All Aboard | Tampa Bay Buccaneers

[The Sauce]

Oh that is cleaaaan

Thank you both.

Baker ain't gonna be it but salute, got a follower in me

#813StandUp

Thank you for the follow! I'm not sure he's the long-term answer either. For now, though, it's him or Trask, so we have to go with someone. Let's see what he's able to do with all these weapons. Evans and Godwin are really, really good. White is a good runner as well, while the o-line has some talent, too.

[The Sauce]

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| WR Russell Gage Jr. Suffers Season-Ending Injury

The knee injury that Russell Gage suffered in Wednesday's joint practice with the Jets will end the receiver's second season in Tampa and cause the Bucs to dig into their depth at the position


Russell Gage Jr. was slotted (no pun intended) to be the de-facto No. 3 receiver on the depth chart, operating out of the slot.

After a joint practice with the New York Jets, Bucs' coach Todd Bowles confirmed that Russell Gage Jr. suffered a torn patellar tendon in his right knee and that the injury would cause him to miss the entire season.

The Bucs had anticipated Gage filling the third receiver role behind starters Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, and Gage had indeed been getting the first-team snaps in three-receiver sets in practice in recent weeks. His absence could accelerate the timetable for the development of some of the younger receivers on the 90-man preseason roster.

Among the candidates to absorb the snaps meant for Gage are second-year wideout Deven Thompkins, sixth-round draft pick Trey Palmer, veteran addition David Moore and undrafted rookies Rakim Jarrett, Kade Warner and Ryan Miller.

[Soapy]

that WR depth is poverty, respectfully.

[The Sauce]

that WR depth is poverty, respectfully.

This is true.

Trey Palmer has been getting a ton of hype, but who knows if he can actually sustain that in the regular season against first-teamers for a prolonged period of time. Guy has size and jets. A guy I like, though, is Deven Thompkins. He's a 5'8" speed demon who, I'm hoping, can fill that "swiss army knife" position of hybrid slot/backfield-receiver/returner playmaker role. A "lite" version, of course.

Nothing spectacular behind Evans and Godwin. We'll need to address that next offseason. Always fun to draft playmakers in the first round!

[The Sauce]

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| Mayfield Sits As Bucs' Defense Shines In 13-6 Win Over Jets

The Bucs' quarterback competition appeared to become a bit clearer this week as Baker Mayfield never left the sideline in his team's Preseason Week 2 victory


Dee Delaney put on a show tonight in a defensive clinic.

The Buccaneers defeated the Jets 13-6 in preseason Week Two.

After three-straight drives without points on the scoreboard, the Bucs put up three midway through the second quarter via a Rodrigo Blankenship 35-yard field goal. On the ensuing drive, Tampa Bay's luck shifted. A 26-yard Sean Tucker run off a counter on fourth-and-one, set up a touchdown. Kyle Trask launched a 33-yard pass into the end zone to a tightly-covered Trey Palmer, who brought in a sensational grab to put the Bucs up, 10-6. Trask finished the first half completing 16-of-23 attempts for 122 yards and the lone touchdown to Palmer for a 96.6 quarterback rating.

The Bucs snagged a takeaway in the third quarter, building momentum for Tampa Bay. Tim Boyle's pass was deflected and was intercepted by Dee Delaney at the goal line. After driving the field, Tampa Bay came up short as Blankenship missed a 55-yard field goal.

John Wolford came in at quarterback for the Bucs in the third quarter, but after taking a hard hit on a sack, was carted off the field. Trask came back in for the Bucs to begin the fourth quarter. Things stalled for the Bucs as missed opportunities materialized, but they were able to hold on to the win. Overall, the Bucs concluded the game with 331 total net yards, including 72 rushing and 259 passing.

The Bucs defense did not allow a single touchdown during the 60-minute preseason game, with Delaney serving as the catalyst. He spearheaded the unit with a team-high five tackles and an interception (almost two - as one was negated due to a defensive pass interference call).

After a good first showing, Baker Mayfield was given the night off to rest. He now seems to be almost guaranteed to win the starting quarterback job.


QUICK FACTS

FINAL SCORE

BUCCANEERS 13
JETS 6


NOTABLE PERFORMANCES

QB | Kyle Trask
20-of-28 for 218 Yards, 1 TD, 1 FUM

HB | Sean Tucker
7 Carries for 37 Yards, 3 Catch for 18 Yards

HB | Ke'Shawn Vaughn
4 Carries for -8 Yards, 1 Catch for 10 Yards

WR | Rakim Jarrett
3 Catches for 84 Yards

WR | David Moore
2 Catches for 18 Yards, 1 FUM

WR | Trey Palmer
1 Catch for 33 Yards, 1 TD


RAPID REACTIONS

• Following the game, Todd Bowles labeled Trey Palmer "a gamer" and it stands to reason why: He steps up in big moments. Kyle Trask hit Palmer on a 33-yard touchdown pass down the middle of the field.

• Dee Delaney served as the catalyst for the defense in a tremendous outing. In the third quarter, Delaney snagged the club's second takeaway of the night. He intercepted the ball at the goal line. In addition, Delaney tied with Ulysees Gilbert III for the team lead in tackles with seven.

NEXT GAME

Saturday, Aug 26
BALTIMORE RAVENS (1-1)

[Captain Canada]

Slowly making moves. I'm glad you're really taking advantage of how much depth the pre-season camp and training camp holds. Really immersive stuff.

[The Sauce]

Slowly making moves. I'm glad you're really taking advantage of how much depth the pre-season camp and training camp holds. Really immersive stuff.

Thanks! Just trying to build some story lines to follow. It's such an interesting team – and even more so now with Gage out. One more preseason game before we get to the "real stuff", finally.

[The Sauce]

I have the day off today, so hopefully I can tinker sliders and stuff before the regular season starts. Final preseason game coming up!

[The Sauce]

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| Baker Mayfield Shines as Bucs Conclude Preseason with 26-20 Win Over Ravens

Recently anointed the Bucs' starting quarterback, Baker Mayfield was near perfect on two drives, helping the home team fashion an early lead over Baltimore and hold on late for a 26-20 victory


It was a nearly perfect performance for Baker Mayfield in the team's final tune-up before the regular season.

In the final tune-up performance prior to the start of the regular season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers held on for a late 26-20 victory at Raymond James Stadium over the Baltimore Ravens.

After recently being appointed as the Bucs' starting quarterback, Baker Mayfield shined during two possessions on the field. Overall, the Bucs offense accumulated 385 yards during the evening, achieving balance between the aerial and ground attack.

"I thought he was efficient," said coach Todd Bowles of Mayfield. "I thought they ran plays well together. The symmetry and the chemistry was there, breaking in and out of the huddle, which is what we wanted to see. He was efficient in the passing game. He went down and got a score. We wanted to get some chemistry and some game action and we got what we wanted to get done."

The Bucs will trim their roster to 53 players and arrange their depth chart for the regular season at the start of last week, making Saturday's game a final audition for dozens of young players fighting for jobs.


QUICK FACTS

FINAL SCORE

RAVENS 20
BUCCANEERS 26


NOTABLE PERFORMANCES

QB | Baker Mayfield
6-of-6 for 43 Yards, 1 TD

HB | Sean Tucker
10 Carries for 34 Yards

HB | Rachaad White
7 Carries for 39 Yards

WR | Rakim Jarrett
4 Catches for 48 Yards

WR | Chris Godwin
4 Catches for 30 Yards, 1 TD

WR | David Moore
3 Catches for 39 Yards


RAPID REACTIONS

• Baker Mayfield was nearly flawless on two drives, setting the tone early for Tampa Bay. The second of which was a methodical 59-yard touchdown drive that tied the game at seven. Mayfield hit his go-to target, Chris Godwin, multiple times on the possession and it became only fitting that No. 14 came away with a touchdown tally on the stat sheet.

• Trey Palmer has continued to carve out his role with the Bucs, compiling highlight-reel catches between the hash marks. Against the Ravens, Palmer continued the trend with two catches for 25 yards.
  
  "He's been spectacular," said coach Bowles.

NEXT GAME

Regular Season, Week 1
MINNESOTA VIKINGS (0-0)

[Count]

I’ll be interested to see what you do with Evans since it doesn’t look like he’s going to get a contract before the season starts