FAB 5. SR’s Buc Shots

• Despite Tampa Bay’s secondary recording 14 of the team’s 17 interceptions last year, which was tied for second in the league last year, Bucs defensive backs coach Jon Hoke isn’t satisfied and believes the unit is capable of creating many more turnovers this year with another year’s worth of experience under his players’ belts.

“The biggest thing on defense is always to come up with the ball and create takeaways,” Hoke said. “We were able to do that. I was proud of the guys for that, and their ability to understand the importance of third down and what we needed to defend and get off the field on third down. That was big. That gets overlooked a bit. The turnovers were good, but you’re never satisfied. You can always get more.”

Bucs S Keith Tandy and CB Vernon Hargreaves III – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Hoke was thrilled with the progress of second-year cornerback Ryan Smith, who emerged as the primary backup behind Vernon Hargreaves III and Brent Grimes this offseason.

“He’s taken advantage of every rep he’s got and he’s continued to get better,” Hoke said of Smith. “It’s exciting to see that.”

• With all of the new additions to Tampa Bay’s offense this offseason, the development and improvement of star quarterback Jameis Winston hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves. Winston’s completion percentage increased from 58.3 percent as a rookie to 60.8 last year, and Bucs tight end Cameron Brate expects another jump this year, too.

“I’ve noticed improvement in his accuracy,” Brate said. “Not to say that he was inaccurate, but he’s been pinpoint in practice in the OTAs. I also think he’s doing a really good job of protecting the football. That’s something that coaches are really appreciating this offseason. Turnovers lose games for you. He’s not forcing the ball. He’s always still trying to make the big play, but he’s being a little more careful with it and trying to eliminate the turnovers.”

While Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans remains a constant, reliable weapon for Winston, the third-year quarterback’s favorite target remains Brate, and the connection between he and Winston is stronger than ever. When a play breaks down, Winston consistently looked for No. 84, and Brate always came through with the catch – even if it was away from his body due to a hurried throw. Brate’s excellence during the offseason has kept O.J. Howard, the team’s first-round pick, on the second string for now.

Swamp Boys Original Rub / Price: $12.99.
Why we like it: Flavors in this one run the gamut. You get sweet, salty, savory, a touch of heat and a light smoky finish. This pairs great with ribs, pork, chicken, fish or vegetables. If you’re looking for a nice mahogany bark, this rub will help you with that.

Pick up some Swamp Boys Orginal Rub at Just Grillin, which is located at 11743 N. Dale Mabry Hwy in Tampa, just 15 minutes north of Raymond James Stadium. Or shop online at JustGrillinFlorida.com

• Pewter Nation – thank you for helping the @PewterReport Twitter account surpass 25,000 followers. If you haven’t followed us on Twitter yet and want everything from breaking Bucs news updates, live tweets during Bucs practices, press conferences and games as well as notifications about new PewterReport.com, please click here to do so. And you can join the increasing number of PewterReport.com Facebook fans by clicking here.

• Count Bucs defensive line coach Jay Hayes among those excited about the team’s new indoor practice facility, which is currently being built adjacent to the practice fields at One Buccaneer Place and should be completed by September for the 2017 regular season. It felt like August training camp during the Bucs’ three-day mandatory mini-camp in mid-June with temperatures in the 90s and stifling humidity. The on-field heat index at times was 100 degrees.

“Sure, it gets me,” Hayes said of the nearly unbearable tropical summer climate in Tampa. “This can wear you out and you know, you’ve lived here your adult life. It can be a bear.”

“It’s great that we’re getting the indoor. Those kind of things that the program is doing help the whole team. Like last year when we put the awning out there just for walk-throughs. I wasn’t here the year before when they had to do walk-throughs out in the sun. If you can’t get out of the direct sunlight here, I can’t imagine what that’s like.”

Hayes wants to keep his big defensive linemen fresh for an entire season and having a few practices when the weather is sweltering and all of the walk-throughs in the indoor practice facility will help a great deal.

“D-linemen are like horses to kings,” Hayes said. “You have to have as many of them as you can. That’s what we try to do with our depth. We rotate them and let them play and be strong and fresh. Keeping fresh is the key.”

Bucs DE Jacquies Smith – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

• One of the crazier statistics about pass-rushing defensive end Jacquies Smith, who is heading into his fourth year in the league, is that of his 13.5 career sacks, only one has come at home at Raymond James Stadium. That lone sack came against Marcus Mariota in the 2015 season opener at Tennessee.

While the Bucs proved to be road warriors last year with a 5-3 record away from Tampa Bay, a mark that was better than the team’s 4-4 record at Raymond James Stadium, Smith’s return to the lineup in 2017 from a torn ACL should only make them more dangerous on the road.

• A brand new Pewter Nation Podcast is out on PewterReport.com. We taped it on Wednesday at One Buccaneer Place during the Bucs’ 2017 mini-camp and have some great practice observations plus some insight and anecdotes from Mark Cook and I about former Bucs teams. This one may be our most entertaining podcast to date. Let me know what you think. Check out Pewter Nation Podcast Episode 14: Buccaneer Great, Bo Jackson

Be sure to listen to that podcast, leave your comments for this week’s SR’s Fab 5 below, and visit PewterReport.com this weekend for more Bucs news. Thank you, Pewter Nation, for supporting our efforts here at PewterReport.com. Enjoy Father’s Day weekend!