Tristan Wirfs was named to his fifth consecutive Pro Bowl on Tuesday but he won't be suiting up for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday against the Miami Dolphins. A toe injury will keep him on the sideline for a critical Week 17 matchup, and undrafted rookie Benjamin Chukwuma will start in his place, protecting Baker Mayfield's blind side. It will be the second career start for Chukwuma, who was impressive in his debut against the New Orleans Saints in Week 14.
The Buccaneers ruled out Wirfs and outside linebacker Anthony Nelson (knee) on Friday but otherwise didn't have any question marks headed into the weekend. With Nelson out, Jason Pierre-Paul will likely see more playing time after being elevated from the practice squad for the second week in a row. The Buccaneers need a win on Sunday to ensure that they will be playing for first place in the NFC South in Week 18 against Carolina.
Veteran linebacker Anthony Walker, who played for the Dolphins in 2024, will be active for the first time as a Buccaneer after re-signing with the team on December 15. Walker originally signed with the Buccaneers during the 2025 offseason but spent training camp in the reserve/NFI list and was released in the roster cutdown to 53 in late August. He was on the Indianapolis Colts' practice squad for the balance of the season before the Buccaneers brought him back. Walker has played in 99 NFL regular-season games with 83 starts, including 14 games and eight starts last season for Miami.
The Buccaneers and Dolphins submitted their list of inactives at 11:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, 90 minutes before the scheduled kickoff of their Week 17 meeting at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. The Buccaneers elevated Pierre-Paul from their practice squad for the game and thus had to name six inactives to get down to the game-day limit of 48. The Dolphins had 52 players on their active roster after a series of moves on Saturday and elevated linebacker Derrick McLendon and offensive lineman Josh Priebe from the practice squad to get to 54. That meant they also had to name six players inactive before the game.
The Dolphins will be without starting safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who is dealing with a calf injury. Miami also had listed cornerback Isaiah Johnson, defensive lineman Benito Jones and wide receiver Dee Eskridge as either out our doubtful on their Friday injury report, but all three were subsequently placed on injured reserve.
BUCCANEERS INACTIVES
- QB Connor Bazelak (3rd QB)
- LB John Bullock
- OLB Anthony Nelson
- WR Sterling Shepard
- T Tristan Wirfs
- S Rashad Wisdom
Nelson and Wirfs are out due to injury.
DOLPHINS INACTIVES
- C Aaron Brewer
- WR Nick Ikhine-Westbrook
- S Minkah Fitzpatrick
- T Kendall Lamm
- DE Derrick McLendon
- QB Tua Tagovailoa (3rd QB)
Fitzpatrick is out due to injury.
