NFL insider Mike Florio believes Buccaneers DT Desmond Watson (right) is at risk of being released
After making history this offseason as the heaviest player on an NFL roster, Buccaneers DT Desmond Watson faced an uphill battle to make the final cut. Unfortunately, NFL insider Mike Florio sent a dire warning to Watson this morning.
NFL Insider Warns Watson About Buccaneers’ Patience
With roster cuts underway, there are several names that have grabbed headlines, including Shilo Sanders. But, the player who has kept coming up throughout the offseason has been 464-pound DT Desmond Watson.
Unfortunately, he made headlines for all the wrong reasons. He participated during the Buccaneers offseason program. But, the team placed him on the Non-Football Injury/Illness list to begin training camp.
As of August 6, Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht told reporters that Watson wouldn’t be cleared to participate in practice until he met his weight-loss goals.
As NFL insider Mike Florio wrote this morning, the Buccaneers wanted Watson to “focus entirely on his weight and conditioning.” But, he still had “some milestones” to reach before he’d be cleared for practice.
With just two days until the 53-man roster is finalized, Watson still hasn’t been cleared to practice. As a result, Florio laid out the dire situation that the Bucs face.
“The options are: (1) put him on the 53-man roster; (2) shift him to reserve NFI; or (3) release him,” wrote NFL insider Mike Florio.
Most likely plan for Bucs and Desmond Watson is to move him next week to the reserve-NFI list. At some point, Bucs can open a 21-day practice window for him and after that, can decide to activate him, keep him on NFI or release him. https://t.co/pfiAnlDFMJ
— Greg Auman (@gregauman) August 23, 2025
As Florio noted, if a player is designated for the NFI list, the team is not required to pay them. So, for Watson, the question is whether his weight can be considered an injury or illness. Florio even went as far as to bring up the tragic incident involving Minnesota Vikings OT Korey Stringer.
Buccaneers Hoping Watson Can Avoid Preventable Injury/Illness
In 2001, Stringer, who was just 27 years old at the time, died as a result of complications from exertional heatstroke. Ahead of the 20th anniversary of the tragic incident, Vikings writer Kevin Seifert called exertional heatstroke “an avoidable and easily treated condition that sports medicine largely ignored at the time.”
The Buccaneers have no practice or game action to use to judge Watson. So, even though they’ve kept him around, that does not guarantee that he will have a roster spot.
“The Bucs have been patient with Watson,” wrote NFL insider Mike Florio. “The question is whether the teams patience will run out. Whatever ‘milestones’ they gave him, he has yet to reach them. At some point, the team will say, ‘Enough is enough.'”
Fortunately for Watson, the Buccaneers clearly saw something in him during college that convinced them to sign him. During his time at the University of Florida, Watson didn’t put up eye-popping numbers, but he did show out during Florida’s pro day.
Watson dominated on the bench press, logging 36 reps, which would’ve been the highest at the combine by three reps. He also made a surprisingly agile move to strip the ball from a South Carolina running back and live every big man’s dream for a brief moment.
Ultimately, Watson will need to get in better shape to stay in the NFL. He’s survived the first round of cuts so far today. But, if NFL insider Mike Florio is correct, Watson could be in danger of being released.