The first quarter of the 2023 season was a strong one for the Bucks. They opened the year with three wins in four games and are in sole possession of first place in the NFC South heading into Week 5 with a bye. He has a long way to go, but he’s nowhere near the league’s worst player or a top-five pick as many expected.
From the play of Baker Mayfield and the position changes of Tristan Wirfs and Luke Goedeke to the quick starts and impressive plays of Vita Vea and Antwone Winfield Jr., Tampa Bay has had a lot to offer in the first four weeks of the season. Many things went well. The rise of Christian Isien and Zion McCollum.
But that doesn’t mean everything was perfect for the Bucks. In fact, there’s a lot that hasn’t gone all that well for Todd Bowles’ team so far. With that in mind, here are the players who were most disappointing in the first quarter of this season.
robert heinsey
Bucs C Robert Hainsey – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
When it was announced that the Bucks would be without former Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen again in 2023, there was at least some comfort in knowing they could rely on Hainsey. The 2021 third-round pick started 17 games in place of Jensen last year and spent all of training camp and the preseason as the team’s starting center.
However, after a great performance as a fill-in last year, he has taken a big step back this year, especially given the circumstances. The Notre Dame man has allowed one sack and nine pressures this season, and on top of those concerning numbers, he has also been called for three penalties.
Hainzuo wasn’t the player the Bucks needed. He has not met the standards expected as a pass blocker and in the run game, unable to protect Baker Mayfield in the way he needs to, and along with guards Matt Feiler and Cody Mauch, he has not met the standards expected of him in the middle running lanes. I’m having a hard time making it.
Maybe playing next to two new guards who aren’t Shaq Mason and Nick Leverett might not help, but Hainzuo is the weak link in the Tampa Bay offense. Now that the first four games are over, we need to move in the right direction.
Ratchard White
Ahead of the 2023 season, it became clear that White has every chance to be the Bucs’ running back. And while the run game may not be as bad as it was a year ago, it has lacked consistency this year.Even if it was “good” it wasn’t that good. The best rushing performances the Bucs got from White this season came in Weeks 2 and 4, with the first being a 17-rush, 73-yard performance (a solid 4.3-yard average to be fair). , the most recent performance being a 15 carry, 56 yard day (3.7 yards average, so-so).
White was okay in the passing game, but overall it wasn’t an exciting four weeks for the first-time starter. He does a little too much dancing and cutting in the backfield And all too often it is impossible to reach the driving lane. And he hasn’t shown much explosiveness or power thus far, looking more like a rotation-worthy runner than a bonafide starter.
White has time to revive the hype around him, and at least he has plenty of backing, but at this point he looks like he’s just a guy. of He’s a player the Bucks need in their backfield.
Bucs tight end
Bucks TE Cade Otton – Photo courtesy of USA Today
The Bucs’ tight end room overall has been lackluster this season. In the passing game, they were hardly a factor. And as blockers, they struggle mightily. TE1 Cade Otton has yet to build on his season from a promising debut a year ago.
He had 12 catches for 89 yards and one touchdown, but his blocking performance was abysmal. Otton is the third-lowest overall offensive player on the Bucks this season, which is a bit of a shock since he briefly rose to prominence as a rookie last year.
Otton may be the third-lowest-graded player on offense, but he’s not the lowest-graded tight end. That would be David Wells. His overall grade was 46.5, which was very disappointing despite his impressive progress throughout camp.
Meanwhile, fifth-round pick Payne Durham was inactive for the first four games and has yet to make his NFL regular season debut. Ko Kiefto continues to be a blocking ace, but had a rough time as a pass catcher in Week 1 and hasn’t played much since then.
Dave Canales said recently that the tight end is playing his role and he’s happy with it, but it’s hard to agree because overall he’s been mostly a disappointment.
Carlton Davis and Jamel Dean
The fact that both of the Bucs’ starting outside cornerbacks were healthy at the same time and played just one game is bad enough. If it’s a one-time issue, there’s nothing to worry about. However, Davis and Dean have missed out on playing time in recent years, and both have sizable contracts, making their inability to play even more frustrating. Davis missed Weeks 2 and 3 with a toe injury, and Dean was upset in Week 3 and missed Week 4.
Davis and Dean’s injuries may have been unavoidable, so it may be tough for them to be on this list.However, they have Although they are on the field, neither cornerback is up to their past level of play. Davis has been on a roll, with two pass breakups in two games (including a key breakup on third down in the second half in the win over the Vikings).
The veteran corner actually has pretty good numbers, with 68.7 overall, 81.9 tackles, 68.3 in coverage, and 65.9 in run defense. However, he was targeted 18 times in two games and allowed 11 catches while gaining 165 yards. That’s a far cry from the Davis the Bucks have acquired in the past.
Of the two of them, Dean was the more worried. He just signed a new four-year contract this offseason, but so far he hasn’t played like a big-money corner. He has an impressive 46.7 overall grade and 43.8 coverage grade, allowing 12 catches for 195 yards and two touchdowns while being targeted 17 times in three games.
Zion McCollum has outperformed both Dean and Davis so far this season, so Tampa Bay’s top two corners will really need to get back into shape once they return to full health.
Kariya Kanshi
Bucks DT Kariyah Kansi – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR
Now, Kangshi’s inclusion on this list is certainly not his fault. No one blames an injured player, especially if there is no proven past injury history.
But that doesn’t mean it’s not disappointing that the Bucks have been without a 2023 first-round pick in all but 11 games so far this season. Cuncey injured his calf early in training camp, missed the entire preseason, and then withdrew from his NFL debut in Week 1 after 11 snaps as the problem worsened.
After leaving Tampa Bay’s win over Minnesota, Cuncey missed the team’s games against Chicago, Philadelphia, and New Orleans. As such, there is little chance of seeing the Bucs’ projected starting defensive line play together in the first quarter of the season.
If the former Pitt star returns, his quickness should help create opportunities for edge rushers and inside Vita Vea. The good news is that Cuncey did not go on injured reserve, which would seem to suggest he should be back soon, perhaps as early as Week 6.
Ryan Neal
There was a lot of hype surrounding Neal this offseason, and rightly so. The Bucs appeared to get a steal when they signed him after his restricted free agent tender was withdrawn by the Seahawks. Soon, Neil – PFF’s highest grade safety from 1 year ago – He looked like he would be a big contributor to Todd Bowles’ defense. He then spent most of training camp blitzing and looking like a budding star.
However, this season hasn’t gotten off to such a great start for Neal. It’s not that he’s terribly bad, but he just hasn’t had the impact he thought he could throughout the offseason. He has a pedestrian overall grade of 55.3 in his PFF, and his tackle grade of 60.7 is the highest among classified grades.
Neal’s run defense is 60.4, coverage is 55.1 and pass rush is 50.6. He was targeted six times in coverage and allowed six catches for 79 yards and a touchdown. But he has two tackles for loss, and like the other players on this list, he has the time and potential to get things back on track and have a strong 2023 season.
