The Tampa Bay Buccaneers waived undrafted rookie linebacker/edge rusher Jack Pyburn on Sunday, a team source confirmed to The Athletic. Now the attention is on Pyburn’s next move, with an unprecedented return to college football a possibility.
The Buccaneers signed Pyburn in May out of LSU. He made a case to make Tampa Bay’s 53-man roster with a league-leading four sacks in three preseason games. But the team waived him ahead of Sunday’s final roster cut deadline.
Pyburn, 22, will now have to go through the waiver wire, where a team can claim him and inherit his current contract. If Pyburn clears waivers, he will become a free agent and can sign with any team.
Yet, the most intriguing wrinkle in Pyburn’s situation is a potential return to college football, where his former school, LSU, has been at the center of the debate over the eligibility status of players with professional experience.
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Pyburn’s agents first advised him of the possibility of returning to college football a few months ago as the NCAA simplified its eligibility rules, essentially giving every athlete five years to play five seasons. The change did not, however, apply to fourth-year seniors (like Pyburn) who had just completed their eligibility. That led to a wave of lawsuits from recruits in the 2022 high school class seeking an extra year.
Pyburn was part of a lawsuit filed by more than 30 other athletes in Louisiana that won a temporary restraining order allowing them to play in college this academic year. To regain their college eligibility, Pyburn and other players who spent time in NFL camps or on preseason rosters would need to terminate their pro contracts and repay any pro earnings. Pyburn’s deal with the Bucs guaranteed him $115,000, including a $15,000 signing bonus.
After the Buccaneers’ second preseason game a week ago, Pyburn said going back to college “was a possibility as a backup option,” but his focus was sticking with Tampa Bay. In court papers filed in Louisiana, Pyburn’s attorneys wrote that if an NFL team releases him by Sept. 1, he “plans to return to LSU.” Preliminary injunction hearings, the next step in the legal process after a temporary restraining order, are scheduled for Monday and Thursday.
Pyburn started 11 games for LSU last year, recording 52 tackles, two sacks and eight quarterback hurries. Although the Tigers have a new head coach, Lane Kiffin, defensive coordinator Blake Baker is a holdover from the previous staff. LSU could also use another edge rusher.
LSU has also pursued several other players who have been on preseason rosters or appeared in NFL camps, including former Ole Miss tight end Dae’Quan Wright (Cleveland Browns) and defensive tackle Zxavian Harris (New Orleans Saints).
Last week, SEC presidents approved stiff penalties to deter schools from signing players with pro experience, with one notable school — LSU — sitting out.