On Wednesday the Bucs took the field for the second practice of the three-day mandatory mini-camp at the AdventHealth Training Center. Practice was held under hot and humid conditions and sunny skies. Every player on the roster was in attendance, including inside linebacker and team captain Devin White, who has held out during the team’s voluntary workouts and OTAs (organized team activities).

Bucs Not Practicing

ILB Devin White – holding in or not in shape?
WR Russell Gage – got hurt during offseason workouts
C Ryan Jensen – participated in individual drills, held out of team drills
G Aaron Stinnie – participated in individual drills, held out of team drills
OLB Shaquil Barrett – not cleared to practice due to Achilles, was working out with a trainer
RB Sean Tucker – not cleared to practice due to heart condition
LB Ulysses Gilbert – undisclosed injury
WR Mike Evans – veteran rest day
CB Don Gardner – undisclosed injury

Bucs Offensive Notes

The Bucs offense didn’t turn the ball over during Wednesday’s practice after a turnover-filled practice on Tuesday. Read about how Tampa Bay’s offense battled back against Todd Bowles’ blitzing defense.

Quarterbacks

Bucs QB Kyle Trask – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

• Kyle Trask got the starter reps on Wednesday and had a nice, bounce-back performance from a Tuesday outing that saw him throw two interceptions and have a potential third pick dropped. But while he was better, Trask wasn’t perfect and nearly had a deep pass to rookie Rakim Jarrett intercepted by cornerback Carlton Davis III. Outside of that risky pass, Trask was more accurate, especially near the goal line as he threw multiple touchdowns in the 7-on-7 period.

Trask threw three straight touchdowns working near the goal line. His first one was to Trey Palmer as he and the receiver were rolling to the right. He followed that up with a bootleg to the left, hitting Taye Barber for a score. Then he found Ryan Miller for a score on a pass he threaded past cornerback Jamel Dean. In the final 11-on-11 period, Trask had nice throws to Miller and tight end Cade Otton down the field.

• For the second straight practice Baker Mayfield didn’t have any interceptions, although one of his passes was deflected at the line by Willington Previlon and caught by running back Ronnie Brown at the line of scrimmage. Mayfield didn’t have as many spectacular throws or touchdowns as Trask did on Wednesday while he was operating with the second-team offense, but he did hit tight end Payne Durham and wide receiver David Moore for touchdowns in the 7-on-7 period near the end zone. Mayfield’s TD pass to Moore was rifled in between safety Kedrick Whitehead and cornerback Anthony Chesley.

Running Backs

• The running backs have received quite a bit of action in the passing game during the offseason because of the non-contact rules. While the Bucs do run some running plays, those reps are more effective in training camp when the pads come on. Tampa Bay possesses a stable of quality backs when it comes to catching the ball. Ke’Shawn Vaughn continues to stand out in practice and is currently ahead of Chase Edmonds as the No. 2 running back behind Rachaad White.

Wide Receivers

Bucs WR David Moore – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

• Mike Evans didn’t participate in Wednesday’s practice after practicing on Tuesday. But it was another veteran who shined, along with a trio of rookies. David Moore made two nice catches down the field – one each from Kyle Trask and Baker Mayfield in 11-on-11s – as well as catching a touchdown from Mayfield in 7-on-7s.

Rookies Rakim Jarrett, Kade Warner and Ryan Miller all had nice days with Miller probably ending up with more receptions than any other Bucs weapon on Wedneday. Miller, a former tight end in Furman, has been coming on strong over the last couple of weeks.

Tight Ends

• The tight ends got a little bit more action in the passing game on Wednesday. Undrafted rookie free agent Tanner Taula continues to get open and get targeted in practice. Baker Mayfield found him racing down the right sidelines for a big gain. Cade Otton was the recipient of a nice deep shot from Kyle Trask during 11-on-11s, and Mayfield hit rookie Payne Durham with a short touchdown in 7-on-7s.

Offensive Line

• Tampa Bay’s starting offensive line – minus rehabbing center Ryan Jensen – has remained intact this offseason from the OTAs to mini-camp. The Bucs are trying to establish continuity with left tackle Tristan Wirfs and left guard Matt Feiler, in addition to rookie right guard Cody Mauch and right tackle Luke Goedeke. This is a smart approach to help build chemistry instead of having open competitions at both guard spots and at right tackle where it would take much longer to build a cohesive unit with so many moving parts.

• Robert Hainsey got the start at center on Tuesday during 11-on-11s with Jensen being held out of team drills, but on Wednesday it was Nick Leverett’s turn to start. Yet Hainsey wasn’t playing center on Wednesday. Instead, John Molchon was the second-string center with Hainsey lining up as the second-team right guard next to right tackle Grant Hermanns. Brandon Walton was the second-team left guard alongside Justin Skule at left tackle.

Bucs Defensive Notes

Tampa Bay’s defense didn’t record the takeaways on Wednesday that it did on Tuesday, but did pile up more sacks amid a myriad of blitzes. Read about how Tampa Bay’s defense fared below.

Defensive Line

Bucs DT Calijah Kancey – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

• Tampa Bay’s defensive line got serious pressure on the quarterbacks on Wednesday. Defensive tackles Vita Vea, Calijah Kancey and Pat O’Connor all had would-be sacks during practice. Defensive tackle Willington Previlon had a nice pass batted at the line of scrimmage.

Outside Linebackers

• Joe Tryon-Shoyinka has had a quiet offseason so far, but he made a nice “sack” today on a stunt up the middle on Kyle Trask. The addition of faster, quicker defensive tackles in Logan Hall and Calijah Kancey over the past two years should allow the Bucs to do more twists and stunts up front while rushing the passer. The reason? Because those two defensive tackles are fast enough as loopers to get to the outside to replace outside linebackers like Tryon-Shoyinka, who are going inside.

• The Bucs are very excited to see two edge rushers in pads – YaYa Diaby and Markees Watts. Both are very physical rookies, who can’t really show off their power during non-contact offseason practices. Tampa Bay expects both outside linebackers to shine come training camp.

Inside Linebackers

• With Devin White watching practice from the sidelines for a second straight day, KJ Britt continued to start alongside Lavonte David in his absence. Rookie SirVocea Dennis and JJ Russell continued to man the second team inside linebacker spots. None of the linebackers stood out in a particularly good or bad way on Wednesday.

Secondary

Bucs CBs Carlton Davis III and Jamel Dean – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

• The Bucs secondary came away with multiple interceptions during Tuesday’s practice, but had none on Wednesday, dropping a couple of would-be picks. It was disappointing to see Carlton Davis III go up and get a pass that hit him right in the hands and fail to bring it in.

• While there weren’t any interceptions on Wednesday, there was one takeaway by the defense – kind of. Right as the whistle blew to end a play, rookie safety Kedrick Whitehead punched the ball free from rookie running back Ronnie Brown. Was it a fumble, or was Brown saved by the whistle? No official proclamation was made either way.

• Whitehead wasn’t the only rookie safety who had a big play on Wednesday. Kaevon Merriweather came screaming inside on an interior blitz and would have had a clean sack on Kyle Trask. Bucs head coach Todd Bowles was bringing pressure from all over the field, and attacking the interior of the offensive line with looping edge rushers, blitzing linebackers and blitzing defensive backs.

• Bowles once again started Zyon McCollum and Keenan Isaac with the first-team defense to get them looks against better receivers. But of course the real starters are Carlton Davis III and Jamel Dean. It was interesting because when Davis and Dean were not in the lineup they went to the field next door and ran sprints next to each other during practice. Both cornerbacks are in impeccable shape right now.

McCollum made a nice play on a deep throw by Trask down the middle of the field. Trask put too much air under a ball for Taye Barber and McCollum left his man and raced to the middle of the field to break up the pass. It was one of the best and most instinctive pass plays that McCollum has made since becoming a Buccaneer.