Buccaneers make another surprising cut that shows just how cruel the NFL can be
The Buccaneers released their 53 man roster on Sunday, but it doesn’t automatically mean every player is safe and a couple of young players recently found that out in the most unfortunate of ways.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers released their initial 53-man roster on Sunday night, but along with any other NFL team, it doesn’t always mean every player is guaranteed to keep their spot.
Unfortunately, UDFA rookie linebacker Caden Fordham found that out in an unfortunate manner when the Bucs cut him not long after he actually spoke to the media after Tuesday’s practice.
“I couldn’t be more blessed,” Fordham told reporters when asked how it felt to make the 53. “It’s been a dream of mine since I was young. Just putting in the work every day, coming off of injuries, just knowing at the end of the day, the good Lord [has] me and He [has] a plan for me. Being able to see it come into action now, I’m very blessed and excited for the opportunity.”
Fordham was the fifth linebacker on the depth chart, and he had a strong offseason, especially during the preseason. That made the cut rather surprising, especially when considering Christian Rozeboom’s foot injury/SirVocea Dennis’ groin injury and the fact that the Buccaneers have seven defensive linemen currently on the 53-man roster.
The Buccaneers signed Chiefs defensive back Kevin Knowles and that move is what bumped Fordham off the roster. The hope is they can get him on the practice squad once he passes through waivers. Either way, it’s a tough development for the rookie.
Fordham was great for Tampa Bay, and he figured to play some kind of role even if he might have been inactive on game day. He’s a young, talented linebacker who is very instinctive and produced at a high level in college. It’s surprising and unfortunate to see Fordham be one of the first guys let go after the initial 53-man roster was finalized.
Rashad Wisdom’s release adds another layer of surprise
Up next came Rashad Wisdom on Wednesday. Granted, Wisdom was on the practice squad, but the fact that the Buccaneers released him after a couple of years of being with the team made it another surprise. Tampa Bay has always been about developing their in-house guys after acquiring them, and they’ve been doing just that with Wisdom. Unfortunately, things just didn’t pan out this offseason. The Buccaneers decided to go another direction, and it really demonstrates how cruel the NFL can be overall.
The Buccaneers replaced Wisdom with UDFA rookie Silas Waters out of Miami-Ohio. He was previously with the Baltimore Ravens during the preseason.
What does this mean for the Buccaneers’ safety and linebacker depth?
The Buccaneers only carried three safeties on the 53-man roster, so the thought was that they would rotate Wisdom, Ifeatu Melifonwu, and J.J. Roberts via game day elevations to avoid having to sign one of them to the active roster. That’s nine games’ worth of rotation the Buccaneers could have done if needed. Now they’ll likely do that with Walters, instead.
When it comes to linebackers, the Buccaneers only have two truly healthy players in Alex Anzalone and Josiah Trotter, which adds to the surprise and misfortune surrounding Fordham’s situation.
Regardless, the NFL is a cruel business, and unfortunately these two guys found that out this week after the 53-man roster and practice squad were initially finalized.
