The Bucs had a couple of tough decisions to make with building out the roster, especially at the wide receiver position. A player that they did cut will not be back on the practice squad, and Tampa Bay will see him twice this season in the NFC South division.
Wide receiver Trey Palmer was claimed by the New Orleans Saints off of waivers and will go to their roster after spending two seasons with the Bucs. Palmer is a Louisiana native who played three seasons at LSU before playing his final year of college football at Nebraska, so it’s a bit of a homecoming for him.
The Saints claimed WR Trey Palmer from Tampa Bay and G Xavier Truss from Denver
— Nick Underhill (@nick_underhill) August 27, 2025
Trey Palmer’s Time With The Bucs
Palmer played two seasons for the Bucs after being drafted in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft. He had a productive rookie season at the end of the depth chart at receiver playing in all 17 games and recording 39 catches for 385 yards and three touchdowns while playing 60% of the offensive snaps.
His highlight moment came in the postseason when the Bucs defeated the Eagles 32-9 in the Wildcard round when Palmer took his one catch 59 yards to the house for a touchdown.
Bucs WR Trey Palmer – Photo by: USA Today
The following year in 2024 was a different tune for Palmer in Tampa Bay. He became the team’s primary punt returner, but didn’t have an impact at the position averaging eight yards per return on 17 attempts. While he scored a touchdown in Week 4 against the Eagles, Palmer suffered a concussion that kept him out the next two weeks. His numbers overall dropped as he 12 catches for 172 yards and one score in 15 games. Palmer’s snap percentage dropped to 30 percent of the snaps in the season.
The Bucs brought in more players to the wide receiver room for the 2025 season by drafting Emeka Egbuka in round one and Tez Johnson in round seven. There was also some good competition with Garrett Greene coming in as an undrafted free agent, having an impact on special teams.
What really did Palmer in this training camp was that he wasn’t available for most of it. An injury sidelined Palmer for almost all of training camp. He missed the first two preseason games and didn’t stand out in the finale, making one catch and also having a drop.
Bucs WR Trey Palmer – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
Palmer was waived by the Bucs during roster cuts but has a new opportunity with the Saints. Although New Orleans is projected to be a bottom three team in the league, Palmer should get a good chance for more playing time and shot to be either wide reciver three or four after Chris Olave, Rashid Shaheed and Brandin Cooks.
Bucs Receiver Room
The Bucs had some juggling to do with their roster and at receiver with the team having to hold onto Chris Godwin without putting him on IR or PUP. Tampa Bay ultimately kept Mike Evans, Godwin, Emeka Egbuka, Sterlin Shepard, Tez Johnson, Kameron Johnson and Ryan Miller while putting Jalen McMillan on the PUP list.
There was a chance that Palmer could’ve ended up on Tampa Bay’s practice squad, but they have that covered with Greene, who can return and also play gunner if they need him to. Receivers Rakim Jarrett and Dennis Houston are also possibilites for the practice squad.
Bucs WR Garrett Greene – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
Rumors had come about over the possibility of trading Palmer to a receiver needy team, but no deal ever sufficed. The Bucs certainly lost an experienced player on their practice squad and it’s a good new beginning for Palmer, but Tampa Bay has enough talent on their roster and practice squad that made this move expendable when building out the team.