Kelly Thomas and Ken Kaplan were huge offensive tackles with great upper body strength. Thomas, who McKay said would make the team unless he were to drop dead, was believed to potentially be comparable to his USC teammates Bruce Matthews and Don Mosebar, but had been overlooked due to having been an offensive lineman for only three years. Tony Chickillo was a defensive tackle who had fought back from a crushed pelvis to become a starter for the University of Miami. Wide receiver Rheugene Branton had been a star player at Tampa's C. Leon King High School. Hasson Arbubakrr was compared to a smaller version of Booker Reese. Weldon Ledbetter, Marcus Dupree's blocking back at Oklahoma, was considered to have slim chances against incumbent James Wilder Sr.. Mark Witte was considered to have the same problem, behind Jimmie Giles and Jim Obradovich on the depth chart. Culverhouse led a campaign, approved unanimously by league owners, to retain the expanded 49-player roster for the 1983 season. McKay criticized the players who were holding out for more money, saying that they lack understanding of how new contracts are negotiated. He had especially hard words for Jimmie Giles, who was being fined $1,000 for each day of camp missed, and who he said was in danger of falling behind the greatly improved Jerry Bell. Uncertainty over Giles' situation forced the team to spend a conditional draft pick on veteran Baltimore Colts tight end Reese McCall. Camp attendance was more important than usual, as the team added the most complicated offensive system that it had yet used. The loss of Williams was expected to be a factor in the team's attitude going into the season, as he was considered by teammates to be an exceptional athlete who could do things that few others could. The perception that management had not done everything possible to keep him was expected to create some resentment among the players. Williams pointed out that the debacle made him, and some of the team's other players, wonder whether management was committed to building a good team. The loss of Williams created resentment not only among the team, but among fans in Tampa's African-American community, where some boycotted games and hoped for a losing season. It was alleged that Culverhouse threw parties that cost more than what Williams had asked for. Some players were angered when they saw the money spent on players by USFL teams, contrasted with Culverhouse's reluctance to spend any money on players or the team. Although some observers considered the Buccaneers to have their strongest lineup yet, preseason saw ten of the team's 24 starting positions up for contention.