On Tuesday, the final episode of Hard Knocks is scheduled to air. It's an interesting situation, because the public already knows who made the Buccaneers' 53-man roster and practice squad. Despite already having the information, it will be interesting to take a look behind the scenes to see how it all went down. Here are a few Buccaneers to keep an eye on when Hard Knocks wraps up:
LB Riley Bullough: Bullough was the star of this year's Hard Knocks, with HBO featuring him in almost every episode. The rookie undrafted linebacker was released by the Buccaneers when the team announced their 53-man roster, only to be brought back to their practice squad the following day. Hearing the conversation as the Buccaneers inform Bullough he's been signed to the practice makes Tuesday night's episode must-see TV.
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GM Jason Licht:** In years past, teams would start training camp with a 90-man roster and then trim down to 75 players before officially announcing the 53-man roster. This year was different; teams were required to go from 90 players all the way down to 53 in one fell swoop. This is not only a unique challenge for the teams, but also for Hard Knocks. HBO will have to fit an entire camp's worth of cuts into one hour-long episode.
TE Antony Auclair: The Buccaneers made the interesting decision to keep five tight ends on their roster this year. To put things into perspective, the Buccaneers only kept five wide receivers. Auclair was talented enough to be a draft pick, according to Head Coach Dirk Koetter, but the team may have lost Auclair to another team had they tried to place him on the practice squad. It'll be interesting to see how the Buccaneers justified keeping so many tight ends and what their roles could be this season.
RB Jeremy McNichols: As mentioned above, we already know the results of the Buccaneers' roster cuts. Despite being a draft pick, McNichols was waived by the team and was not signed to their practice squad. It's somewhat rare to see a fifth-round pick not even make the practice squad. Hard Knocks will likely feature feedback from the Bucs' coaches and some internal conversations as to why they chose to go that route.
