Buccaneers To Waive OL Caleb Benenoch
A 16-game starter for the Buccaneers last season, Caleb Benenoch did not open with Tampa Bay’s first unit on Sunday. He will not be with the team in Week 2, with Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reporting (via Twitter) the fourth-year blocker will be waived.
Benenoch joined the Bucs as a fifth-round pick three years ago but struggled in his first full-season audition. He allowed 10 sacks and finished with one of Pro Football Focus’ lowest guard grades. The Bucs intend to sign former Jaguars lineman Josh Wells.
One year remains on Benenoch’s contract. With linemen consistently generating interest (and, as Rapoport notes, various former Benenoch Tampa Bay coaches residing with other teams), the Nigerian may have a new team by Tuesday.
Second-year guard Alex Cappa started at right guard Sunday, while Benenoch saw action on special teams. The Bucs also added Earl Watford, a former Bruce Arians charge with the Cardinals, in free agency and brought in Zack Bailey as a rookie UDFA.
Buccaneers To Move Justin Evans To IR
A 10-game starter for the 2018 Buccaneers, Justin Evans will not have a chance to play in that many games this season. The Bucs are placing their former second-round pick on IR, per Greg Auman of The Athletic (on Twitter).
The Bucs will sign offensive lineman Josh Wells to take Evans’ place on the 53-man roster. Wells worked out for the team last week.
This will mark at least 15 consecutive games Evans will have missed. A foot injury shelved him midway through last season, and IR rules stipulate the safety will not be eligible to return this year until Week 10. Evans is dealing with a nagging Achilles injury. Tampa Bay started Darian Stewart and Jordan Whitehead against San Francisco on Sunday.
A Texas A&M product, Evans landed with the Bucs as the No. 50 overall pick in 2017. He has started 19 of the 24 games in which he’s played. Under Bruce Arians this year, however, the Bucs selected safety Mike Edwards in Round 3.
Working mostly at tackle, Wells has played in 39 games — all with the Jaguars — since coming into the league as a UDFA in 2014. The 28-year-old blocker started five games for the 2018 Jags.
NFC Notes: Inactives, Peterson, Evans, Jones
Adrian Peterson will not suit up vs. the Eagles today, as Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo of NFL.com report. Redskins coach Jay Gruden has made it clear that Derrius Guice will be the starter and handle most of the rushing work.
Some of Peterson’s teammates aren’t happy that he’s a healthy scratch, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. The future Hall-of-Famer is regarded by some as the best back on the team and many members of the Redskins believed that come week 1, the question would be how many carries Guice would be taking away from Peterson and not whether Peterson would be suiting up.
Washington gave Peterson a $1.5MM signing bonus and another $1MM to re-sign with the club this offseason. No word if the team has plans to trade or release him.
Here’s more from the NFC:
- TE Jordan Reed is among the other inactives for the Redskins, John Keim of ESPN.com tweets. QB Colt McCoy will also not suit up.
- Mike Evans and Devin White will both play for the Buccaneers today, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (Twitter link). The pair were listed as questionable heading into the contest will illnesses.
- CB Byron Jones won’t start for the Cowboys today, Schefter adds in a separate tweet. Jones will play, but he’ll be limited as he is still recovering from offseason hip surgery.
- RT Marcus Gilbert will not play for the Cardinals today, as Darren Urban relays on the team’s website. Gilbert is nursing a knee injury.
NFL Workout Updates: 9/7/19
We’ve got another big batch of workouts, all courtesy of veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer (on Twitter).
Cleveland Browns
- DT Ricky Walker
Houston Texans
- Ps Ryan Allen, Matt Wile; LB Christian Kuntz; LS Carson Tinker
Indianapolis Colts
- LB Tre’ Crawford; DE Jamell Garcia-Williams; CBs Quenton Meeks, Jackson Porter; S Jonathan Owens
Jacksonville Jaguars
- WRs Terry Godwin, Ishmael Hyman; RB Jeremy McNichols; P Brock Miller
Minnesota Vikings
- Safeties Briean Boddy-Calhoun, C.J. Reavis; DT Anthony Zettel
New England Patriots
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Safeties Andrew Adams, Chris Banjo; OTs Dino Boyd, Pace Murphy, Josh Wells; G Bryan Witzmann
The Texans could be looking for specialist help, as they worked out a pair of punters and a longsnapper. Boddy-Calhoun, who worked out for the Vikings, is probably the biggest name on this list. He started at least seven games for the Browns each of the past three seasons, but was released by Houston at final cuts.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/6/19
Here are Friday’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Released from IR via injury settlement: RB Kenneth Dixon
New York Giants
- Released: LB Nathan Stupar
Philadelphia Eagles
- Promoted from practice squad: TE Alex Ellis
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Released from IR via injury settlement: WR Cortrelle Simpson
NFL Cap Space By Team For 2019
With hours to go before the start of the 2019 NFL season, here’s a rundown of how much cap room each NFL team has (via ESPN.com’s Field Yates, on Twitter):
- Indianapolis Colts – $42.1MM
- Cleveland Browns – $32.7MM
- Miami Dolphins – $31.9MM
- Houston Texans – $29.5MM
- Buffalo Bills – $24.8MM
- Tennessee Titans – $24.1MM
- Dallas Cowboys – $22.3MM
- Detroit Lions – $19.2MM
- San Francisco 49ers – $18.7MM
- Chicago Bears – $17.3MM
- Carolina Panthers – $16.6MM
- Washington Redskins – $15.9MM
- Philadelphia Eagles – $14.8MM
- Cincinnati Bengals – $13.3MM
- Kansas City Chiefs – $12.4MM
- Oakland Raiders – $12MM
- Denver Broncos – $11.2MM
- Green Bay Packers – $10.8MM
- Los Angeles Chargers – $10.2MM
- Jacksonville Jaguars – $9.5MM
- New York Jets – $9.3MM
- Seattle Seahawks – $8.6MM
- Baltimore Ravens – $8.2MM
- Pittsburgh Steelers – $6.3MM
- New England Patriots – $4.9MM
- Arizona Cardinals – $2.7MM
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers – $1.2MM
- Minnesota Vikings – $1.2MM
- Los Angeles Rams – $852K
- New Orleans Saints – $604K
- Atlanta Falcons – $493K
- New York Giants – $457K
Buccaneers Restructure Mike Evans’ Deal
The Buccaneers converted $2MM of Mike Evans‘ base salary into a bonus, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The move creates $1.6MM in cap room for Tampa Bay, giving them some much needed flexibility. 
Prior to the adjustment, the Bucs were pretty much up against the wall. Obviously, all of the hefty spending took place in the offseason, but the Bucs will now have room to make small pickups and salary acquisitions via trade, should they need reinforcements.
As with most adjustments of this nature, the move will have ramifications on future seasons for the Bucs. It’ll tack $400K on to Evans’ cap hits for each remaining season on his deal, which takes him through the 2023 season.
Evans, 26 in August, also reworked his contract back in June to give the Bucs some extra wiggle room. His five-year, $82.5MM extension has no guaranteed dollars left after the 2020 season, but he should continue to remain in the team’s plans. In 2018, he tallied 86 catches with a career-high 1,524 yards.
Kendell Beckwith Not Planning Return?
The Buccaneers’ 2017 linebacking trio of Lavonte David, Kwon Alexander and Kendell Beckwith has since disbanded, with Alexander departing for San Francisco and Beckwith residing on Tampa Bay’s reserve/NFI list. And Beckwith may not intend to come back.
Sidelined because of a fractured ankle suffered in a 2018 car accident, Beckwith will miss all of 2019 as well. As of now, the former third-round pick is “likely done with football,” Jenna Laine of ESPN.com tweets.
Beckwith started 11 games and played in 16 for the Bucs two years ago. He returned to practice in October of last year but was shut down for the season in November. Beckwith’s 2019 did not get off the ground, with the Bucs placing the LSU product on the reserve/NFI list in May. They have since changed coaching staffs and schemes. They drafted one of Beckwith’s former college teammates, Devin White, at No. 5 overall and added former Bruce Arians–Todd Bowles cogs Deone Bucannon and Kevin Minter this offseason.
Beckwith, 24, made 73 tackles as a rookie. He is still under contract with the Bucs and has yet to file any retirement paperwork. But it appears that unfortunate offseason accident irrevocably altered his career.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/3/19
Here are Tuesday’s practice squad decisions:
Atlanta Falcons
- Signed: TE Carson Meier
Arizona Cardinals
- Signed: QB Kyle Sloter
- Re-signed: OLB Pete Robertson
- Released: CB Nate Brooks, OLB Vontarrius Dora
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DT Trevon Coley
- Released: OL Marcus Applefield
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: C Brad Lundblade
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: LB Hardy Nickerson
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Signed: TE Jordan Leggett, DL Pat O’Connor
- Released: RB Bruce Anderson
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/2/19
Today’s minor moves:
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: DB Brynden Trawick
- Placed on IR: CB Iman Marshall
Cincinnati Bengals
- Signed: G John Jerry
- Placed on IR: G O’Shea Dugas
Detroit Lions
- Waived/Injured: WR Andy Jones
Green Bay Packers
- Released: LB James Crawford
Indianapolis Colts
- Waived: S Rolan Milligan
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: C Coleman Shelton
- Placed on IR: OLB Justin Lawler
New York Jets
- Signed: LB Albert McClellan
- Placed on IR: OL Brent Qvale
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: DE Josh Mauro, LB Kyle Wilber
- Placed on IR: Isaiah Johnson
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: FB Nick Bellore
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Claimed: RB T.J. Logan (from Cardinals) Waived: DL Pat O’Connor
Washington Redskins
- Signed: DT Treyvon Hester
- Claimed: LB Tanner Vallejo (from Cardinals)