The Bucs started their second week of the team’s 2023 training camp at the AdventHealth Training Center in Tampa under sunny skies and very hot conditions on Sunday after having Saturday off to rest. Temperatures were in the mid 90s with a light breeze – and wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin brought the heat themselves with outstanding performances.

The Bucs wore shells on Sunday, which is shoulder pads (for the first time) along with shorts and helmets. Tampa Bay is expected to be in full pads for Monday’s practice.

Bucs Not Practicing Today

All Players Practiced

Bucs wide receiver Russell Gage returned to practice on Sunday after missing most of the offseason with a hamstring injury. The injury was to his left hamstring, which is the same leg where his hamstring injury occurred last year in camp.

In addition to Gage returning to practice, outside linebacker Shaq Barrett was a full participant in practice on Sunday. He was held out of team 11-on-11 drills on Friday to rest and recover. Center Ryan Jensen returned to practice, but was once again held out of team drills and only participated in individual drills.

Calijah Kancey Carted Off With Calf Injury

The Bucs were hoping that rookie defensive tackle Calijah Kancey suffered cramps in his right calf during an individual period doing bag drills, but as it turns out it wasn’t a cramp. Kancey suffered a strained right calf, the severity of which will be determined once he undergoes an MRI.

“He’s got a calf strain,” Bucs head coach Todd Bowles said after practice. “We’ll get an MRI and we’ll see where it’s at.”

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

Kancey, who was selected with the 19th overall pick out of the University of Pittsburgh, has made a great first impression during Bucs training camp. He essentially living in the backfield on Wednesday, which was the team’s first practice.

Kancey is projected to be a starter alongside nose tackle Vita Vea and defensive tackle Logan Hall in Todd Bowles’ 3-4 defense. In nickel defense, Kancey was starting with Vea inside and flanked by outside linebackers Shaq Barrett and Joe Tryon-Shoyinka.

The Bucs are hopeful that Kancey will only miss a few weeks. It’s highly unlikely that he will be able to return in time for the Bucs’ first preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday, August 11, but the team is hopeful that he will be able to return for at least one preseason game before the season starts.

Mike Evans, Chris Godwin Dominate In Practice

Bucs wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin dominated in practice on Sunday with exceptional performances. Both Evans and Godwin made big plays by catching passes from all three quarterbacks, which is a bit of a rarity in Tampa Bay. For the past two years Kyle Trask never threw passes to Evans or Godwin as the team’s No. 3 quarterback. But Bucs’ third-string QB John Wolford threw a touchdown pass to both Evans and Godwin on back-to-back plays near the end of practice.

Bucs WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Wolford hit Godwin at the right front pylon for a diving catch in front of cornerback Derrek Pitts Jr. and then came back on the next play and found Evans on a fade pass over rookie safety Chris Izien. Godwin and Evans both celebrated each score together with a sophisticated handshake.

Offensive coordinator Dave Canales and head coach Todd Bowles are smart for getting Wolford some reps with the Bucs’ star receivers. As the 49ers proved last year, playing QB3 is only two plays away during the season. And it was good work for Tampa Bay’s young cornerbacks to get some experience against two of the league’s best receivers.

But it wasn’t just Wolford who connected with Evans and Godwin for touchdowns. Kyle Trask was the starter on Sunday and also threw a touchdown to Evans. Trask probably had his best camp practice so far and was incredibly decisive with his reads and throws and did not have a turnover on Sunday.

The third-year quarterback was even decisive on a red zone touchdown run up the middle as soon as he saw a seam in the defensive line. Second-string tight end David Wells continues to shine as a receiver. He hauled in a few more receptions on Sunday, including a beautifully thrown strike from Kyle Trask, beating veteran linebacker Lavonte David in coverage.

Trask wound up throwing multiple touchdowns on the day to Evans, Wells, receiver David Moore and tight end Cade Otton.

Godwin turned in the play of the day, catching a deep pass from Baker Mayfield for a huge gain down the field. Godwin tracked the ball perfectly and timed his jump to out-leap rookie cornerback Keenan Isaac for the grab. The fans in attendance erupted after that play, and both Mayfield and receivers coach Brad Idzik celebrated with Godwin after the play.

SirVocea Dennis Does It Again

Bucs ILB SirVocea Dennis – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Bucs rookie inside linebacker SirVocea Dennis recorded another interception in coverage during camp. On Sunday, he stepped in front of tight end Ko Kieft and picked off Baker Mayfield around the goal line. That is Dennis’ second interception in camp and his fourth this offseason, dating back to a pair of pick-sixes in the rookie mini-camp and in an OTA practice.

Dennis was known for his blitzing at Pittsburgh, recording seven last year as a senior. But it’s his feel for coverage and great hands that have him standing out during his rookie season so far.

While Mayfield got the pass off, if the play was in a game rather than a practice, the Bucs quarterback would have been sacked first. Safety Ryan Neal came in and beat the back in pass protection and would have gotten to Mayfield before he threw the pass.

The Growth Of Zyon McCollum Continues

The arrow continues to point up for second-year cornerback Zyon McCollum. After recording a pick-six and having a pass breakup in Friday’s practice, McCollum had a moment in Sunday’s practice where he showed a lot of resiliency and growth. After Baker Mayfield threw a red zone touchdown pass to Rakim Jarrett down by the goal line, McCollum woke up.

He realized he was a step slow in reading the play on the touchdown, but on the next play he came up and jammed Ryan Miller so hard at the line of scrimmage that he knocked the rookie receiver to the ground. Miller limped off, but later returned to action. Then on the next play, McCollum had a beautiful pass breakup on a slant pass from Kyle Trask to Deven Thompkins in the end zone.

Bucs Practice Observations

• David Moore had his best practice of camp so far on Sunday. The veteran receiver is a dark horse contender for a roster spot due to his experience in the Bucs offense from his time in Seattle and only bolstered his case with a pair of touchdown catches. One came from Baker Mayfield against rookie cornerback Keenan Isaac near the sidelines, while the other one was a 9-yard touchdown on a laser slant from Kyle Trask. Moore had great positioning on cornerback Jamel Dean for the touchdowns.

Bucs CB Carlton Davis III – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

• Cornerback Carlton Davis III had a great day in coverage. Davis broke up three passes intended for Rakim Jarrett, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. As previously noted, Zyon McCollum also had a pass breakup, as did Don Gardner on Evans and Keenan Isaac on Ryan Miller.

• The Bucs worked on kick return and kick coverage during the special teams portion of practice. Wide receivers Deven Thompkins and Rakim Jarrett were fielding kicks for Tampa Bay on Sunday.

• Tampa Bay also worked on hurry-up field goal kicks. Kicker Chase McLaughlin was perfect on all four of his field goals on Sunday, but Rodrigo Blankenship suffered his first miss in camp on a field goal attempt beyond 50 yards. Blankenship had made three kicks in a row on Sunday before that miss.

• Bucs defensive linemen Vita Vea and Will Gholston are still on the field goal team for the Bucs. Tampa Bay also mixes in a few defensive linemen for the second-string field goal unit too with Pat O’Connor and Logan Hall.

• The Bucs continue to rotate starting centers with Ryan Jensen being held out of 11-on-11 drills. Nick Leverett was the starting center on Sunday.

• Bucs rookie receiver Kade Warner had a pair of really nice catches, a deep pass downfield on a throw from Baker Mayfield and and an intermediate shot from Kyle Trask with Don Gardner in coverage.

• Veteran Dee Delaney continues to start at nickel cornerback for Tampa Bay with rookies Josh Hayes and Chris Izien rotating in as backups. But in the red zone 11-on-11 drills, Hayes was mixed in with the starters and got a few reps with the first-string.