The Cardinals released McElroy and he was claimed off waivers in July 1998 by Tampa Bay, and made an instant impact with a spectacular touchdown run in the Hall of Fame Game against the Steelers. He played well, rushing 27 times for 121 yards and a touchdown in the preseason, but the Bucs were deep at running back and McElroy's specialty was kickoff returns, where Tampa already featured Reidel Anthony and Warrick Dunn. Tony Dungy said that "that point it would be best to give him a chance to maybe hook on with someone else, and he had such an impressive preseason, hoped for him for that to be the case." Unfortunately it would not be so. Although he spent the 1999 preseason with the Denver Broncos and was picked up later that season by the Indianapolis Colts, a combination of injuries and misfortune ensured that McElroy never played again in the NFL.