Bucs OLB Rueben Bain Jr. – Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

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INTRO: The start of Tampa Bay’s 2026 season is upon and it’s time for Baker Mayfield, Todd Bowles and the Bucs to go from being good to great. Plus some big questions about Bowles’ revamped defense will be answered in Cincinnati, while new offensive coordinator Zac Robinson tries to replicate some of the success Liam Coen had with Tampa Bay’s offense in 2024. Enjoy!

FAB 1. Bounce-Backaneer: Rueben Bain Jr. And Bucs’ Disappointing Defensive Line

Rueben Bain Jr. was nowhere to be found during the Bucs’ open locker room sessions on Wednesday and Thursday. Just like he was nowhere to be found in the Bengals backfield in Sunday’s 33-27 loss at Cincinnati.

Every other Bucs defender was in the locker room at some point during those two days – except Bain. But I don’t think he was simply ducking the media and having to explain why his much-anticipated NFL debut consisted of just one tackle and zero pressures and no sacks.

I think Bain was watching film or in the weight room doing something to get better at the game of football, and I don’t mind his absence this week. Talking about his Week 1 failures wasn’t going to make him a better football player – and that’s Bain’s mindset.

Bucs OLB Rueben Bain Jr. – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

“Rueben has been who he is, the guy is a monster,” said Bucs outside linebacker Yaya Diaby, who had just one tackle and one pressure for Tampa Bay’s underwhelming defensive line on Sunday. “Just practicing and working with him, he really loves this. That was a good eye-opener for him. Now he sees what it’s like and you’ve really got to hone-in on things and get right.”

Bain, who only played six snaps in the preseason, looked unprepared and overwhelmed in Week 1 going up against Bengals behemoth right tackle Amarius Mims, a 6-foot-8, 350-pound former first-round pick. With Bain getting handled rather easily by Mims in Week 1, social media was abuzz about his short arm length once again after the game.

“That’s just all talk,” Diaby said. “When you’re a baller, you’re a baller. It doesn’t matter whether your arms are super long or super short. That man Rueben is a baller. He’s going to get it – it’s his mindset. They’re trying to talk down on him in Week 1, man, it’s a long season. It’s a long season and I know that.

“I didn’t start my rookie year until Week 11. He’s got to learn every week and it was a great eye-opener for him in Week 1. I know the work ethic he has and the love for the game that he has. He’s going to be just fine. He’ll bounce right back.”

Diaby was equally disappointing in Cincinnati, perhaps even more so given the fact that he is a four-year veteran in a contract year. He and the rest of the Bucs defensive line need a bounce-back week after Joe Burrow turned out to be the least-pressured quarterback in Week 1, according to Sumer Sports and Pro Football Focus.

Bucs OLB Yaya Diaby – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

“I just need to hone-in on what I need to hone-in on,” Diaby said. “Sometimes when you’re in the game, you get to a point where you want to get there so bad that you lose track of your own technique and your own fundamentals. So just going back to your fundamentals. It was good to get those first-game jitters out and bounce back and get back on track.

“It was really frustrating, I’m not going to lie. For me personally, we weren’t getting home and that’s just not the standard that we’re trying to establish as a D-line. Especially since he was the most-clean quarterback [in Week 1]. That’s not our standard. Our standard is to get to the quarterback and wreak havoc. This is great week to bounce back, and we have a good line to go against and get after it.”

On Sunday the Bucs host a Cleveland Browns team that got shellacked, 34-10, in Jacksonville in Week 1 in Todd Monken’s head coaching debut. Embattled veteran quarterback Deshaun Watson was sacked five times, forced to scramble six times and threw an interception as his team fell behind 31-0 in the third quarter before manufacturing 10 points in garbage time to end the game.

Calijah Kancey had a good game and finished with four pressures, but didn’t record a tackle. Vita Vea, who recently cashed in on a new, one-year contract extension worth $27 million, looked like a defensive tackle who spent all summer watching training camp rather than participating in it. He finished Sunday’s game with zero tackles and one pressure, making very little impact as he looked rusty and his technique was sloppy.

Bucs DT Vita Vea and Bengals QB Joe Burrow – Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

“The ball was coming out fast at one point, but at the same time we weren’t rushing together,” Diaby said. “A lot of guys were just trying to get theirs you know? It was the first game. Everybody was trying to be the ‘wow guy’ in Week 1. This week we’ve been practicing working together, getting back on that track. [Defensive line coach] Marcus West has been doing a great job on what we were doing in camp, getting back on that track.

“We’ve got the D-line to do it. We’ve just got to work together, and everything will be just fine. It’s everybody – the whole front, O-line, D-line, it’s going to be a bounce-back week for all of us. We’ve got to get it. We have to make sure we get to the quarterback and we’ll be just fine.”

The Bucs’ rebuilt defensive front, which featured newcomers in Bain, A’Shawn Robinson, Al-Quadin Muhammad and the return of Rakeem Nunez-Roches, was expected to be a real force in 2026. Instead, it was a real dud in Week 1.

“This is a great bounce back week – not just for Bain, but for the whole D-line,” Diaby said. “Our standard is to get to the quarterback, so I’m really excited for this weekend to see us bounce back.”

Bain, Diaby, Vea and the rest of the Bucs defensive line need to be the Bounce-backaneers in the worst way, but they’re not the only ones who disappointed in the team’s Week 1 loss at Cincinnati.

FAB 2. Bounce-Backaneer: New Defensive Captain Alex Anzalone After A Rough Week 1

As bad of a Buccaneers debut as rookie Rueben Bain Jr. had in Cincinnati, inside linebacker Alex Anzalone’s first game in red and pewter might have been even more disappointing. At age 31, Anzalone is a seasoned veteran and a linebacker who has excelled in pass coverage, which has been a weakness at the position in Tampa Bay for the past couple of seasons.

So to see the Bucs’ new team captain and green-dot wearer out of position and getting worked in coverage by Bengals tight end Mike Gesicki was eye-opening. As was the fact that Anzalone missed two key tackles in the fourth quarter on two critical third downs.

“Obviously the tackling has to get better,” Anzalone said. “Situational football, third downs – I think we were 8-of-14 (57.1%) or something like that – not up to the standard that we set for ourselves. We’ve got to figure out a way to get it fixed.

Anzalone appeared to slip on the turf on both of those crucial missed tackles, perhaps a sign that he had the wrong type of cleats on – although he wasn’t willing to use that as an excuse.

“Maybe, I think on two of them – no excuses, though,” Anzalone said. “I don’t know. Maybe. It was Week 1. As a linebacker, you don’t want to miss any, but you don’t want to miss multiple in a game.”

Anzalone and Josiah Trotter played in Todd Bowles’ defense for the first time on Sunday, yet it was the veteran who looked like a rookie and the rookie who looked like a veteran. Anzalone was misaligned on several plays, including Gesicki’s touchdown catch in the lower red zone, while Trotter led the team with 10 tackles, a sack and a pick-six in his Bucs debut.

Bucs ILB Alex Anzalone and Bengals RB Chase Brown – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

Yet one of the plays Anzalone was not misaligned on was Joe Burrow’s 12-yard run on a QB draw when the Bengals signal-caller saw the middle of the Bucs defense wide open. Instead that was likely on Tampa Bay’s defensive tackles Rakeem Nunez-Roches and Elijah Roberts – both of whom were in the B gaps between the guards and tackles.

“No, we were in Quarters, but usually when you’re in that situation the D-line can have a quick game [to cover the A gaps],” Anzalone said.

Anzalone wound up being the lowest-graded Bucs defender by Pro Football Focus in Sunday’s loss with a 32.3 overall grade, a 36 run defensive grade, a 38.3 tackle grade and a 39 coverage grade.

Count Anzalone as a Buccaneer who needs to become a Bounce-backaneer on Sunday against Cleveland. Anzalone, whose family has lived in Tampa for years despite playing several seasons in Detroit, will have plenty of supporters at Raymond James Stadium in Week 2.

And he’s ready to put last week’s loss behind him and make amends for his poor play.

“For sure, even today (Wednesday), practice couldn’t come soon enough,” Anzalone said. “You’ve got to take the L, nip it in the bud, and move on.”

FAB 3. Bounce-Backaneer: Baker Mayfield After 3 Costly Fumbles

Baker Mayfield was ready to bounce back from his three-fumble performance in Tampa Bay’s 33-27 Week 1 loss at Cincinnati about a minute after that game ended. That’s just the way the Bucs quarterback is wired.

In his post-game press conference, Mayfield owned his mistakes, and they were costly.

Usually when a team finishes minus-3 in the turnover margin it loses by double-digits – sometimes in blowout fashion. But that wasn’t the case on Sunday against the Bengals. Despite Mayfield’s first fumble leading directly to a Bengals touchdown on a scoop-and-score by linebacker Demetrius Knight Jr., and his second fumble costing the Bucs at least three points as he fumbled into the end zone for a touchback, Tampa Bay lost by just six points.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

By the time Wednesday rolled around, Mayfield resiliency showed at the podium. He had already turned the page on his three fumbles and was focused on facing his former team, the Cleveland Browns, in Week 2.

Still, he addressed his fumbles – Mayfield leads the league with 35 (20 lost) since 2023 – head on during his press conference.

“I think it’s tricky,” Mayfield said. “It truly came down to fundamentals at that point near the goal line, of [my] wrist being below the elbow. I had it, and I was trying to get the offhand to cover it up, but it was too low. When the guy gets an arm in there, it pops out. So, it truly comes back to the fundamentals.

“I don’t think it had anything to do with the risk of running. That was a decision – they dropped into coverage [and] covered the scheme well. For me in the red zone, legs have to come alive – the scramble drill has to be a thing down there. But yeah, at that point, I don’t have to score. I had the first-down yardage. Now [I’ve got to] make sure I have the ball and get down or get in the end zone.”

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

Mayfield’s other two fumbles came on sacks as he held on to the ball too long – each time over four seconds instead of throwing the ball away.

“Yeah, I think it comes down to just not wanting it so bad every play, and it’s a hard balance because you love the [energy] that he plays with,” said Bucs offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. “You don’t want to take that away, for sure. I think you just continually [give him] reminders. You watch tape and you just keep speaking to him that way.

“Chandler [Whitmer] does a great job in the quarterback room. We [talk about] situational football, when we can take care of it, when’s the time that, hey, we do need a yard here [or] we do need two yards [or] it’s third down [and] we’ve got to go get it. You’re just trying to create awareness as much as you can through the tape, and we’ll keep emphasizing that stuff. It was unique. [I] don’t think it’ll happen again, but unfortunately it happened, and I know he’ll be better from that.”

Outside of One Buccaneer Place, there are some concerns that Mayfield will again try to do too much this week, especially with the emotions over playing the team that made him the No. 1 overall pick in 2018 and then traded him away in 2022 after trading for quarterback Deshaun Watson. But inside the building there aren’t those same concerns.

The coaches expect Mayfield to more focused on the details and the fundamentals after a three-fumble game in Week 1 rather than being too focused on getting revenge against his former team in Week 2.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

“I know he’ll be juiced up just like we all are to really just get more of a bad taste out of your mouth,” Robinson said. “It’s the next opponent, it’s the next week, and you just look forward to these opportunities. You only get so many of these games that all of them are special.”

Mayfield has to be more focused on doing what is necessary to improve the Bucs’ record to 1-1 rather than simply beating Watson and his former team. Outside of his costly turnovers, Mayfield completed 23-of-28 passes (82.1%) for 216 yards with one rushing score in Week 1 – not a bad day at all for him as a passer.

“Yeah, I mean, the fumbles are something I can get fixed,” Mayfield said. “If it was something that wasn’t fixable, I’d probably be in a different spot. It’s something that I can personally get fixed [and] not put our team in that spot.

“It’s also Week 1, it’s game 1. Like I always say, football teaches you life lessons. It’s how you handle adversity, how you get better, how you move forward…You can’t dwell on it because we still have 16 games to go. So, for me, [it’s about] focusing on that, harping on the details, ball security and going forward.”

FAB 4. Inside The Bucs’ Communication Issues On Offense In Week 1

The Bucs’ headset communication in the team’s Week 1 loss at Cincinnati was obvious from the start. From the first drive on, quarterback Baker Mayfield was having some real problems hearing the play call from offensive coordinator Zac Robinson. That resulted in multiple times where the Bucs broke the huddle with 10 seconds or less left on the play clock and Mayfield receiving the snap right as the play clock hit zero.

It also cost the Bucs one delay of game penalty and forced the team to burn a timeout to avoid another one.

“Yeah, the communication, that was a unique situation that first drive, and really it lasted the whole game,” Robinson explained on Thursday. “Baker – we’re lucky we have a quarterback that understands the game plan to a high, high level and was able to kind of get us in and out of stuff. It was definitely a unique situation, but he did a great job handling it.

“It was kind of sporadically throughout the drives, and there would be times I’d look out at him and I’d say the play – I typically say it twice – [and] there would be times I could tell after I said it the second time, he’s still standing there. So there [were] times I had to say [it] four or five times, and he would kind of get every fourth or fifth word and then [be] able to piece it together.”

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

I spoke with backup quarterback Jalon Daniels about how Mayfield was able to navigate the communication issues on Sunday and he marveled at the way the veteran was able to decipher the play calls despite only hearing one or two words each time Robinson called the play in over the headset. And there were times when Mayfield had to run over to the sidelines to get the play call from Robinson and then run back to the huddle.

And there were also a few plays Mayfield had to just call a play off the top of his head that they ran in practice because he simply couldn’t hear Robinson’s calls at all.

“He did a great job, especially considering the headset issues,” Tampa Bay center Graham Barton said. “He was running back and forth and kind of calling some plays off the dome, but it was good in those regards. Obviously, we’d love to have some plays back on Sunday, but it fuels the fire and we keep moving forward.”

Robinson credits Mayfield’s high football I.Q. and veteran presence for being able to handle the pressure of not being able to hear the play calls time and time again and still be productive and convert 50% on third downs while putting 20 points on the scoreboard.

“We had a delay of game that was really unfortunate – that was, in a sense, [because] that was occurring,” Robinson said. “Again, we were lucky to have Baker be able to handle that because it was a unique situation I don’t think any of us have ever been a part of, but he did a great job handling it. We were still able to get in and out of the huddle. I know sometimes we were up against the clock, but yeah, it was an issue for sure. We just adjusted on the fly and kind of dealt with it. [It’s] part of the game of football. If it happens, we’ll have some contingency plans for the next time.”

Bucs QBs Jalon Daniels and Baker Mayfield – Photo courtesy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Where breaking the huddle with 10 seconds or less really hurt the Bucs was Mayfield’s inability to get a true pre-snap read of the Bengals defense on some plays. And it also barely allowed for Tampa Bay to run it’s pre-snap motion and double motion at times.

“I heard Baker in the back screaming for the ball and clapping his hands,” Barton said. “That’s my cue. You see the clock running down and obviously you know we’ve got to go and snap the ball, but I didn’t realize how close it was several times. That was crazy. Obviously, we would love to avoid that because when you’re getting down to the wire and the tackles are trying to time off the cadence. And when you get down in the cadence, I don’t have a choice – I have to throw the ball back to him.

“Where it hurt us is at certain times, we’ll flip plays at the line or can plays – that’s no secret. And if we don’t have time, we don’t have time. Obviously when we change a play, we’re changing it because of a certain look. And if you have to run that play into a certain look you don’t like because you don’t have time to change it, it’s usually not going to be good. Hopefully the headset thing is fixed moving forward.”

FAB 5. SR’s Buc Shots

• Bucs wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr. threw two wicked stiff-arms against the Bengals on Sunday, and on the first one, Cincinnati cornerback DJ Turner II hit the ground, instantly sprung up and tackled Godwin – albeit out of bounds (no flag was thrown, though). That was a pretty incredible play from both Godwin and Turner.

“It was a good response by him,” Godwin said. “Because I stiff-armed him and that was as fast as I’ve ever seen someone get up off the ground. That was a great play.”

Godwin said he’s been trying to use his strength and his physicality in recent years and land more stiff-arms. He landed two in Cincinnati, including his second one, which sprung him on a 30-yard catch-and-run.

“I was just trying to make something happen and make plays,” Godwin said. “You just try to add things to your toolbox. I didn’t really connect on a lot of those when I was younger, but I’ve been able to connect on more as of late, so it’s nice to have.”

• The definition of an “explosive play” varies from team to team and offensive coordinator to offensive coordinator. So on Thursday, I asked Bucs offensive coordinator Zac Robinson what his definition of an explosive play is in terms of a run and a reception.

“I think every place I’ve been has been a little bit different,” Robinson said. “Usually in the pass game, 15-plus [yards], and then usually in the run game, it’s either 10-plus or 12-plus [yards]. I think right now we’re at 12-plus [yards] with that.”

Tampa Bay had four explosive plays in the passing game, led by Chris Godwin Jr.’s 30-yard catch-and-run, while the team fell just short of an explosive run with Bucky Irving’s longest carry at Cincinnati going for 10 yards.

• Tampa Bay’s offense is expecting wide receiver Jalen McMillan to be active on Sunday and bring some explosiveness to the passing game. McMillan has been practicing for the last several weeks after injuring his knee in training camp but was held out of action in Week 1.

“Yeah, I think ‘J-Mac,’ dating back to his days at Washington, we watched him coming out a ton,” Bucs play-caller Zac Robinson said. “Then when you saw what he could do his rookie year. He’s wired to separate, and he’s got great separation skills. He’s got great tools at the line of scrimmage. He knows how to set defenders’ leverages.

“I think he’s good, really, across the board. He’s just a really solid, sound receiver. He’s got great hands. His separation skills have been impressive when he’s been healthy out there, and we look forward to, if he’s able to play this game, having him out there when he’s ready to go.”

The Pewter Pregame Show Kicks Off At 9:00am On Sunday

The Pewter Pregame podcast kicks off at 9:00 a.m. this Sunday just hours before the Bucs home season against the Browns. The Pewter Pregame LIVE stream can be found on the PewterReportTV YouTube channel as well as Pewter Report’s social media channels on X and Facebook at 9:00 a.m. ET on game day.

Scott Reynolds and Bailey Adams preview the game, reveal their Bucs players to watch, provide the latest injury updates and answer questions from Bucs fans live during this one-hour show. Can’t make the LIVE Pewter Pregame show? You can always watch the archived show any time before kickoff on PewterReportTV.

Watch Pewter GameDay: Bucs vs. Browns LIVE In-Game Analysis

Pewter Report’s popular in-game LIVE Pewter GameDay show kicks off on the PewterReportTV YouTube channel on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. ET as the Bucs face the Browns in the home opener. Pewter Report’s Matt Matera and Josh Queipo to analyze all of the action in real time during Tampa Bay’s three-hour game.

The Pewter GameDay show will not show the Bucs game, so Tampa Bay fans are encouraged to watch the game live on the broadcast network and also tune in to the Pewter Report staff on Pewter GameDay via PewterReportTV on YouTube for added context and insight to enhance your viewing pleasure.

The PR staff will also answer your questions throughout the game. The Pewter GameDay LIVE stream can also be found on Pewter Report’s X and Facebook channels. Click the link below at 1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday to watch Pewter GameDay on our PewterReportTV YouTube channel.