Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians celebrates with the Vince Lombardi Trophy after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Stadium. Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Bruce Arians: Some players don't know they're fighting for their jobs

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 6/1/21

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is one of the veteran players not attending voluntary organized team activities and instead participating in private workouts.

The seven-time champion signal-caller has his spots on the roster and depth chart cemented months before the start of meaningful games, but head coach Bruce Arians told reporters Tuesday some of Brady's teammates may be surprised about their statuses ahead of summer.

"These guys out here are working their ass off," Arians said of the players at OTAs, according to Greg Auman of The Athletic. "I'd like to see about 10 more of them that are fighting for jobs that they don't know they're fighting for."

Arians suggested that running back Ke'Shawn Vaughn could be in the doghouse depending on where he is later this week:

Bucs running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn was at the first OTA workout last week but wasn’t there today, opting to work out with Tom Brady’s group. Arians said he hopes he can make a better decision Wednesday.
— Greg Auman (@gregauman) June 1, 2021

While Vaughn and others understandably may not wish to irritate or upset the most successful quarterback in NFL history, Arians' comments serve as a reminder that "voluntary" often means "encouraged" as it pertains to football-related activities.

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