After a much-heralded offseason, the Bucs kicked off their 2024 preseason against the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday night. With veteran starters sitting, it was an opportunity for coaches and fans alike to see the 2024 rookie class and depth players vying for roster spots in live reps the first time. In a low-scoring affair, Tampa Bay coughed up a late lead in Cincinnati only to come back and win the game 17-14.

Here are the most impressive players from the Bucs’ 2024 preseason opener.

RB Bucky Irving

Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: USA Today

Irving flashed everything the team was hoping he could be when they drafted him in the fourth round of the 2024 NFL Draft. He had six carries for 28 yards before exiting the game. Irving also scored his first NFL touchdown on a 5-yard run in the first quarter while showing off some of his tackle-breaking skills, bouncing off a pair of Bengals defenders to fall in the end zone.

He was pulled after just two drives, but his 4.7 yards per carry were a welcome sight to Bucs coaches and fans given the team’s poor run game in recent years.

Bucs Depth Receivers

Ryan Miller, Trey Palmer and Jalen McMillan all grabbed passes of 15+ yards to help the Bucs offense move down the field. All three had big grabs on the Bucs’ first touchdown drive of the game. Miller had a big 24-yard grab to kick off the drive and get the Bucs into plus territory. McMillan added a 19-yard catch-and-run to put Tampa Bay in field goal range and added a 4-yard catch two plays later. Palmer put the Bucs into a goal-to-go situation with his own 21-yard catch-and-run.

Rakim Jarrett joined the fray late in the second quarter with a fantastic 28-yard grab while fighting off tight coverage from Bengals cornerback Dax Hill. Jarrett showed great ball-tracking skills to reel in the over-the-shoulder pass on a tough angle.

Raleigh Webb and Cody Thompson got in on the fun in the second half, catching 80% of their combined targets as well. In the waning minutes of the game, that group expanded by one as Tanner Knue made two big catches for 29 yards and drew a big pass interference flag in the end zone to help the Bucs take a 17-14 lead with just 57 seconds left in the game.

One of the biggest strengths of the Bucs offense is their top two receivers, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. But behind those two is a group of largely untested/unproven options. That group took a big step forward to show the team has depth in addition to top-end talent in their receiving room.

The group as a whole totaled 14 catches for 176 yards.

S Kaevon Merriweather

Bucs S Kaevon Merriweather – Photo by: USA Today

Merriweather was one of the most active defenders on the field and it started early for him. On the Bengals’ first drive of the game, Merriweather showed up in several areas. He broke up a deep pass from Joe Burrow to Tee Higgins in the end zone, preventing a would-be touchdown.

He followed that up with a quarterback pressure on a blitz that would force an incompletion and then added a tackle for a loss to force a 3rd & 12. Merriweather played a good majority of the game and helped keep the Bengals passing game in check for most of the night.

BUCS RUN GAME!

Running behind strong blocking from rookies Graham Barton and Elijah Klein, along with a cavalcade of other offensive linemen, the Bucs’ run game was more than functional. It was USEFUL! Irving looked good with some pinball-like runs, churning his legs forward. Barton was eating with several drive blocks, displacing defensive linemen while mixing in a couple of pancake blocks as well. The Bucs have to be happy with the initial showing from their 2024 first-round pick.

Beyond Barton, Klein looked like he belonged with good hand usage and a strong anchor. Veteran Ben Bredeson had a very good day, as did left tackle Justin Skule. The sum of all of these parts, paired with the solid running from the backs, was a designed run game that gave the Bucs 96 yards and 6.0 yards per carry before the third and fourth string players entered late in the third quarter.

The run game also helped to weaponize the Bucs play-action game allowing receivers to run free as underneath defenders were constantly triggering to the run action.

RB Sean Tucker

Bucs RB Sean Tucker – Photo by: USA Today

Sean Tucker had a strong day, with multiple runs of 5+ yards. He added a catch in the second quarter on a check down pass from Kyle Trask that was not well placed. Tucker showed good vision, solid burst and an aggressiveness to get up field.

All of that was on display for his 26-yard explosive run on the first drive of the second half when he showed patience to let the Bucs offensive line wash the Bengals defense to the left before shooting forward like a rocket straight up the middle of the field. He finished the run with a jump cut to the left to avoid a Bengals defensive back and add a couple of yards at the end.

Tucker finished the day with 10 carries for 68 yards. He was easily the most dynamic player on the field in a game filled with backups. When adding in his contributions on special teams, the running back made strides towards securing one of the final spots on the 53-man roster.

C Graham Barton

Barton had as good of a debut as anyone could have hoped for. The former Duke Blue Devil showed off his strong grip strength and a powerful lower half. He helped create lanes in the run game, timed up double teams well and held his own in pass protection.

The totality of his inaugural performance most likely sewed up the battle between him and 2023 starter Robert Hainsey. With all three of the interior line spots struggling in 2023, this performance (and to a lesser extent right guard Cody Mauch’s as well) has to make the Bucs feel good that they have made appreciable improvements to that part of their roster.

CORRECTION: It was previously reported that Barton had an errant snap, but that was actually Hainsey’s snap to Kyle Trask.

CB Keenan Isaac

Isaac was sticky in coverage throughout the night, not allowing his matchup to get involved in the action very much. And when he was targeted, Isaac came up big with an interception late in the second quarter. The Bengals had just received the ball in good field position after a Chase McLaughlin missed field goal. Cincinnati quarterback Jake Browning tried to test Isaac deep with a 44-yard pass to Kamari Lassiter. Isaac was able to undercut Lassiter’s route and come up with the big interception.

LB J.J. Russell

Bucs ILB JJ Russell and Bengals QB Joe Burrow – Photo by: USA Today

Russell was a preseason darling last year, earning a 90(!) grade from Pro Football Focus. Russell continued that dominance in this game as he was heavily involved in choking the Bengals run game while also contributing additional open-field tackles to bottle up Cincinnati’s short passing game. Russell recorded seven tackles as he showed up all over the field.

Russell is locked into a battle with fan-favorite rookie Kalen DeLoach for the final linebacker spot on the roster. He made a strong push to hold off the former Florida State linebacker with Saturday night’s effort.

DB Tykee Smith

Smith had a strong opening salvo as the Bucs starting nickel corner. He played a physical brand of football, hand fighting with receivers and involving himself in the run game. Most importantly, he showed he can trigger downfield quickly as he had a strong tackle of Bengals tight end Tanner Hudson on a short checkdown on a 3rd & 8. Smith was able to quickly close in on Hudson to hold him to a 2-yard gain and kill the Bengals’ drive.

RB Ramon Jefferson

Jefferson did not check into the game until late in the fourth quarter. But he made a big impact over the closing minutes of the game. Jefferson had just two carries for six yards. But the last three of those yards were the last three the Bucs needed to score the go-ahead touchdown with less than a minute left in the game.

And it wasn’t just the moment that elevated his performance. Jefferson gave a Herculean effort after initially getting stuffed at the line of scrimmage. As he continued to move his legs and push forward, he received some help from his offensive line pushing him forward for all nine feet needed to score. Jefferson added two catches for 25 yards, including an 18-yard catch-and-run just before the two-minute warning to the Cincinnati 15 that helped eventually set up his touchdown run.