The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finalized their roster last week and will kick off the season against the Atlanta Falcons this Sunday.
What looked like one of the top offenses in the league took a huge hit during the preseason, as Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan were not ready to suit up on Sunday. Godwin will miss a game or two, but he will not be required to miss all four games since he is not on the IR. McMillan will miss substantial time as he recovers from a neck injury. Also, tackle Tristan Wirfs will not be ready to play for the first few weeks of the season as he is still recovering from offseason surgery.
Mike Evans and Emeka Egbuka will open as receivers one and two on the roster with Tez Johnson, Sterling Shepard, Ryan Miller, and Kameron Johnson serving as depth pieces.
In what many deemed a surprise, the Buccaneers have moved on from fan favorite and former quarterback Kyle Trask. Trask completed 4-of-11 passes for 28 yards in three seasons. After four years in the system, why would the Bucs release Trask?
According to Todd Bowles, the experience and knowledge of Teddy Bridgewater were the deciding factors. “Obviously, he brings experience, but he brings a wealth of knowledge. He can command the offense right now. Him being older has a lot to do with it, but him being accurate and understanding what we’re trying to do has a lot to do with it as well. We had Kyle for four years, and it was a good four-year run. We just feel like we got a better chance with Teddy.”
There was an underlying feeling around One Buc Place that new offensive Coordinator Josh Grizzard did not fully trust Trask with the offense should Baker Mayfield go down with an injury. So, Bridgewater will be the backup to Mayfield this season.
At running back, Bucky Irving has wrestled RB1 away from Raachad White and opens the season as the starter. The Bucs also kept Sean Tucker on the roster as the third back. Josh Williams from LSU also made the roster on the strength of his preseason. Williams will see most of his playing time on special teams and could see action in the return game as well.
With Wirfs out for the first few weeks of the season, the offensive line is the weakest position on offense to begin the season. Charlie Heck, who was signed in the off-season, will start in place of Wirfs until he is ready to return.
Depth could be a problem if the Bucs are hit by injuries early in the season. Ben Bredeson, Graham Barton, Cody Mauch, and Luke Goedeke all return as the starters, but there is a considerable drop-off in experience after the starting five. It seems like the Bucs are rolling the dice and keeping their fingers crossed that everything holds together until Wirfs returns.
Defensively, the line returns stronger than last year, with the addition of rookie Elijah Roberts. Calijah Kancey, Vita Vea, and Logan Hall return as starters with Greg Gaines and Roberts as the backups.
The Bucs hope to improve at linebacker, specifically on the outside, in pressuring the quarterback, especially with the new addition of Haason Reddick. Reddick will be paired with YaYa Diaby on the outside. Sirvocea Dennis and Lavonte David will handle the inside duties.
The Bucs are also hoping to see a marked improvement from Chris Braswell. Braswell struggled a bit in camp, and the Bucs did not see the overall improvement they wanted as he entered his second season.
John Bullock, who had a nice preseason, along with Deion Jones, Markees Watts, and Antonio Grier, will be the backups. The Bucs suffered a blow when fourth-round pick David Walker Jr. sustained a torn ACL in the preseason and will be out for the year.
The defensive backs are another area of concern with all the nagging injuries. Promising DB JJ Roberts was lost for the season with a knee injury during training camp.
Antoine Winfield will anchor the strong safety position, starting opposite Tykee Smith. Zyon McCollum and Jamel Dean will start at the corner spot.
The two rookies, Jacob Parrish and Benjamin Morrison, are the backups behind McCollum and Dean. However, Dean did not have a good preseason, so he could be on a short leash, giving way to Benjamin Morrison should his performance suffer.
Riley Dixon will handle the punt duties, and Chase McLaughlin is back for the kicking duties.
Johnson and Egbuka will start the season as the punt returners, with Tucker and Johnson handling the kickoff duties.