Senior Writer/Editor
June 17 Updates
The annual break between offseason work and training camp has officially begun for Buccaneers players, one day earlier than expected. On Wednesday, Head Coach Todd Bowles revealed that he had canceled the last practice of the team’s three-day minicamp, originally scheduled for Thursday morning. In fact, the end of practice on Wednesday was the last bit of business for the players, with no meetings or other requirements to follow.
“We had a good practice,” said Bowles. “Tomorrow’s practice was going to be more of the younger guys anyway, and they got a lot of reps today, especially closing out in two-minute [drills]. So we feel good with where we are.”
The Buccaneers’ offseason program began on April 20 and progressed through three phases, gradually ramping up towards more complete practice during OTA days and in this final minicamp, the only mandatory part of the offseason work for veterans. The time together was largely spent getting the playbooks involved so that when the pads go on and the competition heats up in training camp, the players will all be on the same page and have equal footing.
“They did a good job working, working together,” he said. “They put in the work in Phase 1, 2 and 3, as well as minicamp, so we’re off to a good start that way. Obviously a lot more work to do, but I’m very pleased with how we ended, where we are and for the most part keeping the soft-tissue injuries down. I think they did a good job coming to train that hard. Getting the scheme down and everything else was part of it, and preparing for it, and I thought they did a good job there.”
The Buccaneers’ training camp starts in the final week of July, with the first practice on July 29 and the first field session open to fnas on July 30.
CLICK HERE for a look at the Buccaneers’ 2026 training camp schedule, which includes eight open
June 16 Updates
The Buccaneers appear to be gearing up for a fiercely competitive training camp, starting in late July. They are currently in the midst of a three-day mandatory minicamp, which is the last step in their offseason workout program, and practices in the offseason have a different set of rules than the ones coming later this summer. Collectively bargained offseason regulations prohibit players wearing pads or making intentional contact while on the practice field.
And yet, that has done little to dampen the palpable energy that has been flowing in minicamp and OTA practices. The Buccaneers made an effort to spike their defense with some nastier, edgier players, and it appears they have succeeded. Newcomers like A’Shawn Robinson, Rakeem “Nacho” Nuñez-Roches (in his second Buc stint) and Rueben Bain Jr. have turned up the dial on the competitive natue of practice.
“When you get new faces – Nacho’s been here before – but you get guys who come in and spark a new energy,” said quarterback Baker Mayfield, who has never been shy about returning – and occasionally instigating – chatter with opponents. “Maybe it’s trash talk or just the way they approach the game, it uplifts everybody. It’s been really fun to see. Obviously, with all the new pieces on defense, that itself brings a lot of energy. It’s made every single practice competitive.”
Last week, that competitiveness drove the team to get a little too close to the line in terms of contact rules – Head Coach Todd Bowles said there were too many plays with players on the ground – and the NFL took one of the Bucs’ 10 OTA days away. That wasn’t the desired outcome for the team, but it did stem from a changing attitude that could pay off in the end. And it will surely be on display again when the pads go on at training camp.
“Obviously we had a day taken away, but that’s the type of energy and competition that we’re having right now, which is really good for the Bucs,” said Mayfield.
CLICK HERE for more of Mayfield’s thoughts on minicamp and a variety of topics.
June 11 Updates
The Buccaneers are in the final stretch of their scheduled “organized team activity” days, or OTAs, but the week hasn’t played out exactly as originally planned.
The Bucs’ initial schedule for their maximum-allowed number of 10 OTA practices called for the final four to be conducted this week from Monday through Thursday. However, Head Coach Todd Bowles chose to give the players a break from on-field work on Tuesday, focusing instead on meetings and workouts. The Buccaneers also didn’t practice on Friday, but Bowles revealed that was not the team’s decision.
“We gave them off Tuesday; Tuesday was their day off,” said Bowles. “Wednesday was by the league, because at the first practice we had too many guys on the ground, so they took a practice from us. So Wednesday was by their doing, Tuesday was already set in motion by our doing. And they cleaned it up after that. We understand. We aren’t trying to get anybody hurt. That was the basis of it.”
All of the OTA practices are voluntary, though the Bucs have had near perfect attendance, and they also cannot include pads or intentional contact. The plays that the league judged to have been outside the rules were not performed that way intentionally. Bowles said the Bucs avoided such issues on Thursday.
“It was about three or four plays that reported us,” he said. “We’re trying to practice safety as well. We’ve got a lot of new guys trying to learn how to practice, but we cleaned that up and kind of took care of it.”
CLICK HERE for more notes from the Bucs’ OTA practices.
#17 WR
June 3 Updates
When the Buccaneers drafted Emeka Egbuka and Tez Johnson last year, it looked like they would have to fight hard for playing time given a receiving room that already included Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan. As it turned out, all three of those returning receivers missed significant playing time in the regular season due to injuries, Egbuka emerged as the team’s leading receiver and Johnson, a seventh-round pick, pitched in with 28 grabs and five touchdowns.
That experience underscored the importance of continuing to add productive receivers through the draft. In his 13 drafts so far as the Buccaneers’ general manager, Jason Licht has used a Day One or Day Two pick on a receiver five times and has only formed two draft classes that have not included a wideout. Evans departed for San Francisco in free agency after 12 seasons of rewriting the franchise’s record books, but the team used a third-round pick on Georgia State wide receiver Ted Hurst in April to maintain that positional depth.
As a result, even with Evans gone, it is currently difficult to project where and how often the Bucs will field each of Godwin, Egbuka, McMillan, Johnson, Hurst and a couple others, but it’s likely all will be needed at some point. It also looks like the receiver group will provide some of the most entertaining competition when training camp rolls around later in the summer.
“It’s competition everywhere, but every year you’re going to draft somebody and somebody’s room is going to have competition in it,” said Head Coach Todd Bowles. “The way our receivers went down last year, you need a ton of them. So we’re going to need everybody in that room going forward. Hopefully nobody goes down but to draft a guy like Hurst to go with the other athletes we have in there, that just enhances everybody else’s competition.”
New Offensive Coordinator Zac Robinson has mentioned that he wants to let Egbuka settle into the “Z” receiver role after the former first-round pick was pressed into playing multiple positions in his impressive rookie season. Godwin historically has done his best work out of the slot and is enjoying an offseason in which he can work on his game rather than focus on rehab. McMillan is versatile enough to play all the positions and Johnson can also play in the slot or as a small “X” with an ability to stretch the field.
Meanwhile, with Evans’ departure, the Bucs eyed Hurst in the draft because he fits the classic profile of an “X.” That may be his way to early playing time, and he is impressing so far with his absorption of Robinson’s playbook.
“He’s a very smart guy,” said Bowles of the rookie pass-catcher. “We’re throwing a lot at him. He’s very smart – we’ll see when it calms down. Usually it takes a day or two every time a new install goes in, but he doesn’t make the same mistake twice.”
CLICK HERE for more takeaways from this week’s round of OTAs.
#21 CB
June 2 Updates
Wide receiver Chris Godwin had a pass coming his way during Tuesday’s OTA practice, but instead of watching the ball reach his hands, he saw a red jersey heading in the other direction with it. Second-year cornerback Benjamin Morrison had undercut the route and picked off the pass for one of the standout plays delivered by a hyped-up Bucs defense on a toasty afternoon.
Godwin was impressed: “I told him after the fact, like, ‘That was a phenomenal play. You broke with confidence and caught the ball in stride. That’s a pick-six because of the play that you made.”
Morrison was recovering from hip surgery when the Bucs drafted him out of Notre Dame in the second round last offseason, and he encountered a couple of other soft-tissue injuries along the way in his rookie campaign. He missed seven games and didn’t make his first start until Week 16, but showed signs of progression as the season wound down.
Now, with Jamel Dean having departed in free agency, Morrison could find himself in a much more significant role in Year Two. He could lock up the other outside corner opposite Zyon McCollum, or at least part of that job if fellow 2025 draftee Jacob Parrish ends up in dual outside-slot role. Early in their 2026 preparations, the Bucs have worked Parrish and rookie fourth-rounder Keionte Scott in the slot to some extent, though Tuesday was Scott’s first practice after recovering from wrist surgery.
Whether or not Morrison takes over for Dean, he seems to have inherited the position of being the defensive back who is on the end of Head Coach Todd Bowles’ jokes about how reliable his hands are.
“It’s great for him to have a healthy offseason,” said Bowles. “Last year, he was nicked up throughout. So that helps out a lot. To have him make the play [in front of Godwin], I think it’s the first one he’s caught. I didn’t think he could catch until today. So that was impressive.”
While Bowles worked in some good-natured ribbing with his positive assessment of Morrison, Godwin added some perspective about needing time to get acclimated to the NFL.
“I think mostly it’s just like his confidence,” said Godwin. “When you’re a rookie, man, everything is flying around so fast. You go from being one of the guys at your college, then you step up and now you have to figure out how to be one of the guys and also learn the scheme and then feel confident enough to make your plays. And he was also coming off of an injury, too, so there were a lot of things coming at him.”
CLICK HERE for more of Coach Bowles’ thoughts after Tuesday’s OTA.
May 29 Updates
The NFL will speed up its process of getting team rosters down to 53 players for the regular season in 2026.
When the league expanded its regular season schedule to 17 games in 2021 and concurrently reduced the preseason slate from four weeks to three, it also streamlined the process of roster reduction. After years of splitting the overall cutdown from 90 to 53 players into several stages during the preseason, teams were allowed to keep their entire camp rosters until after the final preseason game and then make all of their cuts at once. Those came on the Monday following the final preseason weekend in 2021 and have been on Tuesday in each of the past four seasons.
However, in 2026, all roster cuts down to the 53-man limit will be due by 6:00 p.m. ET on the Sunday of the final preseason week, August 30. The Buccaneers play their last preseason game in Jacksonville on Friday, August 28.
For practical purposes, this is not a drastic change for team runners. In recent seasons, most teams had informed players of their roster moves over the weekend anyway, though some chose not to officially send in their cuts until the deadline date. Without a fourth preseason game, there is now an extra week between the final preseason game and the first week of the regular season, which teams use to prepare for their openers. It makes sense to have regular-season rosters formed before the start of that week of work.
Players waived on Sunday will be eligible to be claimed off waivers until 1:00 p.m. ET on Monday. The first game on the NFL’s 2026 schedule is on Wednesday, September 9, with the Seahawks hosting the Patriots in a rematch of Super Bowl LX. The Buccaneers first game is on Sunday, September 13 in Cincinnati.
CLICK HERE to review the Bucs’ 2026 game schedule, and here for a printable version.
#69 G
May 27 Updates
The Buccaneers have a new offensive coordinator in Zac Robinson and they are in the early stages of installing his playbook. The move into Phase 3 of the offseason workout program means the beginning of OTA practices, which mark the first time this year that offensive and defensive units can compete against each other directly. As Head Coach Todd Bowles explained, the goal of this phase of the program is to get all 91 players on the same page so that they can hit the ground running when training camp arrives in late July.
“It’s really the basics and the fundamentals,” said Bowles. “It’s a progression type of deal. We’ve been walking through for about three weeks now, so we have a pretty good grasp on the scheme but we haven’t gone up against anybody. So [it’s] starting over, getting the rookies acclimated, the free agents acclimated so that by the time training camp comes, everybody is on equal round to compete. That’s really the basis of these OTAs.”
As Robinson and the Bucs’ offensive staff leads the players through the playbook, there are plenty of things that are familiar as well as some new pages that diverge from what the team has been doing in recent years. One of those is the addition of more “wide zone” run concepts, something that the men responsible for executing the blocks find exciting.
“One thing we’re all really excited about is we’re an athletic offensive line, so I think the amount of wide zone that we’re going to start incorporating is going to be really good,” said fourth-year guard Cody Mauch. “All five of us, our tight ends included too, getting out in space and moving laterally – not only will that be good but it will complement our gap scheme that we’ve been good at in the past, as well. Let alone for the wide zone play to be a good play, for us it’s just setting everything else up. It’s going to take some time to work out the kinks and whatnot but that’s what we’re here for. So I’m pretty excited about that.”
As Mauch notes, the Bucs have primarily leaned on “gap” schemes in recent years, to varying results. In 2024, the Bucs ranked fourth in the NFL with 149.2 rushing yards per game and third with 5.25 yards per carry. Last year, in no small part due to lengthy injury absences from Bucky Irving and multiple offensive linemen, those rankings slipped to 21st (114.5 yards per game) and 26th (4.13 yards per rush).
On gap running plays, the running back mostly works vertically toward the line, where the blockers are working to create running lanes in specific areas. There can be horizontal movement involved with some of the blockers, such as a “puller” who comes across to seal off an edge or lead the back through a hole. A common variety of this that the Bucs have used is called “duo” where the blockers are trying to create at least two double-teams on defenders.
On wide zone plays, the linemen flow in one direction and are not assigned with going after a specific defender but in blocking whoever is in their assigned area. The running back works horizontally and either takes the ball outside the tackle box or cut back sharply through the first seam he finds. The Bucs hope that finding success with this approach will also make their gap scheme more effective.
CLICK HERE to hear more of Coach Bowles’ thoughts at the start of OTAs.
May 26 Updates
In August of 2023, the Buccaneers lined up a pair of joint practices with the New York Jets in the week leading up to the team’s game at the Meadowlands in Week Two of the preseason. A year later, the Bucs did the same thing with the Jaguars, extending their stay in Jacksonville for several days to get in two joint workouts prior to a Week Two preseason game.
This summer, the Bucs are going to replay both of those sessions.
The full NFL schedule dropped on May 15, and that included the Buccaneers’ three-game preseason slate for 2026. The team will play road games against the Jets in Week One and the Jaguars in Week Three, sandwiched around the lone home contest against the Kansas City Chiefs. After the Bucs’ first OTA of their offseason program on Tuesday, Head Coach Todd Bowles indicated that the Bucs are working to turn both of those road trips into extended affairs that will include joint practices with their opponents. There are not currently plans to hold any joint sessions at the Bucs’ headquarters this summer.
“We lined it up with the Jets and we’re in the process of trying to line it up with the Jaguars, as well,” said Bowles. “We’ll probably just play Kansas City.”
Bowles said the Buccaneers and Jets have agreed to a pair of joint practices. That was the plan in 2023 as well, though the Jets – at the time coached by Robert Saleh – eventually chose to call off the second shared session. The Bucs then moved their practice to the New York Giants’ complex.
CLICK HERE to view the Bucs’ full 2026 schedule.
May 21 Updates
The Buccaneers signed second-round draft pick Josiah Trotter on Thursday, meaning they have a full roster of 91 players under contract as training camp looms later in the summer. NFL teams are allowed to carry 90 players during the offseason and through their preseason schedules before the cutdown to 53 for the regular season. The Bucs’ 91st player is German tackle Paul Rubelt, who carries a roster exemption as a product of the International Player Pathway program.
Of course, the roster could be tweaked between now and the start of training camp, but probably not in any dramatic fashion. Last year, for instance, the Bucs didn’t sign any new players after their round of undrafted rookie additions until the addition of veteran guard Michael Jordan as camp was beginning.
That means we can break down that 91-man roster fairly confident that it’s makeup won’t change significantly before the start of camp. And compared to the rosters that the Bucs have taken into their previous four training camps with Todd Bowles as the head coach, the positional numbers break down very close to what they have been for those other camps.
The biggest discrepancy is at the running back position, where the Buccaneers currently only have four on the roster. They’ve started camp with at least five in each of the past four years, and in 2023 and 2024 they carried seven. The slightly heavier positions are offensive ine and outside linebacker, where the Bucs took 15 and eight to camp, respectively in both 2024 and 2025. Currently, the team is carrying 16 offensive linemen and nine outside linebackers.
Overall, the Bucs have 42 offensive players, 44 defensive players and five specialists on the roster. That’s almost identical to last year, when they started camp with a 90-man roster and had 44 on defense, 41 on offense and five in the specialist group. In each of the three previous seasons, however, the offensive roster outweighed the defense by a handful of players. The Bucs have four quarterbacks on the current roster, which is the amount they’ve taken into camp in three of the past four seasons, as well.
Here are the position-by-position totals for the current roster and the rosters with which the Bucs opened their last four training camps:
Position – Current-2025-2024-2023-2022
CLICK HERE to review the Bucs’ current 91-man roster.
Special Teams Coordinator
May 19 Updates
The NFL introduced its new “dynamic kickoff” format in 2024, and when that failed to produce as big of a jump in percentage of kickoffs returned as had been hoped, they made a very significant tweak to the rules in 2025. Now, a kick that landed in the end zone for a touchback brought the ball out to the receiving team’s 35-yard line to start the subsequent drive.
That definitely worked. After the percentage of returns only increased from 22.9% in 2023 to 34.7% in 2024 when the touchback was put at the 30-yard line, it more than doubled last season to 75.9%. The Buccaneers followed suit for most of the season; in their first 13 games only nine of their 64 kickoffs landed in the end zone and only four produced touchbacks. However, some coverage breakdowns along the way pushed Head Coach Todd Bowles to switch up over the final month, as 17 of their 18 kickoffs over four games went into the end zone, all for touchbacks. The one that didn’t was supposed to, and Miami’s Malik Washington returned it 47 yards to set up a field goal drive in a painful three-point loss for the Buccaneers.
In January, the Buccaneers hired a new special teams coordinator in long-time NFL assistant Danny Smith, most recently of the Pittsburgh Steelers for the past 13 seasons. Smith is entering his 30th season as a special teams coordinator in the NFL, with previous stints in Philadelphia, Buffalo, Washington and Pittsburgh. Smith has a strong preference in the coverage-vs.-touchback debate, and it’s based on not wanting to hand the opposition an optimal result.
“It is situational, but I can tell you this – and one year don’t make a study; this is pretty new to all of us: The 35-yard line was the best starting point in the National Football League a year ago,” said Smith. “So if you’re kicking it out of the end zone and just giving it to them on the 35, you’re giving them the best field position in the league.”
Smith is referring to average kickoff drive start, and he’s right on the money. The New York Jets led the NFL in that category last year with an average start of their own 34.6-yard line. That stat takes into account all drives that start after a kickoff, including ones with touchbacks and ones with returns. Defensively, the worst average kickoff drive start allowed was the 33.1-yard line, by the Falcons. Smith’s Steelers were fifth-best in that category, at 29.0; the Bucs were 30th, at 32.8.
As Smith noted, there are some game situations where a touchback would be the preferred choice, just not many of them, in his opinion.
“Now, is there a time for that? Yes,” he said. “Few and far between, okay? Few and far between. They’ve got a dangerous returner back there, there’s two minutes left in the game and we’re up by 14 points. Let’s bang this out and turn it over to our defense, and let’s go home with a win. You gotta know how to win that game. I’m not worried about our stats, I’m not worried about our net, I’m not worried about all that crap at that time. How do we win this game?”
Assuming that Bowles and Smith are on the same page – a solid assumption given the hire – it sounds as if the Bucs will be getting the ball into the hands of opposing kickoff returners with frequency this season. And that’s largely because Smith is confident the results in coverage will be better in 2026.
“So there’s certain circumstances where you would [choose a touchback], but again to me they’re few and far between because I like to kick and cover and I think we’ll be capable of doing that,” he said.
CLICK HERE for more of Coach Smith’s thoughts about joining the Buccaneers and producing results on special teams.
#88 TE
May 12 Updates
In March, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers re-signed tight end Cade Otton to a new three-year deal with a significant financial investment, committing to a player who has given the team everything he could over the past four years.
Otton’s receiving numbers have not been insignificant; he has 207 receptions for 2,018 yards and 11 touchdowns in four seasons, including back-to-back 59-catch campaigns in 2024 and 2025. Those 118 catches for 1,172 yards the past two years puts him just outside the top 10 in both categories among NFL tight ends. But the Bucs value Otton for a lot more than his pass-catching, and made that clear when they prioritized re-signing him early in the offseason.
“He does a lot for us,” said Tight Ends Coach Justin Peelle. “And, yeah, maybe the numbers aren’t up there amongst the top ones, but he does a lot of things for us that I think a lot of people don’t realize. He’s really good in the run game, obviously. We had some injuries, obviously, at the tackle position, so we had to do some different things with him to protect those edges and [he is] an unselfish player. Team leader on this team, does a lot for this team that go unrecognized. And he doesn’t say anything about it, either; that’s just the guy he is.”
Perhaps the most notable numbers defining Otton’s career so far come in the participation category. Over the past three seasons, he has led all NFL tight ends in offensive snaps played, with 2,913. Arizona’s Trey McBride and Chicago’s Cole Kmet are second and third with 2,753 and 2640 snaps, respectively, but they also have played three more games than Otton in that span. In terms of the percentage of offensive snaps played in the games in which he has appeared, no other tight end comes close in that three-year span. Otton is at 94.1% and no other tight end is higher than 85.5%.
And this is where the Bucs might be able to get some of Otton’s other numbers up a bit if they can just pull back a bit in the participation category.
“That’s something I’ve actually looked at in the last couple years, is figuring out a way how you…I don’t want to say ‘save’ him, but keep him fresh throughout the year,” said Peelle. “That’s really more on me than anything. I’ve just got to be able to rotate those guys in.
“But then there are times…I think we were in nine games last year that were decided by three points, or whatever that number was. I have such trust in him. I know he’s going to do the right thing. Not that those other guys won’t but it’s just a security blanket, so to speak. You know he’s going to do it right and most of the time he’s going to win…If I could get him five or six extra plays off during the game or on the sideline just for a quick breather, over the course of a year that will add up.”
To that end, the Buccaneers also re-signed blocking tight end Ko Kieft, drafted LSU pass-catching threat Bauer Sharp in the sixth round and signed Rutgers’ Kenny Fletcher Jr. as an undrafted free agent. The Bucs’ tight end room also includes 2023 fifth-round pick Payne Durham and 2024 seventh-round pick Devin Culp. It looks like the team could look for some combination of those players to lighten the load just a bit on Otton as he starts his second contract.
CLICK HERE for more of Coach Peelle’s analysis of the Buccaneers’ tight end group.
May 9 Updates
On Saturday, the Buccaneers increased their total of undrafted rookies signed to 15, bringing in Nebraska linebacker Javin Wright. The team also waived first-year running back Michael Wiley with a non-football injury designation.
Wright (6-4, 232) played in 46 games across six seasons at Nebraska, moving into the starting lineup as a senior and leading the team with 86 tackles and nine tackles for loss. He also added 3.0 sacks, one interception and four passes defensed while playing in 12 games and starting 10. Overall, Wright made 13 starts for the Cornhuskers and finished with 180 tackles, 12.0 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and three interceptions.
Wiley first joined the Bucs last October, spending the second half of the season on the team’s practice squad before re-signing to a reserve/futures contract in January. He played his college ball at Arizona and originally entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Commanders in 2024.
CLICK HERE to read about the other 14 undrafted players the Bucs have signed.
#45 LB
May 8 Updates
Linebacker Josiah Trotter, the Buccaneers’ second-round pick in the 2026 draft, had a unique advantage upon reporting to his new team that very few rookies enjoy. Trotter, as it turns out, already has a close relationship with his position coach, Mike Caldwell.
Trotter already had NFL connections before he landed with the Buccaneers. His father, Jeremiah Trotter, was a linebacker in the league for 11 seasons, earning four Pro Bowl nods and two All-Pro honors while with the Philadelphia Eagles. And during his first four seasons in Philly, the elder Trotter was teammates with Caldwell, another linebacker who logged 11 seasons in the NFL.
Josiah was born in 2005, so he only saw the tail end of his father’s playing career, which coincidentally ended with a three-game stint in Tampa in 2007. He was not around yet when his dad and Caldwell ran together for the Eagles from 1998-2001; however, the Caldwell and Trotter families kept in touch after both left Philadelphia in 2002 (Trotter would later return for three more seasons in Philly).
“I know him very well, him and his family,” said Josiah of Caldwell. “We’ve been family friends for a long time, even sharing Thanksgivings together or coming over to watch the Super Bowl, whatever the case was, especially when they were living in New Jersey. But it’s really cool, a full-circle moment for me and my dad and my family. It’s really cool to be able to have that.”
Caldwell will be helping Trotter get acclimated to the NFL and to Todd Bowles’ defensive schemes as quickly as possible because the rookie will be competing for a starting job as the “MIKE” linebacker next to free agent acquisition Alex Anzalone. The Bucs still have incumbent starter SirVocea Dennis and also added free agent Christian Rozeboom in the offseason, but getting a potential long-term starter at a position that no longer can rely on Lavonte David was clearly a priority in the draft.
Facing this challenge, Trotter got some advice from his dad before reporting to the Buccaneers for his first onfield work.
“Be myself, have fun, go in there, work hard and just try to learn the playbook as best as you can,” said Trotter, echoing his father’s words. “Then just go out there, cut it loose and have fun.”
CLICK HERE for more of Josiah Trotter’s thoughts on the first day of work.
April 24 Updates
General Manager Jason Licht and the Buccaneers executed a draft-weekend trade for the first time in three years on Friday night, picking up an extra fifth-round pick for moving down seven spots in the third round.
The deal was with the Green Bay Packers and it occurred just before the Bucs went on the clock for pick number 77 at approximately 10:00 p.m. ET. The Buccaneers agreed to send that pick to the Packers in exchange for pick number 84 and pick number 160 in the fifth round. The Packers used pick number 77 on Missouri defensive tackle Chris McClellan.
The Buccaneers now have six more picks to spend on Friday night and Saturday. They currently own number 84, number 116 in Round Four, numbers 155 and 160 in Round Five, number 195 in Round Six and number 229 in Round Seven.
#94 DL
April 20 Updates
The Buccaneers kicked off their nine-week offseason workout program for 2026 on Monday and Calijah Kancey was in attendance. That makes sense, because more than anything, Kancey plans to be there in the upcoming season.
“My main goal is to play every game,” he said on Monday regarding what he’ll be focusing on as the work for 2026 begins. “That’s my main goal. No stats, no nothing – just play every game. Be ready to play every game.”
It’s easy to understand why this would be Kancey’s primary concern. The 19th-overall pick in the 2023 draft, he has shown that level of talent when available, but that availability has been the issue. Three years in, Kancey has yet to play a full 17-game season. He missed three games and large parts of several others due to a training camp calf injury in his rookie campaign. Another calf injury knocked him out for five contests in 2024.
Neither of those issues led to a stay on injured reserve, but that changed last year when, in just the second week of the season, Kancey tore a pectoral muscle, an injury that required surgery. Initially thought to be done for the season, Kancey worked hard to get back on the field in Week 18, helping the Bucs win a must-have contest against the Carolina Panthers. (Perhaps coincidentally, perhaps not, the Bucs won all three games in which Kancey took part.)
As a first-round pick, Kancey’s initial NFL contract was four years long, with a team option for a fifth season. He is headed into his fourth season, and the Buccaneers must decide whether or not to pick up his fifth-year option by May 1. Kancey said he hasn’t given that issue any thought.
“I’m here to play football,” he said. “I wish I had more knowledge on it, but that’s not [something] I’m worried about. I know if I go out there and do what I need to do, it will all happen. That’s the least of my worries.”
Certainly there’s good reason for the Bucs to exercise that option, with the hope that Kancey’s injury fortune will improve going forward. In his 29 games played, Kancey has recorded 11.5 sacks, 22 tackles for loss and a whopping 30 quarterback hits. In 2024, when he had 7.5 sacks in just 12 games played, Kancey was credited by NFL Next Gen Stats as creating 37 quarterback pressures. Players who can put that type of pressure on a passer from up the middle of the pocket are highly coveted in the NFL.
CLICK HERE for a breakdown of the Bucs’ 2026 offseason program.
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A rundown of key topics addressed on Wednesday following practice, including Head Coach Todd Bowles discussing his impression of Emeka Egbuka in Year Two, Antoine Winfield Jr. chatting the importance of the front seven establishing dominance and Emeka Egbuka talking Ted Hurst’s “elite catch radius”
View the best photos from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ second day of 2026 Minicamp at AdventHealth Training Center on June 17, 2026.
David Walker is hoping to be part of an impactful edge rush group for the Bucs after being forced to miss his rookie season by a training camp knee injury
The Bucs return a good amount of their offensive pieces in 2026 but did make a couple notable pickups in RB Kenny Gainwell and WR Ted Hurst III, both of whom have QB Baker Mayfield enthuastic about their potential contributions
Tampa Bay Buccaneers S Antoine Winfield Jr., WR Emeka Egbuka and OLB David Walker spoke to the media following the second day of Bucs 2026 Minicamp.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles spoke to the media following the second day of Bucs 2026 Minicamp. HC Bowles discussed player updates, the importance of communication and nailing down the scheme.
Keep informed with our daily updates: News, notes and more throughout the 2026 Offseason
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Quarterback Baker Mayfield spoke to the media following the first day of Bucs 2026 Minicamp. QB Mayfield discussed his drive to win, the Bucs’ 2026 NFL Draft class & appearing in Netflix’s ‘Quarterback’ docuseries, premiering July 14th.
The Panthers see the arrow pointing up for both young QB Bryce Young and a defense that has seen heavy free agency investments the last two years, and are aiming to defend their first division title in a decade
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles spoke to the media following the first day of Bucs 2026 Minicamp. HC Bowles discussed OLB Rueben Bain Jr.’s intelligence as a rookie, OLB David Walker’s development & OC Zac Robinson’s attention to detail.
View the best photos from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ first day of 2026 Minicamp at AdventHealth Training Center on June 16, 2026.
A recap of standouts at Tuesday’s mandatory minicamp practice at the AdventHealth Training Center
Tampa Bay Buccaneers safety Miles Killebrew has built his career on hard work and special teams. Once his former coach Danny Smith joined Tampa Bay’s staff, Killebrew knew he had to follow
Tampa Bay Buccaneers OLB Al-Quadin Muhammad and S Miles Killebrew spoke to the media following the first day of Bucs 2026 Minicamp.
Aaron Rodgers is back for another season in Pittsburgh and is now joined by his former Packers head coach, Mike McCarthy while the Steelers look for their sixth playoff berth in the last seven years
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Guard Cody Mauch sits down with team reporter Casey Phillips to discuss his experience filming the Tampa Bay Watch: 2026 Schedule Release video, his friendship with Tackle Luke Goedeke and taking part in a cake-eating contest with American Pro eater Joey Chestnut.
Fans eager to see the new-look Buccaneers up close will get their first chance in this year’s training camp at the AdventHealth Training Center, which will include eight open practices, including three open to the general public
A three-day mandatory minicamp will kick off for the Buccaneers on Tuesday, June 16, and here are several things to keep an eye on at the AdventHealth Training Center
Tampa Bay Buccaneers Quarterback Baker Mayfield was mic’d up during his Youth Football Camp at AdventHealth Training Center. See him interact with the rising stars of the sport, motivating the future of the Krewe.
Dallas has undergone a massive remake on its defensive depth chart during the 2026 offseason, hoping to pair an improved unit on that side of the ball with an elite offensive attack led by Dak Prescott, George Pickens and CeeDee Lamb
Preseason Week 1
August 14
7:00 PM ET
Week 2
September 20
1:00 PM ET
Week 3
September 27
4:05 PM ET
Week 4
October 4
1:00 PM ET
Week 6
October 18
1:00 PM ET
Week 8
November 1
1:00 PM ET
Week 12
November 30
8:15 PM ET
Week 13
December 6
1:00 PM ET
Week 15
December 20
1:00 PM ET
Week 17
January 3
Time TBD
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