The Bucks resumed practice at the AdventHealth Training Center on Tuesday morning after missing two full days of practice. The timing was perfect, as Tropical Storm Debbie pounded the Tampa Bay area on Sunday and Monday. The team was fully kitted out for its 10th practice of training camp, despite high winds as the storm moved out of Florida on a sunny day.
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, Matt Matera, Adam Slivon and Isaiah Delgado attended practice on Saturday, and here are their thoughts.
Bucks not practicing
Buccaneers OLB Yaya Diaby – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
Among the injured Buccaneers players who missed practice Tuesday were some familiar names, including wide receiver Kameron Johnson, running back Chase Edmonds, outside linebacker Shawn Peterson Jr., strong safety Jordan Whitehead and inside linebacker Servoshia Dennis. Outside linebacker Joe Tryon Soyinka was in pads but did not participate in a second consecutive practice because of a lingering injury.
Wide receiver Sterling Shepard did not practice Tuesday and is a new addition to the injured list.
The good news for the Buccaneers was that rookie defensive back Tykee Smith returned to the field and played the full game on Tuesday after spraining his ankle during practice on Saturday. It was also good to see outside linebacker Yaya Diaby, who has missed the last few practices while rehabbing a sprained ankle, at practice and watching the game. It was also good to see Diaby not walking around in a boot or brace.
Baker Mayfield lost momentum with multiple interceptions on Tuesday.
Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield and OC Liam Cohen – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
Pewter Report compiled interception totals from our daily practice reports and created the story A detailed breakdown of every interception through the first nine days of Buccaneers training camp. Third quarterback John Wolford held the ignominious title of leading the team with six interceptions at the start of practice on Tuesday, but when Tampa Bay returned to the practice field after two days off, starter Baker Mayfield led the team with two interceptions.
Mayfield just signed a three-year contract worth $100 million in the offseason and overall had a strong start to training camp. But the Buccaneers starter had a significant downturn on Tuesday, throwing two interceptions and missing two more. Mayfield was the only quarterback to lose the ball on Tuesday, the first of which came when a deep pass to Jalen McMillan was overthrown. Rookie safety Marcus Banks chased the ball the whole way and got his first interception of training camp.
It was Mayfield’s sixth interception of camp, but the day wasn’t over for the Buccaneers defense on Tuesday. They had 14 picks in the first nine practices. The game included a 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 period. Mayfield was nearly intercepted by backup safety Tavierre Thomas, who currently holds a team-high three interceptions. Thomas had the ball in his hands but dropped it, allowing wide receiver Chris Godwin to snatch it in the air. With Thomas nearly being intercepted for the fourth time in camp, Godwin raced down the field and scored an easy but unlikely touchdown in dramatic fashion.
Buccaneers TE Payne Durham – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
Mayfield’s second interception came in the red zone when cornerback Zion McCollum made a clean jumping interception of a slant pass intended for Mike Evans. It was McCollum’s second interception of camp.
Mayfield nearly got intercepted again when he miscommunicated with Mike Evans on the pass route, and backup cornerback Josh Hayes read Mayfield’s line perfectly and nearly got an interception near the back of the goal line, but the second-year DB couldn’t catch the pass.
Mayfield wasn’t bad on Tuesday, throwing a couple of touchdowns to tight ends Cade Otton and Payne Durham, but he was a little more careless with the ball than he and offensive coordinator Liam Cohen would have liked. Wind gusts during practice may have hurt Mayfield’s accuracy a bit, but the Tampa Bay defense was pleased to see their interception tally rise to 16 after Tuesday’s practice.
Todd Bowles was pleased with the veterans’ response on Tuesday.
Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles praised his veteran players for their focus after the team’s first break from camp and their second consecutive day of rest. Linebackers Lavonte David and KJ Britt performed at their best and made a lot of plays during practice, as did defensive tackles Vita Vea and Kalijah Kansey, while veterans on the offensive line, tight ends Cade Otton and Payne Durham, running back Rachad White and wide receiver Chris Godwin also played well on offense.
“The older guys were ready to play, but the younger guys [have] “It’s still a mental challenge,” Bowles said after practice Tuesday, “for us going into this game, it’s going to be a big thing, especially with our young guys, because we want to see them play.”
The Buccaneers have three days left to prepare for their preseason opener against the Bengals on Saturday night in Cincinnati.
“We’ll know a lot more over the next few days,” Bowles said when asked which rookies have been on his radar so far in training camp.
Observations and highlights from Bucks Camp Day 10
Below are some quick observations from Tampa Bay’s 10th training camp practice.
Buccaneers C Graham Barton and DT Vita Vea – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
• Buccaneers rookie Graham Burton is currently listed as the backup center. The team’s first depth chart was released on Tuesday: He is expected to win the starting spot. However, Tuesday’s starter was Robert Haingey, who is in the final year of his contract with Tampa Bay. Burton has been improving with every practice, and in the early minutes of Tuesday’s game, he showed off a great one-on-one pass protection against defensive tackle Vita Vea. Burton used perfect technique to effectively block Vea and win the game.
• With Yaya Diaby and Joe Tryon Soyinka out, the Buccaneers’ starting outside linebackers on Tuesday were sixth-year veteran Anthony Nelson and rookie Chris Braswell, the team’s second-round pick. Braswell is developing, albeit slowly, but his learning curve has accelerated with increased exposure to starting offensive tackles Luke Goedeke and Tristan Wirfs.
• Behind Nelson and Braswell were reserve outside linebackers Marquise Watts and Jose Ramirez on the second team. The two are competing for the No. 5 outside linebacker spot on the depth chart. Watts won the position as an undrafted free agent last year over Ramirez, who was selected in the sixth round, and was demoted to the practice squad. Both second-year edge rushers played well on Tuesday.
After being tackled to the ground by Wirfs on a pass rush, Watts raced around the edge on the next play and beat Wirfs perfectly for a near sack. Ramirez made a great tackle for a loss, pushing past right tackle Brandon Walton and pinning Sean Tucker in the backfield.
• The Buccaneers’ running game had some bright spots, with Rachad White, DJ Williams, Bucky Irving and Sean Tucker all running through big holes for big gains, but the defense also played reasonably well and made some give and take. Safeties Antoine Winfield Jr. and Tykee Smith filled gaps at the line of scrimmage and stopped several runs for no gain, and defensive tackle Kalijah Kansey also made a tackle for a loss on a White run in the backfield.
Buccaneers DB Tykee Smith – Photo: Cliff Welch/PR
• Speaking of Smith, the rookie out of Georgia also had an outstanding play in pass coverage. Returning from a mild ankle sprain on Saturday, Smith kept pace with Chris Godwin racing down the field and made a perfectly timed cut-off to intercept a Baker Mayfield pass.
Backup quarterback Kyle Trask played above average and rolled toward the sideline to throw a touchdown pass to backup receiver Ryan Miller at the red-zone pylon. Miller also caught a touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield in the red zone. Trask saw increased playing time Tuesday with Sterling Shepard out.
• Third-string quarterback John Wolford finished the offensive line’s red-zone drills on a strong note with a touchdown pass to receiver Rakim Jarrett in the end zone.
