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Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds answers your questions from the @PewterReport Twitter account each week in the Bucs Monday Mailbag. Submit your question to the Bucs Monday Mailbag each week via Twitter using the hashtag #PRMailbag. Here are the questions we chose to answer for this week’s edition.

QUESTION: With Julio Jones being so injury prone, is signing Odell Beckham Jr. a realistic option for the Bucs?

ANSWER: The Julio Jones situation is a troubling one right now for the Bucs. It’s odd for a player to practice all week – although on a limited basis – and then not play in a game. That’s what happened this past week with Jones, who participated in practice all three days and was listed as questionable for the Falcons game – not doubtful. Usually it’s the opposite – especially for star players – where they may not practice all week but then when it’s game day, they decide to play.

Bucs WR Julio Jones – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Jones played in the season opener at Dallas and had three catches for 69 yards and two carries for 17 yards before suffering a partial PCL tear that kept him out of the games against New Orleans and Green Bay. He returned to action for the first half of the Bucs’ game against the Chiefs, where he caught one out of his two targets for seven yards before sitting out the second half after his knee began bothering him. After Sunday’s 21-15 win over the Falcons, head coach Todd Bowles was asked for an update when Jones decided not to play against his former team.

“We’ll play that by ear,” Bowles said. “We’ll see how serious he’s hurt, and we’ll play it week-by-week right now. We’ll come to a decision at some point.”

Right now, Jones is looking like a $6 million mistake. The 33-year old has been injury prone over the last two years and his legs just might be shot. It’s a shame because he did have some practices in training camp where he looked like the Jones of old. The Bucs gave him plenty of rest with the hopes that the scheduled days off could preserve his legs for the season, but ultimately that didn’t happen.

Jones looks like the second coming of Richard Sherman, the future Hall of Fame cornerback who was signed last year but just didn’t have anything left in the tank. It seems like that’s what is happening with Jones. Cutting him doesn’t save any salary cap room, and keeping him only takes away a roster spot from a healthier player. If Jones is not going to play, perhaps the best thing is to put him on injured reserve and look at making a run at Odell Beckham Jr., who is probably a month away from returning from a torn ACL, which he suffered in last year’s Super Bowl.

QUESTION: Any word on the injuries to Bucs cornerbacks Sean Murphy-Bunting and Carlton Davis III?

ANSWER: The Bucs will know more over the next 24-48 hours about the injuries to cornerbacks Sean Murphy-Bunting and Carlton Davis III. The quadriceps injury to Murphy-Bunting appears to be more serious. He’s scheduled to get an MRI, but apparently he felt something pop in his quad. If it’s a pulled muscle, that’s one thing. If he tore a muscle in his quad, that’s far more severe and could threaten his 2022 season.

Davis has a hip injury and how he feels the day after the game will determine a lot. If Davis just feels sore, he could very much be in play for Sunday’s game at Pittsburgh. But if his hip swelled up overnight, that could affect his practice time this week and his status for the Steelers game.

Rookie cornerback Zyon McCollum got his first action on defense after just playing on special teams last week. Bowles commented on his progress after the game, with McCollum playing 13 snaps on defense after Davis and Murphy-Bunting went out with injuries.

“I thought he did a great job on the kickoff, going down there and trying to cause disruption being in the middle of the kickoff.” Bowles said. “Corner-wise, we’ll look at the tape. But he got some experience. He got his feet wet and the game wasn’t too big for him.”

The other injured member of the secondary was safety Mike Edwards. He injured his right elbow trying to make an arm tackle on Olamide Zaccheaus’ 19-yard touchdown catch. That injury is not believed to be serious.

QUESTION: Why didn’t Byron Leftwich use Rachaad White and Cade Otton that much in the second half? They both where having great game in the first half and helped our offense move the ball. So why did they stop using them in passing game?

ANSWER: Both rookies – tight end Cade Otton and running back Rachaad White – had very productive games against Atlanta. Bucs head coach Todd Bowles was pleased with the effort and the performance of both players.

Bucs RB Rachaad White – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“I thought Cade was solid,” Bowles said. “He caught a lot of balls. We’ll see about the blocking. I know he’s a willing blocker. Rachaad caught some balls and turned upfield. I thought he did a good job and looked fast.”

Otton had a career-high six catches for 43 yards (7.2 avg.) with a long of 12 yards. Five of those catches for 40 yards came in the first half. White had three carries for 11 yards and caught three passes for 28 yards (9.3 avg.) in the first half. He had just two carries for three yards in the second half and no more catches.

So, why did the Bucs go away from these two productive rookies? A big reason was the lack of snaps in the second half. The Bucs had 44 plays in the first half, racking up 297 yards in the process. In the second half, Tampa Bay had just 31 plays – mostly due to three straight three-and-outs after an 11-play, 74-yard touchdown drive to start the second half built a 21-0 lead.

So more than anything, it was having 13 fewer plays due to the lack of effectiveness and having to punt the ball on three straight drives in the second half. And perhaps Tom Brady trusting veteran players a bit more once the score narrowed to 21-7 and ultimately 21-15. But look for Otton and White to become more of a factor in the offense moving forward. They’ve earned more targets and touches due to Sunday’s performance.

QUESTION: Are the struggles in the run game a matter of personnel, new O-linemen and backs? Or is there a problem with play-calling and blocking scheme?

ANSWER: It’s not one thing. Several things have to work right for any play – run or pass – to work and be executed correctly. The offensive line can form a perfect pocket and the throw from the quarterback can be in the perfect spot, but if the receiver slips coming out of his route or doesn’t run the route correctly, the result is an incompletion.

It’s the same thing in the running game. The offensive line can have a hat on a hat and execute their blocks flawlessly, but if the running back doesn’t hit the right hole or runs with hesitation rather than authority, the result of the run isn’t going to be ideal. And sometimes, the offensive line does its job, but a tight end might miss a block on the perimeter and the run is stopped for no gain or a loss. All it takes is one player penetrating the line of scrimmage to blow up a run play.

The problems plaguing the Bucs’ ground game are multiple. There are times when Leonard Fournette has lacked the vision to find the right crease to hit and hasn’t run with authority. Every offensive lineman and tight end have missed a block at some point. That’s naturally going to happen, especially with two inexperienced linemen in left guard Luke Goedeke and center Robert Hainsey. Those two started just their fifth NFL games and are replacing two Pro Bowl players. Goedeke and Hainsey are learning on the job, and the run game is suffering some growing pains as a result.

I do think there is a predictability to Tampa Bay’s rushing attack that certainly doesn’t help. Some of it is predictable play-calling based on the personnel in the game, such as running out of 12 (two tight ends) or 13 personnel (three tight ends). And some of it is predictable play-calling based on down and distance.

There is also some lack of imagination to the Bucs ground game. Where are the end arounds to the receivers? Those plays have been effective over the last couple of seasons and should be featured a time or two each game due to their previous success.

And finally, not having Rob Gronkowski at tight end is also a factor. He was a reliable, proven run blocking in-line tight end. Kyle Rudolph looks like his tank is empty, and Cam Brate was never known to be a good blocker. Rookies Cade Otton and Ko Kieft have had some promising moments, but are undergoing some serious on-the-job training as rookies right now. All of these elements combined have affected the success of the running game.

QUESTION: Why is Rakeem Nunez-Roches still on the roster? At this point he brings nothing to the table but being a body on the roster.

ANSWER: I strongly disagree. Rakeem Nunez-Roches, who is otherwise known as “Nacho” by his teammates, is a valuable run-stuffing defensive tackle. He’s not an elite athlete and is better in a reserve role than getting the extended snaps he’s getting as a part-time starter with rookie Logan Hall while Akiem Hicks is out. But Nunez-Roches knows this scheme, and even above-average defensive tackles don’t grow on trees. They are hard to find, and Nunez-Roches knows this defensive scheme inside and out.

Bucs DT Rakeem Nunez-Roches – Photo by: USA Today

Pro Football Focus isn’t necessarily the authority on player grades, and I don’t always agree with their assessments. But PFF had Nunez-Roches with a 64.3 overall grade and a 67.8 run defense grade prior to the Falcons game. Those grades are higher than they are for starters Will Gholston (57.8 overall, 56.5 run defense) and Hicks (48 overall, 49 run defense).

Nunez-Roches doesn’t offer much in terms of pass rush, and he’s not included in Tampa Bay’s nickel rush packages for that reason. But for the role he’s asked to play, he does it pretty well. And Nunez-Roches also brings tremendous value as a locker room guy and a fire-starter at practice and on game days with his high-energy personality and attitude.

It’s fair to say that Bucs newcomer Deadrin Senat is actually outplaying Nunez-Roches. PFF has an overall 90.4 grade for Senat, and a 87.6 run-stuffing grade prior to Sunday’s game against Atlanta. Senat also got his first career sack on Sunday against Atlanta, the team that drafted him back in 2018. So perhaps Senat should take some of the snaps away from Nunez-Roches based on how effective he’s been. But there is still a place for Nunez-Roches in Tampa Bay this year.