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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: Who sees more work as the RB2 on the team – Rachaad White, Ke’Shawn Vaughn or Giovani Bernard?

ANSWER: The guess here is rookie Rachaad White because he’s the Bucs’ shiny new toy. I didn’t believe for a second that the team thought Ke’Shawn Vaughn was “lead back” material despite assertions from former head coach Bruce Arians and general manager Jason Licht. If Tampa Bay thought Vaughn was “lead back” caliber, the team wouldn’t have spent a third-round pick on White just two years after drafting Vaughn in the third round.

Bucs RB Ke’Shawn Vaughn – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Now, White has yet to play a down in the NFL, while Vaughn is entering his third season in the league. But White has gotten rave reviews from coaches and scouts during the OTAs. The fact that he’s faster, more athletic and better in the passing game makes White a more attractive option at RB2 – unless Vaughn really steps up his game in training camp, which could happen.

Vaughn had a breakthrough game at Carolina last December with 70 yards and a touchdown on seven carries with Leonard Fournette out of the lineup. But in the next three games, Vaughn carried the ball 35 times for just 110 yards and two touchdowns for a pedestrian 3.2 yards per carry. While he did a better job of catching the ball down the stretch, he only had six catches for 35 yards. That’s a sub-par 5.8-yard receiving average.

I think what Vaughn did – or didn’t do – in those last few games without Fournette prompted the Bucs to draft White. Tampa Bay needs a faster back with more elusiveness, and someone who can make things happens out of the backfield in the passing game. White caught 43 passes for 456 yards (10.6 avg.) and a touchdown last year at Arizona State.

As for Giovani Bernard, he’s flashed a couple of times when healthy, and he does bring veteran experience back to Tampa Bay. But the future of the position appears to be White – first as RB2 and possibly as RB1 down the road, eventually replacing Fournette, who turned 27 this year. But first, White will need to beat out Vaughn, and he’ll need to continue his offseason momentum into training camp and the preseason to accomplish that feat.

QUESTION: How’s Tristan Wirfs’ leg?

ANSWER: Bucs All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs didn’t need surgery on his severely sprained ankle. Wirfs injured his ankle against Philadelphia in the Wild Card round of the 2022 NFL playoffs. He missed the Rams game the following week. There was some speculation that Wirfs may not be ready to participate in on-field practices until the mandatory mini-camp in June.

But Wirfs has been a full participant at the voluntary OTAs and is doing everything from individual unit drills to full 11-on-11 periods with no ill effects. If Wirfs isn’t at 100%, he’s awfully close. And he’ll have close to two months off before training camp begins in late July.

QUESTION: What kind of QB pressures can we expect with Shaq Barrett, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Vita Vea and Will Gholston? And what about the linebackers and defensive backs?

ANSWER: Pewter Report’s Josh Queipo actually did an article on this over the weekend. The quartet of defenders you mentioned recorded 27.5 sacks last year. Queipo predicts a combined increase to 38.5 this season for those players. Tampa Bay had 47 sacks last year. That was one less than the team recorded in 2020 en route to winning Super Bowl LV.

Bucs OLB Joe Tryon-Shoyinka – Photo by: USA Today

Considering that the Bucs got 8.5 sacks from the team’s inside linebackers and blitzing defensive backs, that would put the team at 47 sacks again. The wild card could be rookie defensive tackle Logan Hall, who is replacing Ndamukong Suh. In a recent appearance on the Pewter Report Podcast, Bucs defensive end Will Gholston said he could see Hall getting six sacks or more in 2022. Suh notched six sacks last year, so that would put Tampa Bay’s projected sack total at 53.

Yet, even the great Warren Sapp only recorded three sacks as a part-time starter during his rookie season. It’s always hard for rookie defensive tackles to come in and have immediate success. Although, Santana Dotson set the rookie record for sacks in Tampa Bay during the 1992 season with 10. If Hall has six sacks during his rookie season, that would be considered a tremendous start to his Bucs career.

QUESTION: How much are the Bucs mortgaging their future with prorated bonuses being given in 2021/2022? It seems like there’s a mountain of dead cap money coming that will leave us noncompetitive for a few years.

ANSWER: There is no doubt that Tom Brady’s return has kept the team’s Super Bowl window open one more season. And yes, the Bucs have mortgaged their future to a degree. As it stands right now the Bucs are projected to be $47 million over next year’s salary cap. Brady’s dead cap hit of just over $35 million is the biggest reason. If Rob Gronkowski returns, he’ll likely have at least $5 million worth of dead cap room hitting next year as well.

But there are plenty of ways general manager Jason Licht and vice president of football administration Mike Greenberg can create more cap room. Eight Bucs will make $11 million or more next year. And some of that money can be allocated into the future to create relief in 2023. Next year’s salary cap is expected to rise up to $220 million-$225 million.

With quarterbacks traditionally taking up so much cap space, having a year – possibly 2023 – with cheaper QB options would help. Having Kyle Trask on his rookie deal and possibly re-signing Blaine Gabbert for a few million would greatly help. That scenario, although not ideal, could go a long way toward righting the ship when it comes to the cap.

QUESTION: If Rob Gronkowski doesn’t return, are the Bucs happy with Cameron Brate as a starter?

Bucs TE Cam Brate – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

ANSWER: If Rob Gronkowski retires this offseason, the team would likely sign another veteran tight end. The Bucs like their young collection of talent at the tight end position. But having four rookies along with veteran Cameron Brate is not ideal. Tampa Bay has high hopes for Cade Otton, its fourth-round pick. But he’s still recovering from ankle surgery and likely won’t be able to go until training camp.

To answer your question more directly, I think the Bucs would be reluctantly comfortable with Brate, who will be 31 in July, as a starter. Tampa Bay’s offense is wide receiver-driven anyways. So, it could feature more four receiver sets and fewer two tight end sets without Gronkowski. That’s one way to approach it.

Gronkowski is likely to return, though. He’s not going to leave the Bucs hanging this offseason. If he truly was going to retire, he would have signaled that to general manager Jason Licht and certainly his good friend, quarterback Tom Brady. The Bucs would have been more aggressive addressing tight end in the offseason if Gronk wasn’t coming back. Tampa Bay wouldn’t have waited until the fourth round to draft a tight end, for example. Look for him to re-sign either before mandatory mini-camp or the start of training camp.