Bucs Camp Insider 8-7: Defense Stays Hot, Rookies Find End Zone

With the flags moving thanks to a steady breeze, the Bucs returned to the AdventHealth Training Center on Sunday morning ahead of their first game week of the preseason.

Several Bucs Veterans Get The Day Off

With no practice on Monday, the Bucs took the opportunity to double up on days off for a few veterans. Lavonte David, Cameron Brate, Julio Jones and Shaq Barrett didn’t practice on Sunday. Meanwhile, Breshad Perriman and Mike Evans remained sidelined with their minor injuries. Troy Warner and Jojo Ozougwu were also out on Sunday. Ke’Shawn Vaughn, however, returned to practice. Chris Godwin also practiced again, though the Bucs continue to bring him along slowly as he works his way back from knee surgery.

Another Dominant Day For The Defense

Todd Bowles had to be happy with his defense’s performance again on Sunday, as it clearly won the day. The front seven was especially good, with Will Gholston and Vita Vea leading the way with would-be sacks while Grant Stuard and undrafted rookie Jordan Young later teamed up for one. Elijah Ponder then forced his way into the backfield for a would-be sack of his own late in practice as the team worked through a goal line period.

The blitzes were working in the defense’s favor as well, with K.J. Britt flying in for what would’ve been a big hit on Tom Brady, forcing a completion. Britt later popped Leonard Fournette with a hit on a run play, knocking the veteran running back to the ground. The offensive line had its share of wins, with one notable knockdown by Robert Hainsey on Vea. However, it was largely the defensive front winning battles throughout the morning.

The Bucs saw their secondary come through with a number of turnovers as well. During 11-on-11s, Kyle Trask had a throw tipped and intercepted by Ross Cockrell, which started a string of interceptions for the defense as a whole. Young later intercepted a Trask pass on a short dump-off. Logan Ryan got in on the fun with an interception of Blaine Gabbert, as did Antoine Winfield Jr. Rookie Zyon McCollum chipped in with another solid day, notching a couple of pass breakups in addition to showing off his speed by tracking down Giovani Bernard after he broke through the line for a big run.

A couple of backup corners impressed during red zone 1-on-1s. Rashard Robinson broke up two passes against Kaylon Geiger Sr. and Kameron Brown. Don Gardner also showed up getting several stops during it.

Bucs Rookies Find The End Zone

The day was largely won by the defense, but a pair of rookies on the offensive side of the ball starred in 11-on-11 action. Fourth-round tight end Cade Otton was the star of the morning, catching three touchdown passes. His first came from Brady on a nice back-shoulder throw in the corner of the end zone before he caught another from Gabbert. Then, he opened the goal line period with another touchdown catch from Brady, finding himself wide open in the back of the end zone off of play-action.

The goal line period featured live tackling for the first time all camp, which gave rookie running back Rachaad White a chance to impress. He reached the end zone on back-to-back runs, following lead blocks from fellow rookie Ko Kieft. Those touchdown runs came after White broke free for a long run earlier in practice and completed a very good day for the third-round pick out of Arizona State.

Energy Levels Rise As Joint Practices Loom

With the Dolphins coming in for joint practices this week ahead of the preseason opener on Saturday, things are expected to get a bit chippy between the two sides. Tempers even began to flare on Sunday, especially when the offensive and defensive fronts met in a running period. Rookie guard Luke Goedeke tangled up with linebacker K.J. Britt after one play in particular. During that scuffle, Nick Leverett stepped in. That brought Rakeem Nunez-Roches into the fold, and he took a swing at Leverett. “Nacho” may have been feeling himself in that moment, given that he had a strong day of practice.

There was some more physicality between the offense and defense during 11-on-11s, which is to be expected as training camp kicks into gear. But that back-and-forth between Leverett and Nunez-Roches is what got things going.

“It’s energy – energy we need for practice,” second-year offensive lineman Brandon Walton said after practice. “Everybody feeds off those two guys. Nacho brings it for the defense and Nick brings it for the offense. That just helps our team out. Those guys are the fire starters – they ignite everything.”

Fringe Wide Receivers Get Their Chance To Shine

With Evans, Godwin, Jones and Perriman all missing from 11-on-11s for various reasons, the battle for Tampa Bay’s open wide receiver positions took center stage. For much of practice, there wasn’t much to write home about. The defense’s strong day had a lot do with that, and undrafted rookie Kaylon Geiger was the lone standout. He took an end-around for a big gain during 11-on-11s before later making a nice sliding catch from Trask. Later on in practice, though, some of the other depth receivers stepped up.

Scotty Miller continued to display some versatility, making a nice sideline catch on an intermediate route before taking an end-around for a nice gain. Tyler Johnson showed off some physicality on the outside, engaging Dee Delaney with a nice block. Johnson then made an outstanding catch from Brady in the back of the end zone during a goal line situation. Brady fit the ball into the window perfectly and Johnson fought off tight coverage to make the catch and keep his feet in bounds.

After Johnson’s catch, Jaelon Darden made a great catch in tight coverage. Brady was especially fired up by that play, coming over to greet Darden with a high five after the catch.

During 1-on-1s in the red zone, Geiger made a very nice contested catch with Zyon McCollum covering him. Though Jerreth Sterns was quiet for most of the day, he did have nice route to front left side of the end zone that gave him enough room against Antoine Winfield Jr. to make the catch for a touchdown.

Left Guard Position Continues To Rotate

After Walton took reps as the starting left guard during Saturday’s practice, Aaron Stinnie was in there with the starters on Sunday. Goedeke was the left guard with the second-team offensive line. Stinnie, Walton and Goedeke all appear to be firmly in the mix, while Leverett will continue to fill in at every position on the line. For Bucs run game coordinator and assistant head coach Harold Goodwin, the battle has been a joy to watch throughout the early part of camp.

“The beautiful thing about it, it’s fun to watch,” Goodwin said after practice. “Think about it: You got all these guys that actually get a shot to win a job. Usually you come into camp, it’s pretty much solidified. But to have three or four guys rotate in and try to give it their best every day, I like watching it. At some point, I’ve got to put my foot down and just go ahead and pick a guy so we can build that communication with [Donovan Smith], build that communication with [Robert] Hainsey at the center spot.

“But I like to watch it. Those guys care, those guys compete. And they help each other out, but at the end of the day, they all want to win that job. At a certain point here, I’ve got to go ahead and pick a guy. But they’re all doing a nice job right now.”

Goodwin went on to say there isn’t a set timeline to make the decision about the team’s starting left guard, though he would like to have an answer before Tampa Bay’s final preseason game, which comes on Aug. 27 against the Colts.

Borregales With Another Perfect Day

Tampa Bay continued to rotate with its kicking competition on Sunday, with Jose Borregales getting the reps. After Ryan Succop finished Saturday’s practice 10-of-11, Borregales was a perfect 6-for-6 on Sunday. A couple of those kicks came from about 50 yards out, giving the former Lou Groza Award winner a chance to showcase his strong leg. Succop and Borregales have both been outstanding throughout camp, and the pressure will build once they’re under the lights during the preseason.

The Bucs are off on Monday before returning to the field on Tuesday. The Miami Dolphins then come in on Wednesday for a couple of joint practices ahead of Saturday’s preseason opener at Raymond James Stadium.