The Tampa Bay Buccaneers hit the field at the AdventHealth Training Center on Tuesday for the first of nine OTA practices to be conducted over the three weeks. This phase of the offseason program is voluntary. As such, the big non-injury related absences were right tackle Luke Goedeke, defensive tackle Vita Vea, and the outside linebacker trio of Yaya Diaby, Al-Quadin Muhammad, and Chris Braswell.

Diaby, Muhammad and Braswell all missed the voluntary practice to observe the Day of Arafah, which is one of the most sacred days in the Muslim religion.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving Remains Out Until The Summer – Or Fall?

Running back Bucky Irving (shoulder surgery), cornerback Keionte Scott (wrist surgery), defensive tackle DeMonte Capehart (wrist surgery), safety JJ Roberts (knee), and special teams ace Miles Killebrew (knee) were all present, but did not take part in practice. Irving was not dressed out in uniform, and that was not a surprise given his recovery and rehab from shoulder surgery this offseason.

But Bucs head coach Todd Bowles made some waves after practice when discussing exactly how long Irving would be out.

“He’s coming along fine and he’s working out,” Bowles said. “We expect him sometime back in the summer or fall and we look forward to him when he gets back.”

There’s a big difference between summer, which would mean training camp – as in July or August – and fall, which would mean the regular season – as in September. The latter is essentially four months from now.

After practice I asked Bowles if he meant to say just “summer,” suggesting a return around training camp, or if he indeed meant “the fall,” and his reply was, “We’ll see.”

It’s safe to suggest that Irving won’t be participating in any work this offseason, which includes the remaining OTAs and the mandatory mini-camp, which is set for June 16-18. All eyes will be on Irving at the start of training camp in late July to see if he’s ready to participate at that time.

Bucs’ Passing Attack Came Out Firing On Tuesday

This time of the year, it’s the defense which usually holds the edge over the offense; that was largely flipped Tuesday on the first day of Bucs OTAs. It was the offense which had the upper hand, with the quarterback room led by Baker Mayfield leading the way. Mayfield was on time with most of his tight-window throws, and second-year pro Connor Bazelak, as well as likely backup Jake Browning, routinely got the ball out quick and on time.

However, it was perhaps Mayfield’s worst throw of the day which provided the most noteworthy moment of a hot – albeit windy – day in Tampa. Dropping back to pass and looking in the direction of second-year wideout Emeka Egbuka, Mayfield let one loose over the middle of the field. The pass was high and behind Ebuka, but the 2025 first-round selection went up for it, snagged it out of the air with one hand, and blazed across the field for a would-be touchdown.

Bucs WR Emeka Egbuka – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

It was a truly “wow” play that showed the raw talent Egbuka possesses. With Mike Evans having moved out west to San Francisco, the Bucs could certainly use more of what they saw from Egbuka on the practice field on Tuesday.

“That was crazy,” fellow wide receiver Jalen McMillan said after practice.

Yes, it was, and it really set the tone for the day on offense. Other than Egbuka, 2026 third-round pick Ted Hurst had a strong showing, running primarily with the second-team offense. During one period of practice, Hurst hauled in four consecutive passes while running a variety of different routes. Coming from small school Georgia State, Hurst looked like he belonged on an NFL field.

Bucs WR Ted Hurst and WRs coach Bryan McClendon – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Earlier, I mentioned that Mayfield had an overall good day. One throw he would like to have back was a late throw to his left looking for Egbuka near the sideline. Cornerback Benjamin Morrison was playing perfect coverage and jumped the route. Morrison, however, dropped an easy interception. In a game setting, it could have gone back the other way for a score. Largely, though, PBUs were few and far between for this Buccaneers defense.

Bucs’ Big D-Line Stymies The Ground Game

If there was one part of the offense that struggled to stand out, it was the running game. The Bucs defensive linemen, which consisted of starters A’Shawn Robinson, Calijah Kancey and Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who was filling in for the absent Vita Vea, did a great job of clogging up holes, not allowing Kenneth Gainwell, Sean Tucker, or Josh Williams much room to create anything on the ground. Tucker even ran into a lineman trying to cut back after not finding any holes and put the ball on the ground.

This should please head coach Todd Bowles, who said earlier this offseason they wanted to get bigger up front. Just observing that room from the side, it’s clear that objective was met, even with Vea not out there. Jayson Jones, listed at 6-foot-6, 335 pounds, was hard to look away from. A’Shawn Robinson, (6-foot-3, 320 pounds), brings both size and veteran leadership to the table. Nunez-Roches is also over 300 pounds and brings a lot of high energy to practice.

Bowles said that second-year defensive tackle Elijah Roberts also looked noticeably bigger this offseason and that he would be backing up Kancey at the 3-technique spot as well as backing up Robinson at the 4i-technique spot.

Bucs DL coach Marcus West and DT Rakeem Nunez-Roches – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Perhaps the most scrutinized unit on this Buccaneers team in 2025 was the linebacker group. Lavonte David showed his age and subsequently announced his retirement in March. SirVocea Dennis, stepping into a starting role for the first time in his career, struggled mightily. Dennis was particularly poor in coverage, earning a coverage grade of 30.5 (84th among 88 qualified linebackers), according to Pro Football Focus.

Veteran signee Alex Anzalone will occupy one of the two starting spots. The question is whether Dennis, or 2026 second-round pick Josiah Trotter, will play alongside him. On Day 1 of OTAs, it was Dennis running with the first-team unit. Of course, that shouldn’t be a surprise. Dennis is entering his fourth season in the NFL and has spent the last three years entrenched in Bowles’ playbook, while Trotter just turned 21 in April and is quite raw as a player new on the scene in Tampa Bay.

Danny Smith’s High Octane Energy Is Hard To Miss

Another area where the Buccaneers must take a step forward in 2026 is special teams. This is a unit that struggled to defend against kicks and punts last season, and it cost special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey his job.

Enter Danny Smith, one of the most respected coaches in the entire league. The 72-year-old, who began his coaching career in 1976 at Edinboro, spent the previous 13 seasons running special teams for the Pittsburgh Steelers. No matter where you stood Tuesday at One Buc, you knew where Smith was. His voice commands a room – or in this case – an entire practice field. Think about legendary Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin – and that’s what you get with Smith.

Smith was enthusiastic in his teaching, but clear to his players that he wanted things done a certain way. As such, the Buccaneers spent a notable amount of time working on kick/punt return defense, including blocking kicks. Tampa Bay clearly recognizes it must be far better there than they were in 2025, and that starts with Smith.

Bucs Setting Up Joint Practices With Jets And Jaguars This Summer

Tampa Bay head coach Todd Bowles said that the team is working on setting up a pair of joint training camp practices with the Jets and one joint practice with the Jaguars. The Bucs open the preseason against the Jets in New York on Friday, August 14, so the teams would likely practice together on Tuesday, August 11 and Wednesday, August 12.

The Bucs end the preseason against the Jaguars in Jackonville on Friday, August 28 and would presumably have a joint practice on Wednesday, August 26. Bowles said that his team will not have a joint practice against the Chiefs, whom the Bucs host in the second week of the preseason.

Pewter Reporter Nick Geddes contributed to this report