The Buccaneers fell 23-19 to the Bills in their preseason finale.
After winning their first two preseason games, Tampa Bay’s perfect record in August came to an end against Buffalo.
It was a game which was dominated by back-ups on both sides. The Bucs’ quarterback position was shared by both Conor Bazelak and long-time Bucs veteran Kyle Trask.
Both played well, with Bazelak throwing for 107 yards and a touchdown, and Trask going for 93 yards and a score. Surprisingly, both players were cut from the final 53-man roster.
The Bucs have of course decided to keep Baker Mayfield, but also surprise story Teddy Bridgwater. He had a fantastic outing against the Pittsburgh Steelers in the second week of preseason.
In the receiving core, Tez Johnson, who could be the lightest player to ever play in the NFL, was amazing.
He was targeted eight times and caught them all for 58 yards and a touchdown, celebrating with an impressive backflip.
Johnson was retained, but that was not the case for his football antithesis, Desmond Watson.
A big loss – literally
The Bucs made headlines a few months back by welcoming the lightest and heaviest potential NFL players, Watson being the latter.
Watson did not see the field in preseason, but was seen around practice camp, as he focused on losing weight.
The Bucs made it clear that if Watson was to stay, he would have to shed some weight.
Despite losing 30lbs since his Pro Day, the Bucs waived Watson. Sadly, it seems he did not meet the conditioning and weight targets set by Tampa.
It is clear that Watson is a truly one of a kind talent, and it seems rather unfortunate that the Bucs could not give him more time. A duo of Vita Vea and Watson would send shivers down any quarterback’s spine.
Nonetheless, I wish him well in his dream of playing in the NFL.
Sanders loses his cool… and roster spot
Another story from the Bills game was safety Shilo Sanders’ outburst.
The undrafted player had done relatively well in preseason so far. However, in the Bills game, he erupted.
After Bills tight end Zach Davidson was physical with Sanders after a play, Sanders appeared to punch Davidson, getting immediately ejected.
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles described the act as “inexcusable” and Sanders was waived the very next day. The 25-year-old even hinted at a possible retirement from football altogether.
But overall, despite the result, the game was a good chance for the Bucs to work out their final roster spots.
Tampa Bay has its roster locked in ahead of the start of the season, and I cannot wait.
