Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2025 post-draft roster reset

After a stellar draft, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have reshaped their roster, hoping to build off of their 2024 season.

After kicking off the draft with dynamic Ohio State receiver Emeka Egbuka in the first round, the Bucs prioritized production, versatility and playmaking skills the rest of the way. The Bucs attacked the defensive side of the ball with cornerbacks Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish, who offer the ability to play either corner spots. They then added to the defensive line with David Walker and Elijah Roberts, who can get to the quarterback from a variety of alignments. Tez Johnson gives the Bucs an electrifying return man, and the team added 14 undrafted free agents, including Shilo Sanders and Desmond Watson.

Combined with the moves the Bucs made in free agency, such as re-signing Lavonte David, Ben Bredeson and Chris Godwin in addition to the outside signings of pass rusher Haason Reddick and depth pieces in Anthony Walker and Kindle Vildor, the Buccaneers roster has an excellent blend of youth and experience as they head into offseason workouts and training camp. General manager Jason Licht is sure to tinker with the roster a bit more before the start of the season, but the Bucs are locked, loaded and ready for a competitive 2025 season.

Without further ado, here's our 2025 roster reset below:

2025 Buccaneers roster reset

* denotes rookie
** denotes UDFA signing

Quarterback: 4

Baker Mayfield
Kyle Trask
Michael Pratt
Connor Bazelak**

The Bucs return all three quarterbacks from last year's team after re-signing Kyle Trask to a one-year deal in free agency. Baker Mayfield has elevated his game in each of the past two seasons, notching career-bests in several categories in 2024, including touchdowns. Trask has impressed and has the full confidence of the staff if he is called to action. The team is also high on Pratt's future and hopes he will challenge Trask for the number two job. The Bucs added Connor Bazelak after the draft, but he figures to be more of just a camp arm than an actual threat to beat out Trask or Pratt for a roster spot.

Running Back: 5

Bucky Irving
Rachaad White
Sean Tucker
D.J. Williams
Josh Williams**

The Bucs struck gold last year in the draft with Bucky Irving. The fourth-round pick lit up the stat sheet with his elusive tackle-breaking runs. Rachaad White falls into a complementary role as a third-down back who is probably the best pass protector in the league and certainly a top-tier receiving back. Sean Tucker made the most of his opportunities, is set for a bigger role and brings value as a returner. The team liked what D.J. Williams did behind the scenes, but added competition with Josh Williams after the draft concluded.

Wide Receiver: 13

Mike Evans
Chris Godwin
Emeka Egbuka*
Jalen McMillan
Sterling Shepard
Tez Johnson*
Trey Palmer
Rakim Jarrett
Ryan Miller
Kam Johnson
Dennis Houston
Will Sheppard**
Garrett Greene**

Retaining Chris Godwin was a huge win for the Bucs, who now return their trio of talented wideouts. Led by Mike Evans, the Bucs return one of the league's best passing attacks. Jalen McMillan is expected to take a bigger step in year two after ending his rookie season with eight touchdowns. Getting Sterling Shepard back is great for continuity and he made some big plays last year. The Bucs stunned many when they selected Emeka Egbuka in the first round of the draft. He should be an immediate contributor, even challenging Jalen McMillan for the No. 3 spot. To cap off their draft, the Bucs took the small but versatile Tez Johnson, who figures to compete immediately for the returner job. The Bucs further added to the room with Will Sheppard and Garrett Greene after the draft, and the battle for the final one to two spots will be intense with some guys on the outside looking in.

Tight End: 6

Cade Otton
Payne Durham
Ko Kieft
Devin Culp
Tanner Taula
Anthony Landphere**

Last season, Cade Otton proved he could do it all, and he really stepped up when Godwin and Evans were out. He is in line for a possible contract extension as he enters the last year of his deal. Payen Durham showed up with some big grabs and his first career touchdown, while Devin Culp impressed late down the stretch and could be set for a bigger role next season. Ko Kieft is in the last year of his deal and has provided excellent value as a special teamer and a blocker, while Tanner Taula has spent the last two seasons on the practice squad.

Offensive Line: 16

Tristan Wirfs
Ben Bredeson
Graham Barton
Cody Mauch
Luke Goedeke
Charlie Heck (OT)
Elijah Klein (IOL)
Sua Opeta (OG)
Lorenz Metz (OT)
Silas Dzansi (OT)
Luke Haggard (OT)
Raiqwon O'Neal (OL)
Garrett Greenfield (OT)
Jake Majors (C) **
Ben Scott (C)**
Ben Chukwuma (OT)**

With Ben Bredeson back in the fold, the starting five that led to the huge turnaround in the run game are locked in place. The Bucs will need to address the depth at the position group. They replaced Justin Skule with Charlie Heck and are high on Elijah Klein and his ability to play along the interior line. Bredeson also brings flexibility to the interior with NFL experience at center. Sua Opeta was re-signed before the draft and provides another layer of depth to the room at guard once he's fully recovered from a preseason ACL tear. The next group of players spent the year on the practice squad — Garrett Greenfield joined late in the season, but he'll be in a dog fight with undrafted newcomers Jake Majors, Ben Chukwuma and Ben Scott for the one to two spots.

Defensive Line: 10

Vita Vea
Calijah Kancey
Logan Hall
Greg Gaines
Elijah Roberts*
C.J. Brewer
Mike Greene
Adam Gotsis
Eric Banks
Desmond Watson**

The Bucs return their defensive line depth from last season, apart from veteran William Gholston, who is likely headed to retirement after 12 seasons with the team. Vita Vea is a monster and Calijah Kancey is expected to take another leap, one that hopefully sees him healthy for a full season. Logan Hall had a breakout year and is expected to carry that in the final year of his deal. Bucs general manager Jason Licht called defensive tackle one of the deepest position groups in the draft, and made good on that by selecting Elijah Roberts in the fifth round. The versatile lineman figures to slot in behind Gaines in the rotation and is a gifted pass rusher with 131 pressures over his final two seasons in college. C.J. Brewer, Mike Greene and others will battle it for the final spot on the roster. Undrafted free agent signing Desmond Watson provides some intrigue as a massive human, but he needs to get into better football shape before he's a serious threat to make the roster.

Outside Linebacker: 7

Haason Reddick
Yaya Diaby
Chris Braswell
Anthony Nelson
David Walker*
Markees Watts
Jose Ramirez

Haason Reddick is the short-term answer that hopefully puts the outside linebacker room over the edge. That being said, relying on a 30-year-old edge rusher coming off of his least productive season in the league, no matter the reason, is putting too many eggs in one basket. Diaby was a league leader in several key pass rush statistics but struggled to rack up sacks without a true threat across from him. The hope is Reddick will help unleash Diaby this season. The Bucs have said all the right things about Braswell going into Year 2, but he is still an unknown as far as what they are getting this season. Nelson brings steadiness and special-teams prowess, and the team thinks Ramirez and Watts still have upside to develop. Those moves didn't stop the Bucs from addressing the position in the draft, though. In the fourth round, the Bucs took the undersized, but explosive, Walker, who figures to be an immediate contributor as a rotational player with the chance to grow into more.

Inside Linebacker: 7

Lavonte David
SirVocea Dennis
Anthony Walker
Deion Jones
Antonio Grier Jr
Deion Jennings
John Bullock**

David returns, Dennis' shoulder has been surgically healed, and Walker is an upgrade over the options in 2024, but talent is still needed at this position. Life after David is coming, and Dennis hasn't been the epitome of healthy. However, this was not a strong draft class at linebacker, and the three days came and went without a selection at the position. The Bucs did add an undrafted free agent in Bullock, and there are still a few names left on the free agent market, including J.J. Russell. However, the Bucs look poised to go into the season with David, Dennis, and Walker as their top three linebackers, with a competition to figure out the fourth.

Cornerback: 9

Zyon McCollum
Jamel Dean
Benjamin Morrison*
Jacob Parrish*
Bryce Hall
Kindle Vildor
Josh Hayes
Tyreek Funderburk
Roman Parodie**

The Bucs added extra veteran depth to this room with Kindle Vildor and re-signed Bryce Hall while holding onto Jamel Dean, an unpopular move with some fans. However, creating an unnecessary hole on the roster never made sense. The Bucs addressed the position in the draft with consecutive selections, taking Benjmain Morrison in the second round and Jacob Parrish in the third. Parrish figures to compete with Christian Izien for the starting nickel job right away, while Morrison works his way back from corrective surgery on his hip. Although if Morrison is healthy, he could challenge Dean for the starting outside job in camp, but he will surely see the field this season at some point if he doesn't come away as the winner.

Safety: 7

Antoine Winfield Jr
Tykee Smith
Christian Izien (S/ NCB)
Kaevon Merriweather
Rashad Wisdom
Marcus Banks
J.J. Roberts**
Shilo Sanders**

The shift of Tykee Smith to safety is a smart move that gets a playmaker on the field more and provides added versatility to the defense. Antoine Winfield Jr. will be itching to bounce back after an injury-marred season, while Kaevon Merriweather is a welcome re-signing who stepped up after he re-joined the team. Izien provides insurance at safety and nickel, and the team likes the behind-the-scenes development of Wisdom and Banks. At the conclusion of the draft, the Bucs signed two safeties in undrafted free agency. The big name is Shilo Sanders, for obvious reasons, but the one to watch out for is J.J. Roberts. Roberts is like a missile triggering down and has excellent versatility to help out in several spots in the defensive backfield and on special teams.

Special Teams: 5

K Chase McLaughlin
K Ryan Coe**
P Riley Dixon
P Jake Julien
LS Evan Deckers

After an atrocious 2024 season, the Bucs set out to fix their punter situation and think they did so by adding CFL All-Star Jake Julien and former Bronco Riley Dixon in free agency. As far as punter competitions go, this will be one to watch come camp. After the draft, the Bucs signed some competition for Chase McLaughlin by signing Ryan Coe to a rookie deal.