The Tampa Bay Buccaneers brought their rookies in for a three-day training camp head start on Saturday, and one of those rookies also took care of some necessary contract business. Defensive lineman Logan Hall, the Buccaneers' first pick in the 2022 draft, signed his first rookie contract, which was required before he could hit the practice field for camp.
The Buccaneers also placed rookie cornerback Don Gardner and first-year guard Sadarius Hutcherson on the active/physically unable to perform (PUP) list.
Tampa Bay selected Hall, a defensive lineman out of Houston, with the first pick of the second round (number 33 overall) after trading down from their original spot at number 27 in the first round. He inked the standard four-year contract that all draftees taken after the first round get under the current CBA.
Prior to breaking from minicamp in June, the Buccaneers got deals in place for their other six 2022 draftees: second-round guard Luke Goedeke, third-round running back Rachaad White, fourth-round punter Jake Camarda, fifth-round cornerback Zyon McCollum, sixth-round tight end Ko Kieft and seventh-round outside linebacker Andre Anthony. That leaves only fourth-round tight end Cade Otton unsigned. The first practice in Tampa Bay's pre-camp ‘QB School’ is on Sunday; the first full training camp practice is next Wednesday, July 27.
Hall (6-6, 283) brings much-needed length and athleticism to the Bucs' interior defensive front. He is likely to focus on the three-technique position and providing pressure up the middle, but he was a versatile defender at Houston, lining up all over the front. He played in 45 games with 32 starts in his collegiate career and as a senior earned first-team all-conference honors. His 2021 totals included 48 tackles, 13.5 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks.
The Buccaneers signed Gardner as an undrafted free agent out of South Dakota State in May; he is dealing with an undisclosed injury. Hutcherson also signed with the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent out of South Carolina in 2021 but he spent his rookie year on injured reserve after suffering a season-ending knee injury in a preseason contest.
Players who are placed on the active/PUP list still count against the 90-man camp roster and can come off the list and return to practice at any time. The purpose of placing a player who is not yet ready to practice on the active/PUP list is to keep open the option of him being moved to the reserve/PUP list at the start of the regular season if necessary.
