The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finalized their 53-man roster Monday night. The Buccaneers now turn their attention to filling out the practice squad ahead of the start of the 2024 campaign in less than two weeks.
Interestingly, the Buccaneers decided to have only two quarterbacks on their 53-man roster. According to Greg Auman of Fox Sports, John Wolford, the third quarterback, was among seven players cut to keep the franchise within the roster limit.
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The move follows the NFLPA’s veto of a new rule that would have allowed teams to play a practice squad quarterback into an emergency role an unlimited number of times. Instead, the third-string signal-caller must be on the 53-man roster or can be part of one of two standard practice squad elevations per week. Players can only be activated three times per season.
So the Bucs are done. They’re already down to 53, well ahead of Tuesday’s 4 p.m. deadline. Final cuts to get there:
QB John Wolford
WR Ryan Miller
WR Cody Thompson
OL Luke Haggard
C. Avery Jones
LB Vi Jones
LB Antonio Grier— Greg Auman (@gregauman) August 27, 2024
The situation is similar to last year, when the Buccaneers released Wolford at the end of training camp. He ended up on the practice squad and the team eventually recalled him in October. Tampa Bay will likely try to keep him again as long as Wolford isn’t claimed by another franchise.
Although Wolford didn’t play for Tampa Bay last season, he did get playing time in two preseason games, replacing Kyle Trask in a win over Cincinnati and a loss to Jacksonville. In total, he completed 19 of 32 passes for 183 yards with zero touchdowns and zero interceptions. Wolford didn’t get playing time in the recent playoff win over the Miami Dolphins.
Wolford is familiar with offensive coordinator Liam Coen after playing under him for three seasons in Los Angeles (2019-20, 2022). He was a member of the Rams when the team won Super Bowl LVI, contributing in a backup role behind Matthew Stafford. Wolford appeared in three games that season, completing 1/4 passes for five yards and an interception. During his time on the West Coast, he completed 61/104 passes for 626 yards with one touchdown and five interceptions in seven appearances, including four starts.
The former Wake Forest star went undrafted in 2018 and began his professional career with the New York Jets. He spent one year in the AAF with the Arizona Hotshots, leading the league in touchdown passes and making it back to the NFL.
READ MORE: 5 takeaways from the Buccaneers’ preseason win over the Dolphins
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