After opening the preseason with a 27-17 home loss to the Steelers last Friday, the Bucs return to the field for more preseason action Saturday night at MetLife Stadium. The new-look Jets will be their hosts after the two teams squared off on the practice fields this past Wednesday.

There are position battles happening all over the field for the Bucs, and Saturday’s game will be the next big chance for anyone in those battles to get some separation.

With that in mind, here is one Buccaneer to watch at each position when Tampa Bay takes on New York in Week 2 of preseason action. After taking a look at the offensive side of the ball, we’ll finish with the defense and special teams.

Defensive Line: Logan Hall

Bucs DT Logan Hall – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Logan Hall was included on last week’s version of this list, and there’s a reason he’s a repeat this week. He only played 11 snaps against the Steelers, but he had a quiet performance. Pro Football Focus gave him a 55.8 grade for the night, and assuming he gets a little bit more of a run-out against the Jets, the Bucs need to see more from him. The 2022 second-round pick’s debut season was largely a wash, as he showed flashes at times but was mostly ineffective as a rotational piece.

In 2023, Tampa Bay is counting on Hall to be a starter — and a productive one. He’ll play next to Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey (once he’s healthy) and the former Houston Cougar needs to help pay off Todd Bowles and his staff’s shift toward quicker, more pass rush-oriented defensive linemen. He put on the weight that he needed to add in the offseason, but there’s room for him to really start translating his development to the field. Perhaps that starts Saturday night.

Outside Linebacker: Markees Watts

Before the Bucs’ preseason opener against the Steelers, Todd Bowles said the outside linebacker position was going to be one of the toughest when it came time to decide on cuts. And that was before undrafted free agent Markees Watts finished as Tampa Bay’s highest-graded defender. The former Charlotte standout played 23 snaps in his NFL debut, coming through with a quarterback hit and a forced fumble on his way to earning a 92.1 overall grade from Pro Football Focus. He posted 67.2 run defense, 73.9 tackling, 94.3 pass rush and 61.4 coverage grades as he likely made Bowles’ roster cutdown decisions even more difficult than they already were.

The Bucs’ top four outside linebackers are set, with Shaq Barrett, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Anthony Nelson and YaYa Diaby all safe. Watts has some heavy competition to beat out if he wants to earn a potential OLB5 role and a spot on the opening day 53-man roster. He’ll need to hold off fellow rookie Jose Ramirez, Hamilcar Rashed and Cam Gill, who racked up 1.5 sacks in his return from a foot injury that cost him all of last season. Seeing if Watts can replicate his performance against New York will be an intriguing plot-line to follow as Saturday’s game unfolds.

Inside Linebacker: K.J. Britt

The preseason opener was a middle-of-the-road performance for K.J. Britt, though he held an important role for the Tampa Bay defense with the starting group held out of action. He started alongside rookie SirVocea Dennis and even led the pregame huddle. His four tackles tied him for second-most on the team, plus he had a pass defensed. And given Dennis’ shaky debut, Britt may have a path to holding on to his ILB3 role.

Britt may not be quick enough to be a future starter at linebacker for the Bucs, but he understands Todd Bowles’ defense well and holds an important spot on special teams. If he can play a steady game against the Jets, perhaps he’ll keep Dennis from surpassing him as the No. 3 inside linebacker heading into the season. At the same time, he can’t afford to feel too safe after Ulysses Gilbert and J.J. Russell were among the top three highest-graded defenders last week for Tampa Bay.

Cornerback: Christian Izien

Bucs S Chris Izien – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Last week, Christian Izien cracked this list at the safety position. His ability to play both safety and nickel cornerback was well-known, and just this week he was someone who Todd Bowles mentioned as the current front-runner for the starting nickel job out of camp. His toughness, quickness and versatility were what made him an intriguing undrafted free agent for the Bucs, and now he has a chance to really build on a strong start to his career.

The cool thing for Izien, too, is that he’ll have the opportunity to solidify his claim to a starting job in an area that is familiar to him. A product of Queens, New York, and a former standout at Rutgers in Piscataway, New Jersey, Izien will have family in attendance at MetLife Stadium on Saturday night. He played 23 snaps in the slot last week—10 more than sixth-round pick Josh Hayes—so it’ll be interesting to see how much of the nickel snaps he gets this weekend.

Safety: Kaevon Merriweather

The highest-graded safety for the Bucs in last week’s game, Kaevon Merriweather had a solid debut. His 67.1 overall grade was strong, as were his his 69.0 run defense, 82.6 tackling and 68.5 pass rushing grades. His 59.8 coverage grade is where he saw a bit of a dip, but his four solo tackles tied him with Will Gholston for the most on the team.

With Antoine Winfield Jr. and Ryan Neal unlikely to be in action again on Saturday night, Merriweather will get another chance to shine and showcase why he should be one of the depth safeties to make the 53-man roster out of training camp. After a poor showing from Nolan Turner last week, he can really separate himself with another good showing against the Jets.

Kicker: Chase McLaughlin

Bucs K Chase McLaughlin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Chase McLaughlin, who’s signed with the Bucs back in free agency, seems to be the leader in the clubhouse to win the team’s kicking job. Ryan Succop was a steady leg for three seasons in Tampa Bay, but his range wasn’t where Tampa Bay needed it to be anymore and the cap savings the team received from releasing him made the decision easier. Now, McLaughlin is looking to hold down the job as Rodrigo Blankenship looks to pry it away from him.

Given the deal McLaughlin signed and the fact that Blankenship didn’t sign until mini camp, it’s been the expectation that the former would ultimately win the job heading into the regular season. And he hasn’t done anything to change that, nor has Blankenship put too much pressure on him. That could change quickly, of course, so it’s up to McLaughlin to remain consistent and hit his kicks when called upon. He was 2-of-2 on extra points last week, while Blankenship got the lone field goal try — a successful 35-yarder.

Punter: Jake Camarda

There’s a lot of belief in second-year punter Jake Camarda, and last week, he showed why. The former Georgia Bulldog stepped right in and delivered a 54-yard punt on the Bucs’ first possession, flipping the field and pinning Pittsburgh inside its own 20. He did that three times on the night, with his other five punts going 61, 40, 36, 44 and 51 yards for an average of 47.7 on the night.

Camarda needs to stay consistent and continue delivering when he is sent out there. Tampa Bay would surely love to see less of him on Saturday, but when he’s needed, he needs more along the lines of his 54-, 61- and 51-yarders and less in the 36- and 40-yard range. There’s a reason special teams coordinator Keith Armstrong thinks Camarda has Pro Bowl potential — he just has to be consistent to live up to it.

Kick Returner/Punt Returner: Deven Thompkins

Bucs WR-KR-PR Deven Thompkins – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

There wasn’t much happening in the way of kick and punt return chances for the Bucs last week. Rookie Trey Palmer was the highlight, though, as he had two kick return chances for 54 yards. His long was 32, and it gave him a chance to show off his speed and vision. Incumbent return man Deven Thompkins will be looking to show the Bucs’ decision-makers why he deserves to retain his spot as the deep man. Last week, he took one kick back for 19 yards and had one punt return for zero yards.

Thompkins’ spot on the roster feels safe, especially after his strong camp and Russell Gage’s season-ending injury. But he’ll need a better showing to keep Palmer from taking over kick return duties. Kaylon Geiger was the only other Buc to get a punt return chance last week, and he totaled four yards. It’ll be interesting to see how Tampa Bay approaches the return position on Saturday, as it may give some insight into the team’s plans going forward.