The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have pared their roster down to the NFL’s 53-man limit ahead of the 2026 regular season, wrapping up their final cuts on Sunday and setting the stage for practice squad work once waivers clear.
The biggest names on the move were quarterback Jake Browning and safety Ifeatu Melifonwu, both of whom were released as Tampa Bay finalized its roster. The team also shifted two players to injured reserve with designations to return: cornerback Josh Hayes and wide receiver David Sills V.
A long list of players was waived as part of the final cutdown, including quarterback Connor Bazelak, outside linebacker Chris Braswell Jr., linebacker John Bullock, tight ends Devin Culp and Kenny Fletcher Jr., tackle Marshall Foerner, defensive lineman Josiah Green, wide receivers Garrett Greene, Matthew Henry, Jha’Quan Jackson, and Eric Rivers Jr., outside linebacker Yasir Holmes, guard Nash Hutmacher, linebacker Nick Jackson, defensive linemen Jayson Jones and Travis Shaw, guard Elijah Klein, running back Barika Kpeenu, guard Henry Lutovsky, safety Robert McDaniel, cornerback Roman Parodie, wide receiver Dean Patterson IV, kicker B.T. Potter, outside linebacker Jack Pyburn, safety J.J. Roberts, tackle Paul Rubelt, guard Ben Scott, running back Josh Williams, safety Rashad Wisdom, and linebacker Javin Wright.
Tampa Bay also waived three players with injuries: outside linebacker Mohamed Kamara, cornerback Pepe Williams, and cornerback Xavier Williams.
The final set of contract terminations included Browning, long snapper Scott Daly, and Melifonwu.
Once those players clear waivers, the Bucs can start building out their practice squad.
In Other News...
Bucs Settle Quarterback Depth Question With Late Veteran Addition
The Buccaneers added another layer to their quarterback room late in the week, signing veteran Easton Stick to the practice squad as a depth move behind Baker Mayfield and Jalon Daniels. Stick, a North Dakota State product and former fifth-round pick, brings NFL experience from stints with the Chargers and Falcons, and he arrives with a familiar face in the building thanks to his prior working relationship with offensive coordinator Zac Robinson.
It is the kind of quiet roster move teams make when they want to settle a question before it becomes a larger one, especially at quarterback. Tampa Bay had been exploring its options after Jake Browning declined a practice squad offer, and Stick now gives the Bucs an experienced fallback as they continue sorting out the backup picture behind their top two passers. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Just Created A Strange New Waiting Game With Jack Pyburn
The Buccaneers made one of the more curious moves of their roster-cutdown period by waiving undrafted rookie linebacker Jack Pyburn before the final deadline. Pyburn had stood out in the preseason, finishing with the most sacks on the team, which made his status worth watching as Tampa Bay worked through the last wave of decisions. Instead, his future now shifts to the waiver process, where every team gets a look before the next chapter begins.
Pyburns next step is unusual enough to make this more than a standard roster note. Because of an ongoing legal challenge to NCAA eligibility rules for players with professional experience, there is at least a path for him to potentially return to college football at LSU. LSU and other players are involved in that litigation, and preliminary injunction hearings are scheduled, leaving Pyburn in a waiting game that stretches beyond the NFL waiver wire and into a broader eligibility fight. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Quarterback Decision Put Jake Browning Right Back In Focus
The Buccaneers roster churn ahead of the 53-man deadline pushed Jake Browning back into the spotlight for an entirely different reason than the one that brought him to Tampa Bay in March. Signed to a one-year deal and expected to back up Baker Mayfield, Browning became one of the notable names in the teams late-summer cuts when Tampa Bay released him on Aug. 30.
Stephanie Niles Browning later shared photos on social media after the move, underscoring how quickly a presumed quarterback depth piece can go from established part of the plan to a sudden question mark. For the Buccaneers, the decision was part of the final trim-down toward the regular season, but for Browning it left his next step hanging in the balance. [Read more 🡒]