The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have signed running back Kerwynn Williams, another player with experience Bruce Arians' offense. The team has also waived wide receiver Sergio Bailey, who spent all of last year on injured reserve.
Williams was most recently in Detroit, having signed with the Lions in January before being released last Thursday. He went to training camp with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2018 but did not land on an NFL roster during the 2018 regular season. Prior to that, Williams spent four seasons (2014-17) in Arizona while Arians was head coach of the Cardinals.
In that span, the 5-8, 198-pound Williams ran 218 times for 971 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. He also caught 15 passes for 126 yards and was occasionally used as a punt and kickoff returner. Williams logged career highs in both rushing yards (426) and receptions (10) in his final season with Arians' Cardinals.
Williams is the second former Arizona running back to sign with Tampa Bay this offseason, joining Andre Ellington. Ellington was drafted by the Cardinals in Arians' first year at the helm and spent four seasons and part of a fifth with the team. He ran for 1,750 yards and 10 touchdowns as a Cardinal and was also heavily used in the passing game, with 151 receptions for 1,368 yards and three more scores.
Williams, who played his college ball at Utah State, first entered the league as a sixth-round draft pick of the Indianapolis Colts in 2013. He split his rookie season between Indianapolis and San Diego, mostly on the two teams' practice squads. He went to training camp with the Chargers in 2014 but was waived in late August and eventually landed on the Cardinals' practice squad. A midseason promotion allowed him to see his first real playing time that fall. Williams became an unrestricted free agent last spring and signed with the Chiefs.
Bailey joined the Buccaneers last May as an undrafted free agent out of Eastern Michigan. He was placed on injured reserve on August 25 after sustaining an ankle injury in training camp.
