A day after Bucs head coach Bruce Arians said that tight end O.J. Howard needs to do a better job of catching the ball in practice, he set his sights on another tight end for his lack of blocking prowess. After Tuesday’s practice at the AdventHealth Training Center, Arians called out third-year tight end Tanner Hudson for his blocking – or lack thereof.

“Block somebody,” Arians said. “Anybody. Anybody. All right? I know he can catch. He’s always been able to catch. But he just has to be consistent.”

Bucs TE Tanner Hudson – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Arians then said Hudson has “regressed” as a blocker. That’s not a good sign for the 6-foot-5, 243-pound tight end who has struggled as a blocker since joining the Bucs in 2018.

Hudson is currently batting Codey McElroy and Jerell Adams for the No. 4 tight end spot on the depth chart behind Rob Gronkowski, O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate. Adams is considered to be the best blocking tight end out of the trio of reserves.

The Bucs had Antony Auclair as their fourth tight end last year, mainly for his ability as a blocker on a special teams contributor until he was hurt. Then Tampa Bay signed Hudson from the practice squad to fill his roster spot, but used reserve offensive lineman Joe Haeg as an extra blocker instead of Hudson.

Hudson has five catches for 67 yards in his career, including three catches for 41 yards last year.