The Bucs are in a much different spot heading into 2024 than the one they were in ahead of the 2023 season. And it’s clear that the continuity coming off of last season is breeding a palpable confidence throughout the team. You could feel it during Wednesday’s practice, the first of training camp, and you can expect the players and coaches to carry that confidence and build on it going forward.

After all, there are some good vibes circulating throughout the team facility at the AdventHealth Training Center, and for good reason. Little was expected of the Bucs last year after the retirement of Tom Brady. They were immediately discarded as yesterday’s news, and at one time they faced the longest odds to win the NFC South. The summer was spent talking about a quarterback competition between a Baker Mayfield — who had bounced between three teams in one calendar year prior to signing with Tampa Bay — and Kyle Trask, who had nine career pass attempts in two seasons prior to 2023.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

Some skepticism was warranted, but far too many people ignored the talent remaining in the Bucs locker room. And when Mayfield went out and revived his career with a 4,000-yard, 28-touchdown Pro Bowl season, the team’s biggest question was answered. It did take a turnaround from 4-7 to 9-8, but Tampa Bay three-peated as NFC South champions, won a playoff game over Philadelphia and went toe-to-toe with Detroit in the NFC Divisional Round.

The Bucs went from down and out to finishing 2023 as one of the league’s surprise teams. And it’s hard not to feel like there could be even better times ahead in 2024, as 11th-year receiver and team legend Mike Evans alluded to after Wednesday’s practice.

“Last year, we heard all the talk about us being… We lost Tom [Brady], we were going to be trash and things like that,” Evans said. But we knew the caliber of players that we had. And this year, we’re going to be better, I feel like. It’s already showing. I know it’s just day one, but OTAs, it was different than it was a year before. We know Baker’s gonna be the guy. Last year, we didn’t know that [when] preparing. It’s a lot more continuity. Just learn the new offense and we’re good.”

The Bucs’ Continuity Is Grounded In Their Foundation

So much of the Bucs’ confidence and the high level of expectations they have entering the new season are based on the fact that they kept their core intact this offseason. Quarterback Baker Mayfield signed a three-year, $100 million contract and officially can call Tampa home after splitting the 2022 calendar year between three teams and cities. Mike Evans signed a two-year, $52 million deal to get him a step closer to being a Buc for life.

Bucs WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Lavonte David re-signed on a one-year deal, while kicker Chase McLaughlin inked a three-year pact with the team after a phenomenal 2023 season. And All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. became the league’s highest-paid defensive back with his new four-year deal.

Just like that, Tampa Bay brought back its top five free agents entering the 2024 offseason, and they’re all locked and loaded for another run at the playoffs with some other core, foundational pieces who have been longtime Bucs themselves.

There’s Vita Vea, Jamel Dean, Tristan Wirfs and Chris Godwin, all members of the Super Bowl LV-winning team in 2020. And there are some younger cornerstones who have emerged — or are still emerging — as big contributors for this team. Think Rachaad White, Trey Palmer, Luke Goedeke, Cody Mauch, Calijah Kancey and Yaya Diaby, among others.

There’s a good core in place for this Buccaneer team, and that’s reason enough to have some confidence that they’ll be able to build off of a strong finish to 2023 and go a step further in 2024. But then you add in the reunion with Jordan Whitehead as well as the addition of a strong rookie class headlined by Graham Barton, Chris Braswell, Jalen McMillan and Tykee Smith? Yeah, it makes sense that these coaches and players are returning to training camp with a good feeling about what they can do in 2024.

Even With Some Changes, Bucs Feel They Can Be Even Better In 2024

It’s not as if everything is the same for the Bucs heading into 2024. They do have to adjust to another new offensive coordinator — their third in three years — as the team hired Liam Coen to replace Dave Canales, who left to take the Panthers’ head coaching job. Coen, who comes from the Sean McVay coaching tree and comes to Tampa Bay with play-calling experience, began installing his offense earlier this summer during OTAs and mini-camp.

Bucs OC Liam Coen – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Now, it’s time for the group to come back together and sharpen their knowledge of the scheme — then execute come time for the regular season. And while Coen’s offense shares a lot of elements and philosophies with what Tampa Bay ran under Canales last year, there are other wrinkles that have the team feeling good about its chances of putting up more points and playing with more consistency this season.

“It’s a lot more movement, so defenses can’t just sit there and know what we’re doing,” Mike Evans said Wednesday. “It’s going to be a lot of movement, a lot of eye candy. And that’s going to help me and our team a lot.”

While the offense adapts to the new offensive system under Coen, the defense saw some changes of its own this offseason. A lot of the core pieces of Todd Bowles’ defense are still in town, but a few familiar faces are gone. Devin White signed with the Eagles, Carlton Davis III was traded to the Lions and Shaq Barrett signed with the Dolphins, then ultimately retired. So as 2024 begins, the Buccaneer defense will have many of the same leaders, but also some new ones. And there’s no worry on Bowles’ end about some newer leaders stepping up.

“I feel great. We’ve still got Lavonte [David], we’ve still got Vita [Vea], we’ve still got [Antoine] Winfield Jr., obviously,” Bowles said. “The guys that are taking their places…Zyon [McCollum] has started nine games last year – he’s played. K.J. [Britt] got a taste last year – he’s a natural leader for us. Joe [Tryon-Shoyinka] has been here for us for a while. And, we’ve got some hungry young guys at those positions.

“When you have a lot of good players, you’re either going to lose some to free agency, or some to retirement, or some to injury and you’ve got to start having somebody back behind them. I think Jason [Licht] did a good job of getting guys in here that can play and step in at the right time. They may not be the household names that you’re used to, but as the season goes on, you’re going to get to know them very well.”

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

There’s continuity throughout much of the team, but it’s up to the Bucs to roll with some of the changes and thrive regardless. Though it was only day one on Wednesday, it was easy to feel a different vibe both during practice and during post-practice interviews.

The Super Bowl is the goal. The Bucs aren’t shy about that, and they shouldn’t be. This team knows what it’s capable of, and so many of the team’s veterans have been there and done it. Now, they want to do it again – while bringing the team’s younger stars along with them.

Evans himself knows what it was like to lose year in and year out, and he said Wednesday that chasing a fifth straight playoff appearance and fourth straight division title shows how far the franchise has come since the early days of his career. And he has no interest in going back to those days.

“It’s going to be five straight, right? Dang. We came a long way. We came a long way,” Evans said. “We had to have some things happen free agency-wise and with the team and our players getting better over time. Our management team has been doing a great job. I look back on those times, and I never want to go back. We are always trying to fight to get in the playoffs. Then obviously, when we get in the playoffs, you see what we can do.”