Bucs vs. Commanders: 5 Big Season-Opening Storylines

With Tampa Bay’s opening opponent for 2024 now known, here are five big storylines for the Bucs vs. Commanders game in Week 1.

Jayden Daniels Debuts Against Todd Bowles’ Defense

Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, will make his pro debut in Tampa Bay against Todd Bowles’ defense. The Heisman Trophy winner completed 72.2% of his passes for 3,812 yards with 40 touchdowns and just four interceptions last year at LSU. Perhaps just as importantly, Daniels ran for 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns (8.4 avg.), and it’s that dual-threat ability that made him such a high draft pick.

Daniels will undoubtedly be a weapon in the red zone, especially around the goal line with his run-pass ability. But to go against a defensive mastermind like Bowles, who is adept at disguising coverages and putting together a myriad of exotic pressure packages, is incredibly difficult for any rookie quarterback – especially in his first NFL start.

Bowles’ defense has had its struggles against some rookie quarterbacks in the past, most notably against Brock Purdy in his first NFL start midway through the 2022 season. But Daniels doesn’t have the elite weaponry that San Francisco does. Washington’s best receiver is Terry McLaurin, who has four straight seasons with 1,000 yards, and the talent falls off after that.

Jahan Dotson doesn’t have more than 523 yards receiving in either of his two NFL seasons yet, although he has scored 11 TDs since entering the league in 2022. Third-round pick Luke McCaffrey is slated to be WR3 in Washington.

Tight end Zach Ertz will turn 34 and is on his third team in four years. His skills are in decline, having not posted a 500-yard season since 2021. Washington might turn to second-round pick Ben Sinnott at tight end instead.

The Commanders’ ground game features newcomer Austin Ekeler, who is a better receiver than he is a runner at age 29, and big back Brian Robinson, who is 6-foot-1, 228 pounds. Ekeler is coming off another 1,000-yard season in combined yardage, while Robinson has a pair of 700-yard rushing seasons and averaged 10 yards per catch on 36 receptions last year with nine total TDs.

Tampa Bay’s defense features a lot of speed and athleticism up front, notably defensive tackles Calijah Kancey and Vita Vea, outside linebacker YaYa Diaby and inside linebacker Lavonte David. The key will be pressuring Daniels into rookie mistakes and containing him in the pocket so he can’t hurt Tampa Bay’s defense with his scrambling ability.

Tampa Bay’s New Interior O-Line Will Be Tested Early

Tampa Bay’s offensive line will feature a revamped interior with Graham Barton, the team’s first-round pick, expected to supplant Robert Hainsey at center this year. With Cody Mauch entering his second year and looking to improve, the Bucs will have a new guard playing opposite him with the departure of Aaron Stinnie and Matt Feiler.

That could be a new veteran like Sua Opeta or Ben Bredeson or rookie Elijah Klein. Whoever winds up playing next to Barton will be in for a real test. In fact, the entire interior will have its hands full against the Commanders defensive tackles, who are arguably the best in the NFL.

Jonathan Allen is a two-time Pro Bowler with 39 career sacks, including 22 over the past three seasons, in addition to 36 tackles for loss. Daron Payne made the Pro Bowl in 2022 when he had a career-high 11.5 sacks. He’s posted 30 sacks in his Washington career, including 20 in the past three years along with 37 tackles for loss over that span.

The Commanders also drafted highly touted defensive tackle Johnny Newton at the top of the second round, giving new head coach and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn plenty of talented depth at the position. Tampa Bay’s retooled interior O-line and ground game will have a stiff test in Week 1.

Tampa Bay Will See Some Familiar Faces In Week 1

The Bucs have done battle against Dan Quinn for years. Quinn was the head coach in Atlanta from 2015-20, where he compiled a 43-42 record. The Falcons were 6-6 against the Bucs during that span.

Quinn also served as the Cowboys defensive coordinator from 2020-23 and he battled against the Bucs three times. Tampa Bay prevailed in regular season games in 2021 and 2022 but lost to Dallas at home in the Wild Card playoff game, 31-14.

Personnel-wise, safety Jeremy Chinn and inside linebacker Frankie Luvu come to Washington from Carolina, where they’ve played Tampa Bay twice a year for several seasons. Luvu, who was the Panthers’ leading tackler last year, has been in Carolina for three years, while Chinn was a second-round pick by the Panthers in 2020.

The Bucs Loved The Commanders Draft

Tampa Bay was incredibly fond of several players Detroit drafted last year, including running back Jahmyr Gibbs, linebacker Jack Campbell, tight end Sam LaPorta and defensive back Brian Branch. This year, it was the Commanders who wound up selecting a lot of the players who Tampa Bay had ranked highly on their draft board, team sources tell Pewter Report.

Tampa Bay was high on defensive tackle Johnny Newton, a St. Petersburg native, and would’ve drafted him in the first round if Graham Barton was off the board. Newton wasn’t the only Commanders second-round pick the Bucs were fond of. Tampa Bay also had high grades on nickel cornerback Mike Sainristil and tight end Ben Sinnott. Both Sainristil and Sinnott came to Tampa Bay on pre-draft Top 30 visits.

Now, Tampa Bay will have to contend with Newton, Sainristil and Sinnott, who should play prominent roles for the Commanders this year starting in Week 1.

Expect A Hot Season Opener In Tampa

It has been reported that Tampa Bay will start the 2024 season at home against Washington. The Bucs haven’t had a season opener at home since 2021 when Tampa Bay hosted Dallas in prime time on Thursday Night Football as the defending Super Bowl champions to kick off the season. Tampa Bay prevailed on a last-second field goal, 31-29, and have won the last two season openers, which have been on the road in domed stadiums in Dallas (2022) and Minnesota (2023).

No kickoff time for the Bucs vs. Commanders game has been leaked thus far, but expect it to be a late afternoon game. Tampa Bay’s last daytime home opener was a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff against San Francisco in 2019, a game they lost, 31-17, to start the Bruce Arians era 0-1.

With an average temperature of 90 degrees on September 8 in Tampa and a potential heat index of 100 degrees or more due to high humidity in Florida, the NFL would be wise to have a later kickoff so the players and fans won’t roast in Week 1. A 1:00 p.m. ET kickoff would mean that temperatures would actually climb during the game, while temps would subside in the late afternoon with a 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff. And of course, there will be an increased chance of showers and thunderstorms during the game due to the high humidity.