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The Bucs were back at it on the AdventHealth Training Center practice fields Thursday morning for the second day of training camp. The team’s second practice was its first of the summer with fans in attendance, so there was a much livelier atmosphere at One Buc Place.

Tampa Bay was once again in shorts, jerseys and helmets as the ramp-up period continues for another few days. But that didn’t mean the competition was any less fierce on a day that was once again won by the Buccaneer defense. The same players who missed Wednesday’s practice were out on Thursday as well, so there were no unexpected absences from day two.

Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds, Matt Matera, Bailey Adams and Adam Slivon were at One Buc to catch all the action. Here are their observations and takeaways from Thursday’s practice.

Yaya Diaby Steals The Show For The Bucs Defense

It was Antoine Winfield Jr. who was the star of Wednesday’s practice, but on Thursday, there was no one who stood out more than third-year outside linebacker Yaya Diaby.

While the offensive line does have a distinct disadvantage when trying to block pass rushers without the pads on, it was still hard to write off what Diaby did on Thursday simply as a product of that disadvantage. He was all over the place during 11-on-11s, as well as the team’s red zone period late in practice.

Bucs OLB Yaya Diaby – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Early in 11-on-11s, Diaby’s ability to set the edge against the run was on full display. He was consistent in his effort and technique, which created plenty of problems for the Buccaneer run game. From there, Diaby’s immense pass rushing potential shined through as he fought through for back-to-back would-be sacks – one on Connor Bazelak and another on Baker Mayfield.

He later got to Mayfield in the red zone period and knocked the ball loose for a sack-fumble, and he even had a strong coverage rep on tight end Cade Otton at one point.

It was a phenomenal start to year three for Diaby, but he wasn’t the only one getting home and making life difficult for Tampa Bay’s quarterbacks. There were would-be sacks from Markees Watts and Chris Braswell, plus a couple of potential sacks on blitzes from SirVocea Dennis, Christian Izien and Jacob Parrish.

Bucs Secondary Continues To Make Plays On The Ball

When it wasn’t getting to the quarterback on Thursday morning, Tampa Bay’s defense was making plays on the ball. Bryce Hall followed up his great practice on Wednesday with a near-interception of Baker Mayfield on Thursday. He would’ve had it, too, if not for a heads-up play by Dennis Houston to jar the ball loose and make it an incompletion rather than an interception.

Christian Izien later had tight coverage and a pass breakup on a pass intended for Kameron Johnson in the initial red zone period, and rookie Benjamin Morrison ended practice by breaking up a jump ball in the end zone that was intended for Trey Palmer.

Bucs CB Benjamin Morrison – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

It was a strong coverage day in general for the Bucs secondary, as Jacob Parrish stuck well to tight end Payne Durham on one rep and Kindle Vildor got the better of Cade Otton on another.

For a defense that is being challenged to take the ball away far more often in 2025, the first couple of camp practices have featured plenty of promising signs.

“‘Tweeze’ (Antoine Winfield Jr.) got me yesterday,” quarterback Baker Mayfield said after Thursday’s practice. “I just think all the DBs as a whole, they’re doing a really, really good job at disguising coverages. The young guys, you can tell they’re bringing them up to speed pretty quick on how to hide stuff and then show it late. They’re doing a good job of breaking on passes and making plays.

“We have a lot of depth back there. It’s hard to name all of them. Ben Morrison is a guy that, just seeing him out here, he’s moving around really well. Bryce Hall is moving around really well as well. Zyon [McCollum] just continues to get better, Jamel [Dean] is consistent. And just having Tykee [Smith] back there with Antoine, those guys just mess with your head. They’ll be down at the line of scrimmage and run back. They’re playing games.”

Tampa Bay’s Rookie Class Is Already Off To A Fast Start In Camp

It’s early, but the Bucs’ rookie class is off to a good start in its first training camp. Two days in, we’ve seen a lot of flashes from some of the top draft picks, including second-round pick Benjamin Morrison.

Coming off his hip surgery, Morrison participated early on in OTAs this summer before missing some mini-camp time. But he was healthy and ready to go when training camp began, and he said Thursday that he’s feeling better than ever.

“I feel like I’m back to myself. This is the best I’ve ever felt since [the] injury, since the surgery and everything,” Morrison said. “Just being out here, being able to compete, it’s a blessing. You don’t take this for granted anymore. Reps that you could’ve, in the past, taken for granted, now you don’t.

“You understand what it’s like to sit on the sidelines. Just being a scout team look, I take pride in that. I remember last year, being on the sideline, being like ‘When I get a chance to get back on the field, I’m gonna stay on it.”

Bucs CB Benjamin Morrison – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Morrison was even mixing in with the first-team defense on Wednesday, and head coach Todd Bowles said Thursday that they’re getting a chance to see what a healthy Benjamin Morrison looks like.

“We got a sample of what he can do when healthy,” Bowles said. “Obviously, he’s got quick feet. He’s a very smart and sticky corner, sticking on the receiver. So, we’ve just got to keep bringing him along, getting the scheme down. But he looked good.”

Morrison isn’t the only rookie standing out, of course, as third-round cornerback Jacob Parrish has continued his impressive summer, as has fourth-round outside linebacker David Walker.

And on offense, both of the Bucs’ rookie receivers are already making waves. You can see seventh-round pick Tez Johnson’s burst, quickness and agility on display already, but it’s been first-round pick Emeka Egbuka has been especially impressive.

Egbuka he looks extremely polished only days into his first pro training camp, and he’s catching just about everything thrown his way. He made one of the plays of the day for the offense on Thursday, showing off an impressive catch radius on a touchdown catch from Baker Mayfield in the red zone period.

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

Egbuka drew high praise from his quarterback after practice, too.

“You can put Emeka anywhere,” Mayfield said. “It’s the truth. It’s fun to be able to have a guy like that, that’s that intelligent. He doesn’t act like a rookie. His head’s not spinning. He’s able to do it and handle it the right way. It raises the standard for everybody else when you have a rookie coming in, learning the offense for the first time, it pushes everybody else around him. So, it’s great to have somebody like that.”

As for one more rookie to keep an eye on, Mayfield had an interesting pick when asked for an under-the-radar guy to watch throughout camp: former LSU running back-turned-undrafted free agent pickup Josh Williams.

“I think a sneaky one is Josh Williams,” Mayfield said. “He doesn’t say a word. I think he might be mute, but he does all the right things. Explosive and he was fun to watch in college. So, I think once we get the pads on, he’s going to be really fun to watch.”

Observations & Highlights From Day 2 Of Bucs Training Camp

Here are some quick-hitting observations from Tampa Bay’s second training camp practice of 2025:

• Tez Johnson, Emeka Egbuka, Trey Palmer, Kameron Johnson, Rachaad White and Jalen McMillan once again rotated through punt return reps on Thursday.
• In terms of returning kicks, Sean Tucker, Kameron Johnson, Tez Johnson, Trey Palmer, Garrett Greene and Rakim Jarrett were in the mix.
• Elijah Klein spent some time at right tackle on Thursday, once again showing the versatility he displayed during the preseason last year. Todd Bowles said after practice is one of those guys who has the versatility to play all over.
• Speaking of the tackle position, Bowles said they understand they probably need to get another depth piece in the fold soon with Tristan Wirfs’ absence, but they haven’t come to a decision yet on who that might be.
• Trey Palmer had a nice catch near the sideline during 11-on-11s before making a diving catch on a pass from Baker Mayfield during the red zone period.
• Also during the red zone period, Connor Bazelak found tight end Tanner Taula for a touchdown.