR Chris Lacy
- Waived: CB Isiah Brown, CB Bryce Cosby, DT Doug Costin, LB Isaac Darkangelo, QB Chase Garbers, G Vitaliy Gurman, RB Darwin Thompson
Los Angeles Chargers
- Waived: OLB Carlo Kemp, CB Cam Brown
Minnesota Vikings
- Waived: LB Wilson Huber, T Jarrid Williams
- Released: LB Tanner Vallejo
New England Patriots
- Released: DT Carl Davis, CB Rodney Randle
- Waived: LB Diego Fagot, S Brad Hawkins, TE Johnny Lumpkin, RB C.J. Marable, CB Quandre Mosely, DT Justus Tavai, OL Micah Vanterpool, TE Scotty Washington, LB Carson Wells
New York Jets
- Released: LB Nick Vigil
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Waived: WR Aron Cruickshank
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived: CB Nate Brooks, OLB LaDarius Hamilton, DE Breeland Speaks, LB Kyahva Tezino, DL Spencer Waege
Seattle Seahawks
- Waived: TE Sal Cannella, DE Jordan Ferguson, WR Malik Flowers, CB Benjie Franklin, WR Justin Marshall, CB Chris Steele, RB Wayne Taulapapa
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Waived from IR with injury settlement: CB Don Gardner
- Waived: OLB Hamilcar Rashed
- Released: LB Ulysees Gilbert
Although never quite reaching the heights of his tenure with the Bengals, Vigil has a history as a strong contributor and potential starter at linebacker. Coming off a season that saw him only play in four games for the Cardinals before getting put on injured reserve, Vigil failed to stick in New York and will need to find his next opportunity elsewhere.
Vallejo’s tenure in Minnesota lasted a short two weeks. The special teams specialist will have to keep searching for his 2023 home.
Minor NFL Transactions: 1/10/23
Today’s minor NFL transactions, mostly involving playoff teams:
Indianapolis Colts
- Claimed off waivers (from Cowboys): C Dakoda Shepley
San Francisco 49ers
- Closed activation window: DT Kalia Davis
Seattle Seahawks
- Designated for return: WR Dee Eskridge
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Placed on IR: CB Anthony Chesley
- Promoted: LB Ulysees Gilbert
Per ESPN’s Field Yates (on Twitter), Shepley will be allowed to officially join his new squad after the Super Bowl. The offensive lineman spent most of the 2022 campaign on the Cowboys practice squad.
Davis, a sixth-round rookie out of UCF, is still recovering from a torn ACL suffered during his final collegiate season. He returned to practice earlier this month but ultimately won’t be activated for the playoffs. Per Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports Bay Area (on Twitter), the defensive lineman continues to recover and should be good to go for the offseason program.
Minor NFL Transactions: 12/5/22
Here are Monday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed from practice squad: WR DeSean Jackson
- Waived: WR Binjimen Victor
Los Angeles Chargers
- Designated for return: TE Donald Parham
New Orleans Saints
- Signed from practice squad: CB Isaac Yiadom
- Promoted: TE Lucas Krull, WR Kirk Merritt
- Waived: WR Kevin White
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Promoted: CB Anthony Chesley, ILB Ulysees Gilbert
Tennessee Titans
- Placed on IR: WR Cody Hollister
For Minor NFL Transactions followers, Jackson is obviously overqualified for inclusion here. He is one of the great deep threats in NFL history. But the Ravens made a procedural move involving the 35-year-old wideout. Jackson initially moved to Baltimore’s 53-man roster as a gameday elevation. He will now reside on the team’s active roster moving forward. Should the Ravens cut Jackson, he will need to pass through waivers. Jackson, who has played in three Ravens games, has five receptions for 100 yards this season.
A hamstring injury has sidelined Parham, but the Chargers are moving into position to have the 6-foot-8 tight end back in uniform. An XFL 2.0 alum, Parham has been a Justin Herbert auxiliary target during his time with the team. Parham caught six touchdown passes from 2020-21; he has yet to score this season. Despite the usual array of Bolts injuries, the team is in good shape for IR activations. The Chargers have only used two of their eight allotted activations this season.
Buccaneers Activate Giovani Bernard; Leonard Fournette Out
Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette exited the team’s game against the Seahawks in Munich due to a hip pointer two weeks ago and was unable to get right during Tampa Bay’s bye week. Fournette has been ruled out as the team comes back for a game in Cleveland this week, and Tampa Bay will activate running back Giovani Bernard from injured reserve, providing a little depth at the position, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. 
Fournette started out the season as the Buccaneers’ top rusher. As the season has progressed, though, third-round rookie running back Rachaad White has earned more and more carries, slowly taking away from Fournette’s role. The trend has advanced to the point that White was named Tampa Bay’s starting running back when the team traveled to Germany. Fournette still contributed to the team’s win, rushing for 57 yards on 14 carries and a touchdown but was removed from the rotation due to the hip injury.
Bernard’s role has drastically diminished since his tenure in Cincinnati. In his first year with the Buccaneers last season, Bernard’s carries dropped from 124 in 2020 to only eight. Tampa Bay utilized the veteran solely as a pass catcher out of the backfield. Even that role seemed to diminish this season as Bernard only appeared on special teams during the two games before going on IR.
With Fournette out, White will remain unchallenged as the team’s starting running back this week. Third-year back Ke’Shawn Vaughn, whose role has also drastically decreased this season with the emergence of White, should serve as the No. 2 running back behind White with Bernard contributing as a potential third-down receiving back, if at all on offense.
In order to make room for Bernard on the roster, the Buccaneers has waived linebacker J.J. Russell. Their linebacker depth won’t be depleted, though, as practice squad linebacker Ulysees Gilbert will be a gameday elevation against the Browns.
Minor NFL Transactions: 11/12/22
Here are the minor roster moves in anticipation for Sunday’s slate of games:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from IR: S Charles Washington
- Promoted from practice squad: OL Rashaad Coward
Chicago Bears
- Promoted from practice squad: OLB Gerri Green, CB Harrison Hand
Denver Broncos
- Promoted from practice squad: T Quinn Bailey, DE Jonathan Harris
Detroit Lions
- Activated from reserve/PUP: FB Jason Cabinda
- Signed to active roster: TE Shane Zylstra
- Promoted from practice squad: WR Stanley Berryhill, LB Jarrad Davis
Green Bay Packers
- Promoted from practice squad: K Ramiz Ahmed, LB Ladarius Hamilton
Kansas City Chiefs
- Promoted from practice squad: S Ugochukwu Amadi
Las Vegas Raiders
- Promoted from practice squad: DT Kyle Peko
Los Angeles Chargers
- Signed to active roster: RB Larry Rountree
- Promoted from practice squad: K Cameron Dicker, T Foster Sarell
Miami Dolphins
- Signed to active roster: S Verone McKinley III
- Promoted from practice squad: T Kion Smith
Minnesota Vikings
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Nick Muse
New Orleans Saints
- Signed to active roster: G Josh Andrews
- Promoted from practice squad: RB Jordan Howard, CB Bryce Thompson
New York Giants
- Activated of reserve/PUP: T Matt Peart
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Lawrence Cager, DL Henry Mondeaux
San Francisco 49ers
- Promoted from practice squad: DT T.Y. McGill
Seattle Seahawks
- Promoted from practice squad: LB Vi Jones
- Placed on IR: FB/OLB Cullen Gillaspia
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Promoted from practice squad: LB Ulysees Gilbert, CB Ryan Smith
Tennessee Titans
- Promoted from practice squad: DL Larrell Murchison, WR C.J. Board
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/12/22
Today’s practice squad transactions:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: WR Andre Baccellia, WR Laquon Treadwell
- Placed on IR: RB Jonathan Ward
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: CB Daryl Worley
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: DE Khalid Kareem
Cleveland Browns
- Signed: TE Miller Forristall
Denver Broncos
- Signed: LS Joe Fortunato, LB Jonathan Kongbo
Detroit lions
- Signed: WR Maurice Alexander
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Signed: LB Rashod Berry, DL Jeremiah Ledbetter
New England Patriots
- Signed: LB Calvin Munson
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: RB Jake Funk
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: CB Duke Dawson
- Released: RB Jason Huntley
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: RB Marlon Mack, K Samuel Sloman
- Released: QB Kurt Benkert
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: CB Xavier Crawford
- Released: DE Jabari Zuniga
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: LB Ulysees Gilbert, CB Quandre Mosely
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 10/11/22
Today’s practice squad moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: RB Ty’Son Williams
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: WR Ra’Shaun Henry
- Released: CB Ka’dar Hollman
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: DB Ja’Marcus Ingram, WR KeeSean Johnson
- Released: WR Jaquarii Roberson
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: TE Seth Green
- Released: LS Tucker Addington
Denver Broncos
- Signed: LS Mitchell Fraboni
- Released: WR Darrius Shepherd, WR Vyncint Smith
Detroit Lions
- Signed: K Sam Ficken
Houston Texans
- Signed: DL Micah Dew-Treadway, OT K.C. McDermott
- Released: TE Nick Eubanks
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: OL Ty Nsekhe
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Released: DL Israel Antwine
Las Vegas Raiders
- Signed: CB Tyler Hall, WR Tyron Johnson
- Released: DB Darren Evans
New England Patriots
- Released: OL Sebastian Gutierrez
New York Jets
- Signed: WR/KR Diontae Spencer
- Released: OL Grant Hermanns
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: LB David Anenih
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DT T.Y. McGill, K Sam Sloman
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: LB Ulysees Gilbert
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/19/22
Compared to earlier this week, Friday has been a quiet day on the transaction front, but a number of teams have still made moves. Here’s the full rundown:
Arizona Cardinals
- Re-Signed: OL Greg Long
- Released: TE Deon Yelder
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: OL Nathan Gilliam
- Waived: LB Carson Wells
Jacksonville Jaguars
- Released from IR via injury settlement: K Elliott Fry
New Orleans Saints
- Re-Signed: K John Parker Romo
- Placed on IR: OL Sage Doxtater and Forrest Lamp
New York Giants
- Signed: OL Chris Owens and Josh Rivas
- Waived: DT Christopher Hinton
- Placed on IR: WR Robert Foster
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Released from IR via injury settlement: LB Ulysees Gilbert
Lamp, a second-round pick of the Chargers in 2017, played sparingly in his first two years but was a full-time starter in 2020. With the team making upgrades up front, though, he found himself playing in New Orleans this past season. After suiting up for over 1,100 snaps the year prior, Lamp saw action on just five special teams plays with the Saints, meaning that his roster spot wasn’t assured anyway.
Minor NFL Transactions: 8/11/22
Today’s minor transactions:
Chicago Bears
- Released from IR: LB Christian Albright
Cleveland Browns
- Released from IR: CB Reggie Robinson
Denver Broncos
- Reverted to IR: RB Tyreik McAllister
Green Bay Packers
- Reverted to IR: WR Osirus Mitchell
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: DB Brian Allen
- Released: DT Jaleel Johnson
- Reverted to IR: DB Bryce Thompson
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: RB DeAndre Torrey
- Waived/injured: WR Keric Wheatfall
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed:WR Christian Blake
- Waived/injured: WR Javon McKinley
- Reverted to IR: LB Ulysees Gilbert
San Francisco 49ers
- Reverted to IR: S Leon O’Neal Jr.