While we at Pewter Report give you instant post-game analysis on individual players/coaches through our Most Impressive – Most Disappointing columns post-game on a weekly basis, I wanted to give a more nuanced position-group based post-mortem grades on a weekly basis following a review of All-22 film this week.

Quarterbacks

Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield wasn’t perfect on Sunday, but he was good. The stats line isn’t a barn burner – 21-of-34 for 173 yards and a touchdown. His 5.1 yards per attempt is downright bad. However, Baker did the one thing Bucs head coach Todd Bowles and offensive coordinator Dave Canales have preached all year. He took care of the football. Mayfield did not turn the ball over via interception or fumble at all against the Vikings. And the turnover battle is where this game, like so many others, was won.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

The lack of turnovers didn’t mean Baker was merely a game manager either. He created out of structure with a few key scrambles and a nifty shuffle pass to running back Rachaad White on a blown play when the Vikings pass rush was bearing down on him. The quick thinking by Mayfield and great reaction by White had a close to 20-yard net as it turned a loss of eight into a gain of the same.

Mayfield made several play checks to successful calls against a front seven that attempted to create havoc with their exotic pressure looks. This included a couple of calls to “speed outs” that helped win the game for the Bucs. He took shots when he had open receivers or advantageous matchups including three deep shots to receiver Mike Evans as well as one to tight end Ko Kieft. A total of 11.7% of his attempts were at depths of 20 yards or more. That would have placed him just outside the Top 10 of quarterbacks last year.

Mayfield had some accuracy issues on the day. Several of his completed catches were balls that his receivers had to reach for on easy throws and his would-be touchdown to Kieft was high (more on that later), but when it really counted, Mayfield was able to ice the game with a perfect frozen rope to Godwin.

Grade: B

Running Backs

Bucs RB Rachaad White – Photo by USA Today

Rachaad White probably didn’t have this performance in mind during his long offseason wait to finally debut as RB1 for the Bucs. He had 17 carries for 39 yards and a 2.3 yards per carry average is much more Leonard Fournette circa 2022 than it is Doug Martin circa 2012, which is what I am sure he was going for. White looked timid behind the line of scrimmage and made several bad decisions on his cuts in the Bucs’ new mid zone run game. The team’s rushing efforts could have looked much more positive if he had been more aggressive with both his decision-making as well as his running style in general.

But it wasn’t all bad for the second-year runner out of Arizona State. He was able to generate several efficient runs on the day, caught both of his targets and – perhaps most importantly – did a very good job as a pass blocker against a blitz-happy Minnesota defense.

Backup Sean Tucker had a couple of nice runs that helped make up his 15 yards on five carries. But his process was most encouraging. Tucker forced two missed tackles on the day while picking up 12 of those 15 yards after contact per Pro Football Focus.

Grade: C-

Receivers

Mike Evans led the way with 10 targets, six catches, 66 yards and a touchdown. But the game could be remembered more for the plays that he and Mayfield didn’t connect on than the ones that they did.

Those two misses could have added two catches 59 yards and a touchdown to the above line. Mayfield and Evans are still building a connection but those were catches you expect a receiver of Evans’ caliber to make. Chris Godwin had a workman-like day catching five of his six targets (the sixth was an uncatchable ball the Mayfield through in the dirt behind him) for 51 yards. Most crucially though, Godwin secured the pass that sealed the game on a difficult sideline catch using his fingertips.

Rookie Trey Palmer and second-year receiver Deven Thompkins both had good moments on the Bucs 9:00 drive to open the second half. They combined to catch four passes for 18 yards and a touchdown on an extended play near the end zone.

Grade: C+

Tight Ends

Bucs fans hate to hear this, but Tampa Bay’s tight end group may be the worst single position group in the NFL. And while Cade Otton had some nice moments/catches last year and Ko Kieft’s demeanor makes him an easy guy to root for we are still talking about a unit that doesn’t just lack star-power, it lacks a consistently average player.

Otton looked lost in the run game as a blocker. He was a big reason why the team averaged 2.5 yards per carry as he was unable to move any defender and had trouble maintaining his blocks. Add in a dropped pass over the middle in the first half and it was a day to forget for the former fourth-round pick out of Washington.

Speaking of dropped passes, we have to talk about Kieft. The “Ko Kieft – No. 1 receiver” experiment should be dead on arrival. Kieft was targeted three times in the first quarter and logged a goose egg for catches. The first pass Mayfield attempted to throw to him was deflected at the line of scrimmage. But the following two – both deep shots … to Ko Kieft! – fell to the ground in part because Kieft is not an NFL-caliber receiver.

He looked like Clark Griswold trying to find Walley World in the classic “National Lampoon’s Family Vacation” on the deep vertical for his second target. In case you haven’t seen the movie, like Kieft’s route it was an adventure. And while I noted above that Mayfield was not accurate on his pass attempt to a wide-open Kieft for a would-be touchdown, Kieft still has to come down with the ball if he’s going to be a legitimate option in the passing game.

Grade: D

Offensive Line

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

The Bucs offensive line faced a tough challenge to open the season. Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores is one of the best defensive minds in the game right now. His ‘Bangal’ front has given many-an offensive line nightmare. But Tampa Bay’s blockers handled themselves well on Sunday. They allowed Baker Mayfield to be pressured on just nine of his 38 drop backs despite having to handle 21 blitzes on the day. Minnesota managed just one sack on Mayfield, who is prone to taking sacks. It’s early but for a line with multiple question marks headed into the season the unit started to answer several of them.

Tristan Wirfs looked comfortable on the left side and a comfortable Wirfs is a dominant Wirfs. Veteran guard Matt Feiler had a good day. The two of them protected Mayfield’s blindside well all day.

Rookie Cody Mauch had as good of an opening salvo as one could expect at right guard. His positive pass blocking is both a welcome surprise given that it wasn’t his motus operandi coming out of North Dakota State and a very Wirfs-like story arc to follow.

But most encouragingly right tackle Luke Goedeke held his own against Minnesota’s most vaunted pass rusher Danielle Hunter. Goedeke didn’t shut Hunter down fully, but he held his own and wasn’t an abject liability as he was for most of last year at left guard. If Goedeke can continue to perform as he did against Minnesota, the Bucs offensive line’s floor just got raised considerably.

The lone exception to the rule that was a good performance by the offensive line was center Robert Hainsey. He was inconsistent as a pass blocker allowing pressure up the middle while causing issues for his linemates in the zone running scheme. It’s a system that should fit Hainsey’s athletic profile well, but thus far he has struggled mightily running the horizontal running game Canales is trying to implement.

Grade: B-

Defensive Line

The Bucs defensive line was stout in run defense on the day. Minnesota could not get anything going on the ground and eventually abandoned their attempts. The Vikings had 14 designed runs, yielding just 34 yards. Eight of those yards came on the Vikings’ first run so after that initial play Minnesota averaged just two yards per carry on designed runs.

Bucs nose tackle Vita Vea absolutely manhandled the Vikings offensive line en route to four combined tackles. Vea was moving like a man half his size as he filled multiple gaps sideline-to-sideline against the Vikings own horizontal running scheme and chasing down screen passes twenty yards down field. Vea was also able to help create pressure as he took advantage of the Vikings smaller interior linemen.

Rookie defensive tackle Calijah Kancey had an encouraging, albeit short-lived, debut for the Bucs as a pass rusher. He notched two pressures on just five true pass rush opportunities.

Very encouraging start for Kancey (absent the aggravation of the injury). Explosiveness, natural leverage, active hands and strength. pic.twitter.com/fRw9V36PxW

— Joshua Queipo (@josh_queipo) September 13, 2023

Bucs OLB Anthony Nelson and Vikings QB Kirk Cousins – Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The depth pieces for the Bucs interior line provided quality reps throughout the game as Greg Gaines, Mike Green and Will Gholston all helped the Bucs control the line of scrimmage. Meanwhile starter Logan Hall had a couple of solid pass rush reps and one very good tackle for a loss, but still struggled to prevent himself from getting washed down on several run plays.

The outside linebackers for the Bucs also had positive days as run defenders. Shaq Barrett, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka and Yaya Diaby all helped set the edge to prevent the Vikings running backs from getting outside where they could have been dangerous. None of the three of them stood out as pass rushers though, making the effective blitzes that Bowles cooked up that much more crucial to the defense’s success.

The standout in that room on the day was Anthony Nelson. Nelson had several good pass rushes (including an absolute beauty of a push-pull against guard Ed Ingram). As someone who has been critical of Nelson as a pass rusher, as well as the Bucs decision to re-sign him, I will happily admit he was the Bucs best pass rusher on the day.

Grade: B

Linebackers

Bucs ILB Devin White – Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Bucs linebackers were the real story of the day for Tampa Bay. Devin White played like one of the best linebackers in the NFL on the day. That’s a billing he has often received, although it could easily be debated. What couldn’t be debated on Sunday was the effect he had on the Vikings.

White was filling gaps, finding ball carriers and disrupting Minnesota’s offense on an almost play-in, play-out basis. He had an impressive twelve tackles including one for a loss. But the tackles don’t tell the story fully. He was a man possessed at the line of scrimmage, reading out blocks and getting to spots before Vikings blockers/runners could. And in coverage White was downright savant-like. He passed off underneath receivers in zone coverage and took away easy outlet passes for Cousins throughout the game. It was a great first step towards the pay-day he so desires.

Next to White, Lavonte David played exactly how most have come to expect from the veteran. He complemented his running mate well with smart decisions that put him in position to make several plays. David finished the game with eight tackles including two for a loss and a couple of moments where he made key stops followed by chirping at the Vikings sideline to help get the rest of the defense amped.

Grade: A

Secondary

Anytime a defense gives up 344 yards passing and over 150 yards to a single receiver it is hard to give the secondary a good grade. But context matters and the context around those box score stats is a defensive scheme employed by Todd Bowles that left the back end of the Bucs secondary in disadvantageous positions. Bowles took Bruce Arians’ “No risk it, no biscuit” philosophy to another level on Sunday. Here are two plays specifically that helped lead to a poor PFF grade for Bucs safety Antoine Winfield Jr. where he was in an absolute no-win situation.

Todd Bowles was in his bag on Sunday with blitz calls. Hit way more often than not. But with the reward comes the risk. And that risk often fell at AWJ’s feet.
Double corner blitz gets picked up and JJ has an easy 25 yards. pic.twitter.com/dBRmJ3ePFK

— Joshua Queipo (@josh_queipo) September 13, 2023

3×2 with JJ #2 to the boundary. Winfield will get tagged with the L in grading here but it’s just a tough position all around. TB rushes 5 including Shaq from the slot. Davis is the boundary corner and has to respect #1 pushing vert. That leaves David scrambling to the flat. pic.twitter.com/ci1dh7LHj7

— Joshua Queipo (@josh_queipo) September 12, 2023

With Bowles sending five and six defenders home throughout the game, the Bucs secondary was left having to defend miles of field against a talented receiving group that just so happened to be headlined by the best receiver in football. So, when the blitz didn’t hit the results were disastrous. Still Winfield Jr. was able to have a major positive impact as a blitzer with multiple pressures, a sack and a forced fumble for a turnover as well as a last line of defense saving more than one would-be touchdown with sound tackling.

Carlton Davis III also had some good moments when he was allowed to play in a zone that didn’t have to be 14 miles in diameter. He had a forced incompletion and a key pass breakup. Rookie nickel back Christian Izien was a revelation with solid coverage throughout the day and two key heady plays. One where he stole a touchdown out of KJ Osborn’s hands for a crucial interception late in the first half.

The #GoBucs undrafted rookie Chris Izien with a pick pic.twitter.com/pLvtxflHfp

— Christopher Mathis 🎙 (@thechrismathis) September 10, 2023

The second was more understated, but still extremely important. He made an incredible open-field tackle to shut down what would have been a third down conversion early in the game.

I know the INT was an unreal highlight, but uh, Christian Izien is very good. #GoBucs pic.twitter.com/3OUXthqbfh

— Evan Closky (@ECloskyWTSP) September 13, 2023

The biggest worry of the group was safety Ryan Neal, who at times looked lost in coverage. I’m not sure if there were communication issues or if the Vikings play designs just left him in a blender but it was a poor showing from the free agent pickup. Hopefully he turns it around next week against Chicago.

Grade: Context-curve adjusted C

Special Teams

Special teams coordinator Kieth Armstrong has been much maligned during his Bucs tenure. And deservedly so. His units have ranked towards the very bottom of the league for the entirety of his stay with the team. But on Sunday his group shined. Kicker Chase McLaughlin was perfect on his four kicks (two field goals, two extra points) including a 57-yarder in the fourth quarter that proved to be the game winner.

Punter Jake Camarda helped pin Minnesota back in its own zone throughout the day via punts and kickoffs. The Vikings average starting position was their own 21.6 yard-line. Camarda averaged over 54 yards per punt, netted 48 yards and put one third of them inside the 20. A big reason why he was able to do that was due to gunners Zyon McCollum and Josh Hayes absolutely crushing the coverage portion of those plays. It prompted one analyst to tweet out a pretty lofty comparison.

Camarda/McCollum a more elite combo than Montana/Rice. Yeah, I said it.

— Joshua Queipo (@josh_queipo) September 10, 2023

Return man Deven Thompkins had a curious decision on one of his returns, but otherwise did well to help the Bucs improve field position throughout the day. He averaged 7.3 yards per punt return with a long of 16. Perhaps most importantly he made sure to aim himself up field as he was running rather than dashing for the sideline as quick as he could. That will endear him to anyone who watched the Bucs return game last year.

Grade: B+