The Buccaneers offensive line pranked their rookie teammates by pretending to leave them with a $26,000 bill

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August 17, 2017 9:36 PM

Undrafted rookies Korren Kirven and Cole Gardner weren't sure how they were going to manage paying the bill until the veterans let them off the hook

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Pranking rookies is an NFL tradition as old as football itself, and on Wednesday night the Tampa Bay Buccaneers got a couple of their rookies good.

According to ESPN's Jenna Laine, the Buccaneers offensive line was dining out at a Ruth's Chris Steak House in Jacksonville and told the two undrafted rookies on the line — Korren Kirven and Cole Gardner — that they'd be buying the meal for the team, as per tradition.

The rookies quickly felt they were in over their heads when their server brought out a check charging the group over $26,000 for the meal. Buccaneers left tackle Donovan Smith posted a glimpse of the bill to his Instagram story, which Tampa Bay Times reporter Greg Auman was able to snag a screengrab of.

Thankfully for the rookies, the truth was quickly revealed — it wasn't a real bill. According to ESPN, the restaurant manager was even in on the prank, and the true tab was a much more manageable $3,000. Even better, the rookies didn't have to pay for it.

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