One day after officially announcing the signing of veteran tight end Kyle Rudolph, the Bucs announced that they have waived tight end Codey McElroy.

Tampa Bay waived the 29-year-old McElroy with an injury designation. As a result, he’ll land on the team’s injured reserve list if he goes unclaimed by the league’s 31 other teams.

McElroy initially signed with the Bucs’ practice squad in October of 2019. Later that season, he made his NFL debut in a home loss to the Texans. He caught his lone target in that game for a 30-yard gain. Since then, he has bounced between waivers and Tampa Bay’s practice squad. Back in January, he signed a reserve/future contract with the Bucs.

McElroy’s NFL journey will always be an interesting one. He was originally drafted in the 19th round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Atlanta Braves. But after a couple of years in their minor league system, he went back to college. He was a walk-on for both the men’s basketball and football teams at Oklahoma State University-Stillwater. Prior to that, he hadn’t played football since middle school. Then, in 2018, McElroy signed with the Rams after a tryout. He was soon waived before experiencing the same story the next year with Dallas. But later that year, his journey continued with the Bucs.

Now, without McElroy in the mix, the Bucs have six tight ends on their roster. Rudolph, the latest addition to the team, is a lock to make the final 53. Cameron Brate and 2022 fourth-round pick Cade Otton will occupy two more tight end spots. That leaves sixth-round pick Ko Kieft and undrafted rookies Ben Beise and JJ Howland to compete for a potential fourth tight end/special teams role. Thanks to his blocking ability, Kieft is the current frontrunner if the Bucs choose to carry four players at the position. Otherwise, he is a prime practice squad candidate.