The Bucs finally played their starters in the final preseason game before the regular season. They didn’t need to play them long, though has Tampa Bay came out firing with an opening drive touchdown and a quick stop on defense before the starters were pulled. The Bucs jumped out to a 17-7 lead in the first half and expanded upon it in the third and fourth quarter to defeat the Dolphins 24-14.

Though there wasn’t too much to be concerned about for Tampa Bay heading into the regular season, these were the most disappointing moments and players from the game.

Bucs Punt Coverage

After the Bucs went up 7-0, their next drive with Kyle Trask at quarterback and many backups in ended with a three and out. Punter Jake Camarda kicked it very well going back 42 yards, but returner Malik Washington took it 28-yards to set the Dolphins up with good field position at the 47. There’s been a lot of discussion about the new kickoffs, which have seen change, but punts remain the same and the Bucs should have covered way better. Coverage in the kicking game was previously an issue for Tampa Bay. Hiring new special teams coordinator Thomas McGaughey was expected to correct that, but there’s still work to go.

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R

Offsides Penalties

There were a couple of moments in the game on Friday night where the Bucs defensive players were flagged for offsides penalties. The first one was on outside linebacker Jose Ramirez, which took away from a big moment when Bucs’ safety Marcus Banks had an enormous hit on Malik Washington to force an incomplete pass, but the penalty negated it. Later on in the second quarter, defensive tackle Greg Gaines was called for offsides. A couple of plays later and the Dolphins found the end zone for the first time in the game and cut into Tampa Bay’s lead.

Punter Jake Camarda

Camarda had a 39-yard punt that was very uninspiring. After a lackluster performance in the first preseason game that prompted the Bucs to sign punter Nolan Cooney he has not improved much. Camarda was okay throughout the night, but when he’s only on to play for just a little bit in the game and he has that kind of punt at the forefront, it’s unfortunate to see. When Cooney had a chance to punt, he booted it for 63-yards with great coverage as well. Camarda isn’t in jeopardy of losing his job, but it hasn’t been thrilling with his production through the preseason.

Kick Return Coverage

The Bucs did a great job moving the ball down the field and stopping the Dolphins from doing so. Apparently, returner Malik Washington was their biggest issue. After the Bucs went up 10-0, Jake Camarda kicked the ball deep and Washington was able to take it all the way back to Miami’s 45-yard line. Tampa Bay succeeded in many areas, but coverage on punts and kickoffs was an issue.

Bucs Running Attack

Bucs offensive line – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R

The Bucs’ run game has been so great throughout the first two preseason games that admittedly this is a little nitpicking. While Tampa Bay was fantastic with Rachaad White rushing at four yards per attempt and Bucky Irving averaging 4.3, the Bucs only managed 94 rushing yards on 26 attempts for a 3.6 average. It took a bit for Sean Tucker to get going and the Bucs didn’t see much from D.J. Williams either. It was rather pedestrian from the ground game considering how hot it had been. With that said, they’ve been good enough this preseason to get Bucs fans excited for this improved area with the regular season up next.

Kick Off The Bucs’ 2024 Season On PewterReportTV With Pewter Pregame & Pewter GameDay

Join Pewter Report’s Scott Reynolds and Matt Matera for a 30-minute Pewter Pregame LIVE at 9:00 a.m. ET on PewterReportTV. Pewter Pregame will always be at 9:00 a.m. ET on every game day this season regardless of the kickoff time. If you can’t catch the show live it will be archived on PewterReportTV for you to watch any time prior to kickoff.

Then tune in to Pewter GameDay as Matera and a member of the Pewter Report staff will offer up special LIVE in-game analysis for all three hours of the Bucs vs. Commanders game starting at 4:25 p.m. ET on PewterReportTV.