On a night where the Bucs were annihilated by the Tennessee Titans, 34-3, there were still quite a few player performances to get excited about. Several Bucs had outstanding nights on defense, while two key offensive backups looked very good. Here are the most impressive players from the team’s second preseason loss.

OLB Joe Tryon-Shoyinka

Man, I’m already ready to say I was too low on Tryon-Shoyinka pre-draft. Granted, he looked like a completely different player at Washington in 2019, where his rawness was super evident on tape. Tryon-Shoyinka looks like he spent the past almost two years focusing almost solely on his body and on developing pass rush moves. It paid off as the game went on against Tennessee.

After being robbed of a sack last week due to a bogus penalty, Tryon-Shoyinka was robbed again when Pat O’Connor beat his guy faster than the Bucs rookie beat his.

The edge defender went to work undeterred, tearing up Titans rookie right tackle Dillon Radunz. Tryon-Shoyinka bounded around the tackle multiple times on the Titans’ two-minute drive before the half, nearly coming up with a pair of sacks. The Washington product finally got to the quarterback by dipping under Radunz at full speed to notch the sack. On the very next play, Tryon-Shoyinka ran Radunz over to flush the pocket. What a performance.

DT Pat O’Connor

Bucs DL Pat O’Connor – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Amazingly, Tryon-Shoyinka might not have been the most impressive player in this game. O’Connor was an absolute force all game long, even on plays where he didn’t show up on the stat sheet. But he showed up plenty there too, picking up a pair of tackles-for-loss, forcing a few others and coming up with a sack. O’Connor was in the backfield all game long, showing a great first step and elite pad level. He even anchored against a few double teams! Just a tremendous night for the inexperienced defensive tackle.

LB Kevin Minter

Really strong performance for Minter, who continues to show that he is far and away the best backup linebacker on the team. On a night where Joe Jones, KJ Britt and Grant Stuard’s limitations were very evident, Minter impressed. He made a great tackle-for-loss in the first half, and found the ball through blockers to stop a third down screen as well. With Jones, Britt and Stuard struggling, Minter is quietly one of the Bucs more important reserves.

CB Antonio Hamilton

I don’t care what Bruce Arians says about Dee Delaney, Antonio Hamilton is the clear cut fifth-best cornerback on the roster. He’s been a nice offseason pickup in the slot for the Bucs, breaking up a pass and getting a tackle-f0r-loss against the Titans. Even when Hamilton has allowed a catch in the preseason, he’s been in excellent coverage. And his run support and hustle have been outstanding. On one receiver screen Hamilton was blitzing, but he stopped, turned around and chased down the receiver after a gain of just seven yards.

QB Blaine Gabbert

Bucs QB Blaine Gabbert – Photo by: USA Today

In a trio of drives, Gabbert went 3-of-6 for 33 yards. But don’t blame him. All three of Gabbert’s incompletions were drops, and he was sacked on a seventh drop back. Gabbert placed the ball well all night, throwing a touch pass to O.J. Howard that should have been caught on Tampa Bay’s first drive of the game. That was one of three big plays taken off the board by drops, including another deep shot to Howard that would have been a huge gain. Gabbert was completely let down by his teammates, but played much better than the stats indicate.

OT Josh Wells

Not a lot to say, which is a good thing if you’re an offensive lineman. Wells was excellent all night, looking like the best of the Bucs backup offensive lineman. Considering every team wants their No. 3 offensive tackle to be their best backup lineman, that’s great news for the Bucs.

DT Khalil Davis

What a great night for Davis. He picked up a tackle-for-loss and nearly had a sack to show for his dominant performance. But Davis was good even on plays where he didn’t get on the stat sheet. He and O’Connor wreaked havoc on the Titans interior offensive line. If Davis can make an impact for the Bucs this season, it would be huge for their defense.

ILB Grant Stuard

Stuard outplayed fellow rookie K.J. Britt on Saturday night, finishing with a game-high six tackles and a sack. While he wasn’t perfect on special teams or on defense, Arians said after the game that he likely earned a roster spot with his performance. That’s saying something considering Britt has been the front-runner for the fourth linebacker spot on the depth chart – even ahead of veteran Joe Jones.