The Buccaneers closed out their 2026 preseason with a 19-0 loss to the Jaguars, and the blank on the scoreboard told the story. Tampa Bay didn’t get a point, but the night still gave a few players one last chance to make their case before roster decisions tighten up.
The quarterback play was rough from start to finish, though the group didn’t have much help around them. Jalon Daniels finished as the team’s top passer, going 8-for-15 for 57 yards and adding nine rushing yards on four carries.
Connor Bazelak and Jake Browning combined for four completions on six attempts and just seven passing yards. Daniels and Browning were also sacked five times together, while receivers compounded the problem with drops and separation issues.
The running backs ran into the same wall. Josh Williams led the group with 21 yards on eight carries, Sean Tucker added 15 yards on five carries, and Barika Kpeenu finished with 11 yards on two carries. Tucker’s status remains worth watching as the Buccaneers sort out whether they keep three or four backs.
Eric Rivers Jr. paced the receiving corps with six catches for 24 yards, but there wasn’t much else to note in the passing game. Garrett Greene, Kameron Johnson and Dean Patterson all had drops, and nobody really made a late push for a roster or practice squad spot.
Up front, the offensive line had a night to forget. The protection and run blocking were both poor enough that it would be generous to call it anything else.
Benjamin Chukwuma and Justin Skule were fine as backup tackles, but the interior still looks thin, and Tampa Bay could be shopping around for cuts elsewhere in the league. Dan Feeney appears positioned as the top interior reserve because of his guard-center versatility, while Billy Schrauth, as a recent draft pick, is staying put.
The Bucs could also add a veteran or two to the practice squad for depth.
On the other side of the ball, several defenders made a real final impression. Jack Pyburn was the headline act, piling up four tackles, two sacks, three tackles for loss, one pass deflection and two quarterback hits.
He has, in my opinion, earned a spot on the 53-man roster. Josiah Green added three tackles, one sack, one tackle for loss and two quarterback hits, making him a strong practice squad candidate.
Yasir Holmes chipped in four tackles, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit.
Elijah Roberts and Anthony Nelson also contributed in the pass rush. Nelson finished with a sack, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit, while Roberts logged a quarterback hit and steady pressure.
At linebacker, Caden Fordham carried the group. The undrafted linebacker, in my opinion, has locked up a 53-man roster spot thanks to strong special teams work and useful backup linebacker ability. Javin Wright has flashed enough in camp and preseason to remain a practice squad possibility, while Nick Jackson and John Bullock appear to be on the outside looking in.
In the secondary, Ayden Garnes turned in another solid outing and, in my opinion, has made the roster. Damarion Williams would make it too, though he left this game with an injury that bears watching.
Miles Killebrew had four tackles and looks like the third safety going forward unless the team adds someone else. Rashad Wisdom led the defense with nine tackles and has shown the most overall ability among the players competing for the fourth safety job, if Tampa Bay even keeps four safeties.
Special teams had its bright spots, but it also came with too much damage. Riley Dixon punted 10 times, with two landing inside the 20, and one of those was returned for a touchdown. That’s not the kind of volume or result any punter wants to leave a preseason game with.
There were a few clear winners for Tampa Bay in this one, especially Fordham, Pyburn and Wisdom. But the bigger picture was ugly: a shutout loss, shaky special teams and several roster battles that still need sorting out.
In Other News...
Jalon Daniels Just Put Tampa Bay's Backup QB Battle In Focus
The Buccaneers final preseason game turned into a long night for the offense, with rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels getting the start and little help around him in a 19-0 loss to the Jaguars. Tampa Bay mustered only 87 total yards, and Daniels finished 8 of 15 for 57 yards while taking three sacks, a rough outing in a game that featured scoring from all three phases for Jacksonville.
For a team still sorting out its backup quarterback picture, the performance put the spotlight right where it needed to be. The Jaguars scored on a field goal, a touchdown pass with a two-point conversion, and a punt return touchdown with another two-point conversion, leaving the Buccaneers with plenty to sort through after a preseason finale that offered few answers and raised a few more questions. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Roster Battles Took A Back Seat To One Alarming Twist
The Buccaneers final preseason game against the Jaguars was supposed to be one last chance for fringe players to make their case, and there were still a few individual auditions worth noting. Pyburn flashed, Riley Dixon had a strong showing, and the staff got a last look at a roster group that also included players like Jalon Daniels, who had a tougher night as Tampa Bays offense sputtered in a 19-0 loss.
But the bigger story quickly moved beyond the usual roster math. Tampa Bays offensive line and receivers had trouble generating much of anything, and the game took a much more serious turn when Mo Kamara went down with a knee injury that appeared severe. For a team trying to sort out the back end of its roster, the injury introduced a far more immediate concern than who made the cut. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Suddenly Face A Jack Pyburn Decision They Didn't Expect
An undrafted rookie who has already made a favorable impression in camp, Jack Pyburn has pushed himself into the Buccaneers late-summer conversation at linebacker. His preseason performance has only added to the intrigue, turning what might have been a straightforward roster call into a more complicated evaluation for Tampa Bay as it tries to sort out the back end of the defense.
Pyburns on-field case is only part of the story now. He is also tied up in a legal battle against the NCAA as he seeks to regain another year of college eligibility, even though he has already signed a professional contract with the Buccaneers, a situation that is both unusual and controversial. The NCAA has opposed players returning to college after signing NFL deals, which leaves Tampa Bay watching a precedent-setting case while still having to decide whether Pyburn is worth a roster spot. [Read more 🡒]