How Can Trey Palmer Impact Bucs’ Offense, Return Game?

After having the oldest roster in the league last season, the Bucs’ goal this offseason was to get younger and faster. As free agency and the recent NFL Draft has shown, the team has achieved this goal with the players they have brought in.

As it stands in May, there are only five players on the team age 30 or older, compared to ending last season with 15. At many of the skill positions, the team has traded in veterans for young players. This is especially true at the wide receiver position.

Veterans Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Russell Gage remain, but behind them, the depth chart is filled with young wideouts hoping to step up and emerge in the Bucs’ new-look offense.

Julio Jones, Breshad Perriman, and Scotty Miller are no longer with the team, although the Bucs will see the latter twice a year, as he joined the Falcons this offseason. In their stead, Deven Thompkins and Kaylon Geiger return. Also joining the mix is Trey Palmer, the Bucs’ sixth-round selection out of Nebraska.

Trey Palmer Grew Throughout His College Career At Nebraska, LSU

Trey Palmer comes to Tampa Bay after a 2022 season at Nebraska where he emerged as the Cornhuskers’ top offensive threat. He paced the team with 71 receptions for 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns. Palmer became just the second Nebraska receiver to post 1,000 yards in a season. His biggest game was against Purdue back in October, when he had 297 scrimmage yards (237 receiving, 60 rushing).

His nine touchdowns accounted for over 25% of the team’s total, while the next-highest receiver had 31 receptions for 471 yards. Although Nebraska went 4-8 last year, his lone season there was as a true No. 1 option, which he did not have the chance to be at LSU.

Palmer spent 2019-2021 down in the Bayou with the Tigers in a receiver room featuring Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, Terrace Marshall Jr., and Kayshon Boutte, who selected just four picks before Palmer on Day 3 of the draft. In 2019, Chase, Jefferson, and Marshall Jr. were the top three options for Joe Burrow for a team that went 15-0 and won the National Championship.

As a result, he only had one catch for six yards that season, and in the following years, he failed to have much of an impact. For Palmer, his transfer allowed him to grow as a player and bring some championship culture to Lincoln, Nebraska.

“I really was just trying to help my team win and really just help everyone around me get better and do my job and [lead] by example and not just by talking,” Palmer said after being taken by the Bucs. “I really just brought the LSU culture to Nebraska and took them in and they took me in, too. It really just took off from there.”

After playing alongside what are now two of the best receivers in the NFL, Palmer took away what it meant to be the best.

“It helped me practice like a pro because [those] guys practice like a pro,” Palmer said. “They taught me how to do things, how to learn things, and I took that from them and embodied it into myself and took that with me to Nebraska to show [those] guys how to practice like a pro, too.”

Can Trey Palmer Help In Return Game?

What does Palmer’s addition mean for the Bucs’ receiving room next season? Well, it means they got a burner with some intriguing abilities. Special teams coordinator Keith Armstrong even alluded to him having a spot in the return game, an area where Deven Thompkins took the reins last season.

“Yeah, he’s going to get a chance,” Armstrong said on Palmer possibly returning kicks. Palmer returned both punts and kickoffs in college all four seasons, even bringing a punt (2019) and kickoff (2020) to the house for touchdowns. With his experience and 4.33 speed, it is easy to see why Armstrong was bullish on his skillset. What else does he bring to the table?

“Size – he’s got good size,” Armstrong added. “I think he’s a willing guy – he can be physical. What I’m going to try to do is help him with, ok, this is how you set a return up, as far as how to set blocks up and how to play penalty-free football. Sometimes you hear me say, ‘The rooster is loose,’ with a returner – in other words, his guys don’t know how to block for him because they don’t know where he’s going. Whereas, if you get a feel for what a guy likes to do, now your players can react and start blocking better for you.”

Hopefully, there are no roosters let loose, and that could start with Palmer developing quickly as a return option. He had a touchdown on a punt and a kick return at LSU.

Trey Palmer Has Chance To Emerge As Bucs’ WR No. 4

The biggest question is whether Palmer is able to claim the fourth spot in the receiver room. While it may not seem too important of a role to fill, the team will be looking to replace the production of the aforementioned receivers. Jones, Perriman, and Miller combined for 56 receptions last season, and the depth chart is inexperienced beyond the top three.

What each of the three had in common was being deep threats throughout their career. Vice president of player personnel John Spytek did not want to make comparisons but praised Palmer’s ability to track and make catches down the field.

“That’s a unique talent,” Spytek said after the draft. “The best I ever was around was DeSean Jackson. I mean, it was at an elite level that I think people can’t comprehend for him to know exactly where to get to. And I’m not putting … Trey’s got a long way to go to be DeSean Jackson. I hope he gets there one day. But he’s got a sense when he gets vertical and he gets running on people of finding the ball down the field, especially when he gets past people.

“The fact that we saw him have all these long touchdowns and have success when he’s running full-speed down the field shows you he can do it. He’s proven that with the stats that he has.”

He has the chance to excel in that role, especially if he does well throughout the offseason at OTAs later this month, as well as during training camp and the preseason. His main competition will be Thompkins and Geiger, who are also looking to prove themselves. Thompkins has just five career receptions, while Geiger has just nine career offensive snaps and has yet to record any statistics.

Spytek added how Palmer could be a playmaker.

“You see the 4.34, okay well that’s nice, but then he put it to work,” Spytek said after the draft. “I think he had the most…three 70-plus-yard touchdowns this year, which was maybe the most in FBS. I think I heard that on TV. He had over 1,000 yards at a school that doesn’t always throw the ball a ton.

“He makes plays down the field, and when he walks on the field, defenses got to know that and they’ve got to account for it.”

There are still a few months to go before his role is fully determined, but Bucs fans should know what kind of guy they are getting. Palmer kept it short and sweet when talking to the local media for the first time.

“[They’re getting] a dog,” Palmer said.

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