PR Roundtable: What The Bucs Must Do vs. Jaguars (2024)

A new Pewter Report Roundtable debuts every Tuesday on PewterReport.com. Each week, the Pewter Reporters tackle another tough question. This week’s prompt: What must the Bucs do this week as they hold two joint practices with the Jaguars and play them on Saturday night?

Scott Reynolds: Bucs Need To Force More Takeaways On Defense

I remember talking to former Bucs head coach Greg Schiano and he would use the term “turnover” as it related to offenses throwing interceptions or fumbling the ball. But he preferred the term “takeaway” on defense as it pertained to “taking the ball away” with forced fumbles and fumble recoveries and picking off passes. So I use the term “takeaway” because I think defenses need to have a “take-the-ball-away” mentality. So far, Todd Bowles’ defense has had that in training camp – and it needs to continue in Jacksonville.

There have been 22 interceptions so far in training camp this year. I don’t recall how many the defense had last August, but I don’t think the number was this high. Bowles and his defensive coaches have been preaching interceptions all offseason and it’s paying off in practice. Now it needs to happen during the preseason games. Tampa Bay’s defense had one takeaway in Cincinnati, but that’s not good enough. The goal should be to record three takeaways in each game. The Bucs defense fell short of that goal by two takeaways on Saturday night.

Reserve cornerback Keenan Isaac made a daring interception against the Bengals and literally took the ball away from the receiver he was defending. Then he came back on Monday’s practice and picked off Baker Mayfield in the red zone for his second interception in practice. Tampa Bay’s defense needs to make life difficult for quarterbacks Trevor Lawrence, Mac Jones and C.J. Beathard in the two joint practices this week – but more importantly in the game on Saturday night. And mixing in some sack-fumbles would be nice too, especially since Bowles’ defense didn’t record a single sack in Cincy.

Matt Matera: Continue Flourishing In The Run Game

A common phrase that has been hammered home about the Bucs with their offense was consistency. I’m taking that approach when it comes to the Bucs’ running game, which came alive in their preseason opening win against the Bengals. The Bucs rushed for 136 yards with an average of 4.3 yards per attempt and had some splash plays, including a 26-yard rush by Sean Tucker. If the Bucs run anything close to this in the regular season, their offense will be as explosive as any team.

Speaking of Sean Tucker, this probably most directly impacts him. We’ve seen Tampa Bay’s running game, and Tucker, have flashes of brilliance before. But then not long after regresses with results that are less than desired. A good first game from Tucker has put him in a position to get a grasp on that third running back position with Chase Edmonds still out with an injury.

The Jaguars were right in the middle of the pack stopping the run last year allowing 4.2 yards per attempt. Can the Bucs continue to get a push on the ground? We’ll find out this week. It’ll be intriguing to see if last week’s game was an anomaly or if Tampa Bay is legitimately trending in the proper direction when it comes to figuring out the run. Another game with experience for Bucky Iriving will certainly help, too.

Bailey Adams: Bucs OLBs Must Take Advantage Of Reps vs. Jaguars OTs

With Yaya Diaby injured, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka banged up and Randy Gregory still no-showing camp, the Bucs’ young outside linebackers are already getting extended reps in practice on a daily basis. Second-year players Markees Watts and Jose Ramirez, as well as rookie Chris Braswell, stand to benefit from those reps the most. Out of the three, only Ramirez really showed up and played well in the preseason opener at Cincinnati.

The benefits should grow exponentially this week as the young pass rushers get a chance to match up against Jacksonville’s offensive tackles. Getting work in against the likes of Tristan Wirfs and Luke Goedeke is sure to have helped the development of Watts, Ramirez and Braswell. But seeing different tackles in practice this week should give them a chance to test themselves even further.

Squaring off with the same tackles in practice day after day, there’s an element of familiarity that can develop. The pass rushers may learn how Wirfs, Goedeke and the other tackles react to certain moves and play certain rushes. At the same time, the tackles may get used to how the pass rushers are operating and trying to beat them. The competition is still stiff, but patterns may naturally develop over time.

That won’t exist so much this week. So, Tampa Bay’s young pass rushers — and Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, if he gets back on the field — need to take advantage of this experience against Jacksonville’s tackles Anton Harrison, Cam Robinson, Walker Little and Javon Foster. Seeing what works and what doesn’t — and learning from both — should be a huge help for this group. And while it could pay off in the preseason game on Saturday, it’ll be even more valuable for them to take what they learned and apply it as they face the Dolphins in joint practices next week.

Josh Queipo: Test Their Rookies

The Bucs have one of the youngest rosters in the NFL.

The average age of every #NFL roster. pic.twitter.com/jI454UITxY

— Tyler Webb (@tylermwebb) August 9, 2024

And much like last year, when the team leaned on rookies to contribute meaningful snaps en route to a divisional title and a playoff win, they will need to lean on unproven players in order to succeed. Five draft picks – center Graham Barton, outside linebacker Chris Braswell, wide receiver Jalen McMillan, nickelback Tykee Smith and running back Bucky Irving – are all poised to either start or play significant reserve roles.

In order to hit the ground running, these players will need to be tested in the preseason with live reps in game-like situations. The closest they can get to those reps is preseason games. I want to see all five of these players, plus other rookies who have legitimate shots at making the roster like receiver Kameron Johnson, linebacker Kalen DeLoach, cornerback Tyrek Funderburk, tight end Devin Culp, guard Elijah Klein, safeties Marcus Banks and Rashad Wisdom and defensive tackle Judge Culpepper get extended looks in the last two preseason games.

Reps are invaluable. In the joint practices starters will get the majority of reps. The preseason games themselves can be showcases in the closest thing to regular season games for these young players to see how they might contribute when the plays really matter. Play all of these guys at least three quarters and see who shines and who may need some additional time on a practice squad. Because a 17-game NFL season is a war of attrition. Chances are these players will be needed at one point or another. And having a better feel for who may be ready to arise to the occasion can only be a net positive in the long run.

Adam Slivon: Bucs Must Continue Establishing Offensive Identity

Although the Bucs only put 17 points on the board in their preseason win over the Bengals, seeing the team pick up 390 total yards of offense was encouraging. With offensive coordinator Liam Coen calling the shots now, the offense looked more balanced and was rhythmically putting together drives. The team must build on its promising offensive identity this week against the Jaguars, both during their joint practices and the game on Saturday night.

It’s an identity that is predicated on physicality, and establishing the run to set up the pass. It’s a simple concept, but one the team had success with as running the ball allowed both Kyle Trask and John Wolford to find holes in the defense for a handful of chunk plays. Count first-round pick Graham Barton as being excited for the future – and the identity he wants to see the guys take upfront.

“We really take pride in our rushing attack,” Barton said. “We take pride in being more physical than our opponent. That’s got to be the identity of our offensive line, we’ve got to be violent at the point of attack. We’ve got to move people off the ball and be able to set up our passing game.”

Last season the Bucs’ offense was mired by inconsistency early on. This time around, they cannot afford that to be the case, especially with a tough schedule from the get-go. The first preseason game they played was a fruitful beginning, especially as it was most of the second and third-string players helping to move the chains. This week and the next (against the Dolphins) are not only prime chances to face and beat up on some Florida foes but to set the roots of a more successful and diverse offensive attack for the season ahead.