The Tampa Bay Buccaneers surpassed expectations in their first season without Tom Brady. Baker Mayfield was viewed as a patch at the QB position when he signed with the team more than a year ago. He has since led the Buccaneers to an NFC South title and won a playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles. Tampa Bay rewarded him for his efforts with a reasonable contract extension that will keep him with the Buccaneers for three more seasons.

Tampa Bay has made some nice offseason additions via free agency and the 2024 NFL Draft. However, that leaves them with some tough choices to make.

Here are three Buccaneers cut candidates who may not make the final 53-man roster.

John Wolford will need to win a QB battle in training camp to stay in Tampa Bay

Wolford has had his moments in the NFL, but he hasn't made much of an impression with the Buccaneers. His best moments came with the Los Angeles Rams, where he stepped in to relieve both Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford numerous times over three seasons.

The Rams did not choose to re-sign Wolford after the 2022 season and he signed a one-year deal with the Buccaneers. He was released on August 29th, 2023 but was later added to the practice squad. Wolford was eventually promoted to the active roster on Halloween.

Wolford did not play in 2023 but apparently did enough to earn himself another contract with Tampa Bay. However, that does not guarantee Wolford a roster spot in 2024.

He will have to compete with Kyle Trask and Zack Annexstad for backup QB duties. That job will likely be won by Trask, which would leave Wolford and Annexstad in a competition for QB3.

It is unfortunate for Wolford, but it is more likely that the Buccaneers go with the rookie Annexstad instead of a veteran like him. Things may be different if Tampa Bay had a young signal caller they wanted coached up, but that does not apply to Baker Mayfield.

Does the selection of Bucky Irving spell the end for Sean Tucker?

Sean Tucker's roster spot was shaky to begin the offseason. It got even worse when the Buccaneers drafted Bucky Irving in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

Tucker is currently viewed as the fourth string running back behind Irving, Rachaad White, and Chase Edmonds. Tucker was added to the team last offseason as an undrafted free agent. He has only logged 15 carries for 23 yards during his short time with the team. All of these carries came in the first three weeks of the 2023 season.

Meanwhile, Bucky Irving is a fascinating young prospect. He was a second-team All-PAC-12 selection in 2023 and led the Oregon Ducks with 1,180 rushing yards. Irving boasts incredible contact balance and leg drive which he pairs with his shiftiness and speed.

This makes him nearly impossible to bring down with one defender and has resulted in Irving breaking a ton of tackles. In fact, PFF notes that he was probably the best tackle breaker in the 2024 draft class. He ranked second among running backs in missed tackles forced per attempt since 2022 at 0.40. First place was Tyrone Tracy Jr. at 0.41. However, Irving's 351 rushing attempts is far greater than Tracy Jr.'s 134 attempts. If the Buccaneers find the right role for Bucky Irving, he could become an absolute monster on their offense.

No offense to Sean Tucker, but these two players are night and day different. Tucker will have to make some drastic changes to really wow the Bucs coaching staff in training camp if he wants to keep his job.

Randy Gregory is a question mark to make the final roster

Gregory signed a one-year deal with the Buccaneers with the idea that he would shore up their edge rusher depth. However, it now feels like a projection to say that he'll make the final roster.

The main problem for Gregory has been availability. He was an unexcused absence at the beginning of training camp, something that obviously vexxed Tampa Bay's coaching staff.

“It's disappointing when anyone's not here but we'll deal with it,” Bowles said after one of the team's first practices. “We'll deal with it. Right now, I'm only gonna coach the guys that's here.”

Gregory is long in the tooth and much of his best football is behind him. He flashed potential in 2018 with the Cowboys, logging 25 tackles and six sacks. He eventually repeated that performance in 2021, but he hasn't been much of a difference maker ever since.

It would be risky for the Buccaneers to count on Randy Gregory in 2024.