Bucs Camp Studs And Duds: 8-18

The Bucs had their second practice in a row on Tuesday. It was more scorching hot weather and the team mostly participated in red zone drills.

Pewter Report’s Matt Matera took the studs and duds list today with Bailey Adams and Scott Reynolds also in attendance.

Studs From Day 13 Of Training Camp

QB Baker Mayfield 

Mayfield knows he’s playing in Tampa Bay’s preseason game on Saturday vs. the Chiefs so it definitely felt like he ramped it up on Tuesday. There’s no other way to say it besides that Mayfield was on fire in the red zone drills. The man could not miss, connecting on touchdowns to Chris Godwin Jr, Ted Hurst III and Payne Durham. The throws were crisp, on point, and he knew where he was going with the ball as soon as it was snapped. It appears he’s built a good rapport with offensive coordinator Zac Robinson.

WR Chris Godwin Jr. 

Another day, another touchdown for the veteran and beloved Buccaneer. Scoring in the end zone has been a statistic that has dropped off a little for Godwin in recent seasons, but he’s showing the importance of precise route running and the ability to find areas between the defense to succeed. Godwin may not be in his prime, but he’s going to help the team in big ways.

RB Kenneth Gainwell

The ground game went well for the Bucs offense today and Gainwell was a big part of it. He gashed the defense for some lengthy runs in this practice. It was fitting that after practice, quarterback Baker Mayfield said that he is “overwhelmed” with how talented Gainwell is as a player.

WR Ted Hurst III 

Yet another player that just continually is scoring touchdowns with Tampa Bay. Hurst has a great combination of size, range and catching ability that he doesn’t need much range to get open. There’s a reason why he’s getting comparisons to Mike Evans in the red zone. Any time there’s going to be one-on-one matchups, Hurst is likely getting the ball.

DT A’Shawn Robinson 

Robinson had a tipped pass at the line of scrimmage. He’s disrupted passing plays on more than one occasion using his big frame to get in the passing lanes. That will surely translate to game days in the regular season where this could halt a drive or two.

OLB Rueben Bain Jr. 

The rookie first round edge rusher is on this list for what he did after practice. About an hour following the end of practice, Bain was still putting in extra reps. He was the only player on the field as he worked on his get off and pass rushing moves on pads. Press conferences had just wrapped up and we caught of glimpse working on things from footwork to hand placement and having the right bend around the corner. He’s got a chance to be great in Tampa Bay.

Duds From Day 13 Of Training Camp

Bucs Red Zone Pass Coverage

It was a rough day for the Bucs’ defense in the red zone as they couldn’t get many stops. It didn’t matter if it was the starters, backups or third strings, nobody was covering on the defense and everybody was scoring touchdowns on the offense. Already mentioned was Chris Godwin Jr., Ted Hurst III and Payne Durham. Also Dean Patterson IV and a returning David Sills V scored with the backups in. Sometimes you can’t get out of your own way and that was the case for the defense today.

Bucs Run Defense

We hold the Bucs and their ability to stop the run in high regard. So when they aren’t making tackles or at worst three yards down the field, it raises eyebrows. Credit to Tampa Bay’s offense for getting the run game together. Kenny Gainwell had a big day and Sean Tucker was able to bounce some for highly productive gains, too. Things were off with the defense as they look to correct this in their next practice.