The Buccaneers placed the right-of-first-refusal tender on restricted free agent Sean Tucker, meaning the Bucs have the right to match any offer sheet signed with another team, but there is no draft compensation tied to the tender.
Tucker, originally signed by Tampa Bay as a college free agent out of Syracuse, has appeared in 28 career games for the Buccaneers. He has carried the ball 65 times for 331 yards (5.1 average) and two touchdowns. Additionally, Tucker has accumulated 11 receptions for 118 yards and one receiving touchdown.
During the 2024 season, in Week Five at Atlanta, Tucker recorded kick returns of 53 yards and 33 yards — both surpassing his previous career long. The 53-yard return was the longest by a Tampa Bay player since Deven Thompkins on Dec. 11, 2022 at San Francisco. With his returns in Week Five, Tucker helped generate a team average of 36.5 yards per kickoff return — the fourth-highest mark in a game with three-or-more returns in franchise history. Tucker's breakout game came in the Week 6 victory at New Orleans in 2024. He earned NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors after amassing 192 scrimmage yards and two touchdowns, along with 136 rushing yards on 14 carries (9.7 avg.) and 56 receiving yards on three receptions. Entering the clash in 2024, Tucker had totaled 30 rushing yards and 23 receiving yards in his career. With his NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors in Week Six, Tucker became the first Tampa Bay running back since Leonard Fournette during the 2021 season (Week 12) to earn such recognition. He also joined former Tampa Bay running back Bobby Rainey as the only undrafted running backs in team history to earn player of the week recognition.
