TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers announced the signing of 18 undrafted free agents prior to the rookie minicamp over the weekend.
One of those players has a famous last name.
The last time Kade Warner was in Tampa, he was 10 years old, sitting inside Raymond James Stadium, watching his father Kurt Warner quarterback the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl 43. His dad’s team lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers on a play known as the “Tampa Toe-Tap.”
”It was the loudest cannons I heard firing,” Warner said. “I didn't really want to hear them. It's cool to be back, a cool full circle moment.”
Warner is an undrafted free-agent wide receiver out of Kansas State.
Now 14 years later, he's on the practice field for Bucs’ rookie minicamp across the street from that same stadium.
“I was a walk-on; nobody wanted me, didn’t have any offers,” Warner said. “Went to Nebraska. Went to Kansas State. Lots of twists and turns. To be here and to put on this jersey, and to go out there and play football, it’s literally a dream come true for me.”
The underdog story for the younger Warner is a similar path to that of his father — a story that was made into a movie.
“I take everything personally,” Warner said. “From that undrafted, walk-on mentality, every little thing. If the coaches pick someone before me, I write that down. If someone gets more reps than me in this walk-through, I write that down. I take everything personally. I’m competitive like that and I am the smartest receiver in this draft class.”
Warner finished his senior season at K-State with a career-high 46 catches for 456 yards and a team-leading five receiving touchdowns.
“Whose caught more balls than him?” Bucs offensive coordinator Dave Canales said. “His dad is a former quarterback. We’re excited to get him in here and let him compete with the rest of the group.”
“He’s a solid football player,” Bucs head coach Todd Bowles said. “He can catch the ball; he can play special teams. He can do a lot of things that we need and we’re always looking for special teams players.”
