Bucs Roster Cuts: The Inside Scoop

The 33-year-old Bridgewater is a bargain in Tampa Bay at $1.255 million and likely would have been paid more elsewhere – think Detroit and Las Vegas – had he been released. That's a far cry from the $374,000 he would have made on the Bucs practice squad. If Tampa Bay had released Bridgewater, the team would have lost him. That league intel became apparent on Sunday – even with him missing the preseason finale on Saturday night versus Buffalo.

And finally, undrafted free agent rookie Connor Bazelak had a sneaky good training camp and played really well in the preseason. Like Trask and Bridgewater, Bazelak didn't turn the ball over, which is great for a rookie quarterback who was playing behind a third-string offensive line and throwing to third-string wide receivers and tight ends. He completed 32-46 passes (69.7%) for 261 yards and a touchdown in the preseason – statistically right up there with Trask.

After completing 14-of-18 passes (77.8%) for 106 yards at Pittsburgh, Bazelak finished the preseason strong by completing 12-of-19 passes (63.2%) for 107 yards and a beautiful touch pass to Garrett Greene versus Buffalo.

After seeing Trask for five preseasons, the Bucs still don't know what they have in him, as he's never seen much action in a regular season game. What they do know is that Bridgewater has 65 games as a starter under his belt and that Bazelak has an upside worth continuing to investigate while he develops on the practice squad.

John Bullock Over Nick Jackson – And Anthony Walker Jr. – For ILB4

There is a saying in the NFL – it's not about fielding the most talented 53, it's about fielding the right 53 when it comes to roster construction. One could argue that Nick Jackson has more a bit more upside as an inside linebacker than fellow undrafted free agent John Bullock. Jackson led the Bucs with 14 tackles in the preseason and was tied for the lead with a pair of sacks, in addition to an interception and a pair of pass breakups.

The Bucs liked Bullock's production on defense as well. He finished with eight tackles, a sack and two pass breakups. But Bullock had four special teams tackles in August, including three in the preseason finale against Buffalo and he was considered to be the better special teams player. That's why he made the roster over Jackson. Any ILB4 is going to have to cover kicks and punts and be a core special teams player because that player is not going to play much – if at all – on defense. In this case, Bullock was the right inside linebacker for that role over the slightly more talented Jackson.

Tampa Bay hopes that Jackson can clear waivers and be signed to the practice squad. While he shined in the preseason, Jackson was an undrafted free agent who was signed after being a tryout player at the team's rookie mini-camp. The Bucs are hoping that his pre-draft evaluation will stick in the minds of NFL teams and that they will pass on adding Jackson to their 53-man roster. Tampa Bay likes his upside but couldn't keep both Jackson and Bullock on the 53-man roster.

As for veteran inside linebacker Anthony Walker Jr., he just turned 30 and missed all of training camp and the preseason with a lower body injury he suffered over the summer prior to camp. The team didn't fully trust his body to hold up, and more importantly, had to make room on the 53-man roster for one of the two star undrafted free agent linebackers – in the end it was Bullock.

As a reserve inside linebacker, Walker would have been counted on to contribute on special teams and the Bucs never got a chance to see him cover kicks and punts. Veteran Deion Jones can do that on special teams and will be the primary backup to both SirVocea Dennis and Lavonte David due to his experience.

Kindle Vildor Over Bryce Hall At CB

This one was surprising to some Bucs fans, only because Bryce Hall is more well known than Kindle Vildor is. This decision was actually rather easy for the team to make and wasn't a surprise to those closely watching training camp and the preseason. While Hall has ideal size to play outside cornerback in Todd Bowles' scheme at 6-foot-1, 202 pounds, he lacks versatility. And in the end, that cost him.

Vildor showed in the preseason that he can play outside cornerback at 5-foot-11, 189 pounds, but also inside at nickelback in a pinch. He's also more fluid and a tick faster than Hall is, and Vildor is a better special teams player, which is key for a reserve cornerback. Even Josh Hayes, who is in consideration for the final roster spot at cornerback with Tyr ek Funderburk, is a better special teams player than Hall is.

Remember, the final spot on the depth chart at most positions is usually decided by special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey. He has a lot of say in the Bucs' final four to five players on the 53-man roster because of the importance of covering kicks and punts and returning them.

Desmond Watson, Shilo Sanders Get Released

Two of the most intriguing undrafted free agent signings in Bucs history are no longer with the team.

The Desmond Watson experiment is officially over. Tampa Bay took a flier on the 464-pound defensive tackle out of Florida and tried to get him on a weight loss plan – not only to possibly play football, but also to help the young man get healthier in his lifestyle. When Watson returned from summer break to report to training camp, he didn't show the discipline and lose enough weight, so the team put him on the NFI (non-football illness) list because he is morbidly obese. That's not name-calling or picking on Watson, that's the truth in terms of a clinical diagnosis. Any human being well over 400 pounds is morbidly obese.

Watson never reached his target weight and never came off the NFI list and practiced with the team. It's hard to continue to try to help someone who won't show the discipline to help themselves. Watson's battle with his weight will continue outside of football. He had his chance and did not make the most of his opportunity.

As for Sanders, despite a huge following from his constant presence on social media and his days playing at Colorado for his Hall of Father, Deion Sanders, he just wasn't an NFL-caliber safety. Here are some facts that the most delusional Sanders fan won't come to grips with. First, he went undrafted, which means all 32 teams passed on him for seven rounds. The reason? He's not that good of an athlete. He has 4.6 speed for a safety and is a mediocre tackler. Sanders missed three tackles in three preseason games.

Also, the Bucs did not have a draftable grade on him and gave him a measly signing bonus of $1,572. Sanders' agent, Drew Rosenhaus, has a great relationship with Tampa Bay's front office and reached out to general manager Jason Licht about signing Sanders. The Bucs did not reach out to Sanders. Needing some depth at safety, the team took a flier on Sanders, who rarely made any plays on the ball in training camp. In fact, he may have been the only defensive back not to record an interception in camp or the preseason.

Complicating matters was the fact that Sanders got ejected in the second quarter of the preseason finale for punching a Bills tight end after the two were pushing and shoving. That was not a smart move, considering that was Sanders' last chance to finally a big play or two to show the Bucs that they should keep him on the practice squad.

At no point in time had Sanders done anything to warrant consideration for the 53-man roster. Kaevon Merriweather, Rashad Wisdom and certainly undrafted free agent J.J. Roberts, who is out for the year with a knee injury, were always ahead of Sanders on the depth chart in the minds of the Bucs' brass. It was either making the practice squad or getting cut, and Sanders' ejection from a game in which he needed to play all four quarters made releasing him a pretty decision to make.