The Buccaneers announced Tuesday that they have signed inside linebacker Noah Dawkins, who has spent the 2019 offseason and preseason with the Cincinnati Bengals. He was a member of Cincinnati's practice squad through the first five weeks of the regular season before being signed by Tampa Bay.
Dawkins, who will wear No. 52 for the Buccaneers, was signed as an undrafted free agent in May of 2019 after participating in rookie minicamp for the Bengals as a tryout player. The South Carolina native played collegiately at the Citadel, recording 166 tackles (31.5 for loss), 14.0 sacks with two forced fumbles and two interceptions in his four-year career.
In a corresponding move, the Bucs released veteran inside linebacker/safety Deone Bucannon. The former first-round pick out of Washington State had played primarily on special teams in the 2019 regular season for the Bucs. He took 43% of the team's special teams snaps against the Saints in New Orleans this past Sunday. After being signed as a free agent this past offseason, Bucannon played a large role in the preseason, filling in for inside linebacker Lavonte David while he rehabbed a knee injury.
Prior to arriving in Tampa, Bucannon played five seasons for the Arizona Cardinals, four of which were under Bruce Arians, after the team drafted him 27th overall in the 2014 NFL Draft.
The Buccaneers also shuffled around their practice squad on Wednesday, signing running back Darius Jackson and quarterback Chad Kanoff. Jackson entered the league as a sixth-round pick in 2016 for the Dallas Cowboys out of Eastern Michigan. The Sparta, Illinois native has played in four career games and was on the practice squads of both the Cowboys and Indianapolis Colts earlier this season. Kanoff was a member of the Detroit Lions' practice squad this season after spending time with the Arizona Cardinals in 2018. The former Princeton quarterback entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2018 with Arizona.
In corresponding moves, the Bucs have released former Mississippi State quarterback Nick Fitzgerald and running back Tony Brooks-James.
The Bucs' roster remains at 53 and the practice squad remains at 10.
