John Bullock

Career StatsD

Year	Team	GP	Tkl	Sacks	INT
Career		15	10	—	—
2025		15	10	0.0	0

Updated Mar 22, 2026

Current Contract

Contract Value Index (CVI)

John Bullock's value math nets a D+ Contract Value Index — placing the deal in a clear band relative to the league median at linebacker. At $994K AAV, this is a depth-piece salary for a 25-year-old in his rookie season, and the contract itself reflects appropriate positioning for an undrafted free agent; the problem isn't the dollars but what those dollars bought on the field. Bullock's 2025 season production of 10 tackles across 15 games confirms the D performance grade — he logged real snaps alongside established starters, which validates that Tampa's organization saw enough in him to rotate him into a meaningful role, but the tape and counting stats tell a developmental story, not an impact one. At the linebacker market, a sub-$1M AAV deal is standard for depth contributors, so the contract is fairly priced for his production tier; the disconnect emerges when you layer in the emotional cost of his release. The media framing makes clear that Tampa made a calculated choice — cutting a feel-good UDFA story to preserve cap and roster space for established pass-rush experience represented a tough but defensible football decision, yet one that has generated deeply negative public sentiment because Bullock had genuinely earned his opportunity through the organization's own development pipeline. His claim by Indianapolis provides a small redemptive pathway, but for Tampa's front office, this D+ CVI grade reflects a reality that even fair-market pricing cannot fully insulate a rookie depth piece from the organization-optics hit of releasing someone it had cultivated into a contributor.

Contracts in the Same Value Band

Other same-position deals the Contract Value Index also places in the D band — a quick read on where John's contract sits relative to comparable money.

Performance Analysis

John Bullock earns a D grade as a linebacker buried on Tampa Bay's depth chart. The Buccaneers have invested heavily in their linebacker corps, and Bullock hasn't found a way to carve out meaningful snaps beyond special teams. His athleticism profiles well for the modern NFL, but translating practice performance to game-day production remains the hurdle. Tampa's defensive scheme demands versatility from its linebackers, and Bullock needs to show he can handle coverage responsibilities as well as run-stopping duties. He's in a prove-it phase where every preseason snap matters.

How John Compares at the Position

John Bullock ranks 316th of 338 graded linebackers by performance. That slots John between Cameron Goode (D) just ahead and Austin Keys (D) just behind.

Fan Sentiment

John Bullock's release from Tampa Bay has landed about as badly as any roster cut can, generating deeply negative public sentiment built on the collapse of a genuine feel-good story. The narrative driving this reaction is straightforward: Bullock wasn't just a practice squad name — he was an undrafted free agent from Nebraska who earned a spot on the 53-man roster and logged real playing time alongside Lavonte David, making his release feel like the organization discarding something it had actually cultivated. His 2025 season production of 10 tackles across 15 games reflects a depth contributor rather than a difference-maker, and his D performance grade confirms there's a real football argument for the move, but that logic is doing almost nothing to soften the public backlash. The framing in media coverage has been pointed and personal — multiple outlets leaned hard into the underdog arc before his release, which means the audience that celebrated his roster achievement is the same one now feeling burned by it, and the explicit connection to clearing space for Jason Pierre-Paul's pass-rush experience has given fans a clear villain in the transaction. The Colts claiming him off waivers provides a small redemptive beat in the story, but it doesn't rehabilitate Tampa's standing with the fans who invested in Bullock's journey — and with the Buccaneers sitting at 8-9 and the sentiment needle steady at F, this is exactly the kind of roster optics that festers during an offseason stretch with 126 days until the regular season.