Another Injury, Team Ends Week Strong

With just seven days until the start of the preseason, the Buccaneers resumed practice on Saturday morning at the AdventHealth Training Center. The team wore shorts and helmets for its ninth practice of training camp, a light session after four padded sessions this week.

Tampa Bay head coach Todd Bowles said the team plans to hold a walk-through on Sunday before a rest day on Monday, something that was already planned in the pre-camp schedule but also happens to be convenient given the weather forecast for the weekend in Tampa.

Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds and Bayley Adams attended practice on Saturday, and here are their thoughts.

Another key Bucks defender injured

Just four days after left guard prospect Su’a Opeta suffered a season-ending torn ACL and starting safety Jordan Whitehead injured his quadriceps, and just two days after starting outside linebacker Yaya Diaby missed the preseason with a high ankle sprain, the Buccaneers lost another key player to injury and missed practice.

About 30 minutes into Saturday’s practice, third-round draft defensive back Tykee Smith left the field with a trainer and did not return. The Pewter Report reports that Smith has a mild ankle sprain.

Todd Bowles confirmed after practice that Smith had a “little bit of ankle pain.” Granted, it’s a manageable injury for a rookie and probably nothing to be too concerned about, but it does add another injured Buccaneers player to this week’s injury list. And while it may not be too serious, the ankle sprain could put Smith in doubt about whether he’ll be able to play in next Saturday’s preseason opener.

More details will be known next week, but Sunday’s walk-through and Monday’s day off come at a good time for the former Georgia star who has quickly emerged as the starter at nickelback on the Buccaneers’ defense.

Bucks not practicing

The same group of injured Buccaneers were absent from practice Saturday — Kameron Johnson, Chase Edmonds, Shawn Peterson Jr., Jordan Whitehead and Cervosia Dennis all watched from the sidelines — but there was one new absentee: fourth-year outside linebacker Joe Tryon Soyinka.

With Tryon Soyinka out and Yaya Diaby recovered from Week 1, rookie Chris Braswell saw more playing time Saturday and started at outside linebacker alongside veteran Anthony Nelson.

The Buccaneers avoided another sloppy practice this week and finished the week strong.

Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR

Without pads on, the Buccaneers’ practice on Saturday was light. But that doesn’t mean they didn’t get in some worthwhile practice. The team had a pretty sharp practice, which has been a consistent theme throughout training camp so far. Not everything was perfect, but Tampa Bay’s first nine practices of this year’s camp had a very different feel than 2023, when the team reconvened with a lot of question marks and a lot of sloppy practice.

“Penalties are something we still have room to improve on,” Todd Bowles said Saturday. “We’ve got to work on that. We’re a week into camp and we’ve got to get used to the pads, get used to the heat and do our job. That’s something we still have room to improve on. I’m really happy with how the guys stayed mentally focused. We didn’t have any sloppy days. We had some mental mistakes, but we didn’t have any sloppy days. The guys are focused and they’re trying to get better.”

The first week and a half of Buccaneers training camp has been a blast to watch, with the offensive and defensive back-and-forth action. Even though the offense is learning a new system under Liam Cohen after learning and running Dave Canales’ offense last year, it all seems to be coming together quicker than it was last August, contributing to a more competitive atmosphere.

It certainly helps that this year’s Buccaneers already know their identity. Quarterback Baker Mayfield is well-established, led a team that exceeded expectations last year, and is excited about his chance to take the next step this year. As a result, practices have been fun and practical. There have been mistakes, but it doesn’t feel as disjointed as it did last summer.

Observations and highlights from Bucks Camp Day 9

Below are some quick observations from Tampa Bay’s ninth training camp practice.

• Lavonte David and Mike Evans continued to get extra rest during 11-on-11 drills to give younger players opportunities, while Vy Jones and Cullen DeLoach benefited from extra minutes at inside linebacker with the first-team defense, while Rakim Jarrett and Ryan Miller benefited from extra minutes at wide receiver.
• Speaking of Jarrett, he had a strong practice on Saturday, perhaps his best of training camp so far, catching a couple of passes in the mix from Baker Mayfield and then making a diving catch in the middle of the field. After practice, Todd Bowles praised the second-year receiver but said he needs to be more consistent.
• Rookie tight end Devin Culp Another impressive practiceHe showed off some of his speed and separation ability late in the practice, catching the ball over the middle from John Wolford and sprinting to the end zone for a touchdown.
• Tabier Thomas and Christian Izien both made impressive interceptions during the 11-on-11 period.
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  Buccaneers DT Logan Hall – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR

  Buccaneers defensive tackle Logan Hall practiced really well this week and finished on a high note. Hall penetrated the backfield well in 11-on-11 drills and showed great pass rushing in one-on-one pass rush/pass protection drills on Friday. Tampa Bay head coach Todd Bowles wanted to start Eric Banks in the base defense on Saturday, so Hall was demoted to the second squad. But he made defensive plays on defense, covering the middle and intercepting backup quarterback Kyle Trask, who got the interception and turned it into a pick-six. Once in the end zone, Hall punted and celebrated the win. Despite the defense being second best on Saturday, Hall made the most of his opportunities.

• New outside linebacker Jay Person is the lightest edge rusher the Buccaneers have. The rookie out of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga was signed on Friday to fill in for the injury to Yaya Diaby and the absence of Randy Gregory. Person is 6-foot-2, weighs 237 pounds, and was pushed around quite a bit in his first practice with Tampa Bay. He’s obviously confused because he just arrived and doesn’t know the defense, but he’s incredibly light and not particularly quick around the edge. At this point, Person looks more like a camp member than an actual roster or practice squad candidate.
• Late in the practice, Bucs running back Rachel White found himself wide open in the red zone flat and raced into the end zone for an easy touchdown. After catching Baker Mayfield’s scoring strike, White got on the ground and started rowing, a celebration Bucs defenders typically do after a turnover. Known for his foul language, White was taunting the Tampa Bay defense. Wide receiver Trey Palmer joined in the fun and started rowing with White.