The Bucs kicked off their rookie mini-camp on Friday with all eight draft picks, 13 undrafted free brokers and a bunch of try-out gamers in attendance. Listed here are some key observations from the Pewter Report workers.
Bucs Offensive Rookie Report
The standouts on the Bucs rookie mini-camp from the offensive facet of the ball had been working again Rachaad White and a few undrafted vast receivers. We’ll get to them in a second. Understanding that gamers are solely in shorts and helmets, there wasn’t a ton to soak up from watching second-round choose offensive lineman Luke Goedeke.
What I’ll say is that Goedeke had good footwork in drills consisting of working on the ladder and pulling from the left facet of the offensive line to the best facet. He’s a really large man, and it was obvious that assistant coach Harold Goodwin was directing lots of consideration his method. Goodwin was vocal with him a number of occasions, singling him out when voicing directions.
Seeing White in individual for the primary time was an attention-grabbing spectacle. He’s a lot greater than I anticipated and has a muscular construct regardless of his very clean working model. White simply appears like he may grow to be a star working again. Nothing appeared too large for him on the primary day and he was very attentive on performs that he wasn’t even in on the rep for.
Bucs RB Rachaad White – Photograph by: Cliff Welch/PR
You can see him typically pointing issues out, discussing it with teammates and asking the coaches about it too. I appreciated his alertness and the way concerned he was mentally. The man simply loves taking part in soccer. White had an excellent move blocking rep and caught each ball thrown his method, which was a superb begin.
With tight finish Cade Otton, the workforce’s fourth-round pick with an ankle harm, all eyes had been on sixth-round choose Ko Kieft. The Minnesota mauler lived as much as his moniker of being a stout blocker. As beforehand said, we’re not going to see a ton of physicality at this level of the 12 months throughout a non-padded mini-camp. However Kieft was sound in his blocking approach and stonewalled seventh-round choose Andre Anthony on a play. Receiving-wise he caught the correct passes that had been thrown his method. He primarily ran brief routes out to the flats.
Undrafted vast receivers Jerreth Sterns, Kameron Brown and Deven Thompkins stood out. First off, they needed to take care of dangerous quarterback play. I respect anybody that’s attempting to make it to the subsequent stage, however there have been a ton of inaccurate balls from try-out QBs Aqeel Glass and Peyton Ramsey. Passes had been overthrown, late, behind or the timing was so off that the receivers needed to decelerate to only catch it.
Sterns impressed essentially the most. At 5-foot-7, he depends on his quickness and athletic capability to make up for his lack of dimension. Not solely did he catch every part in entrance of him on a number of routes, he caught a ton of inauspicious passes in the midst of site visitors with many defenders round him. Each Brown and Thompkins confirmed a stable capability to run environment friendly routes and appeared far more snug than different receivers of their group. – By Matt Matera
Bucs Defensive Rookie Report
The primary impression of recent Bucs defensive sort out Logan Corridor is that he’s fairly an enormous man. Corridor is each little bit of 6-foot-6, as head coach Todd Bowles stated after observe. The 6-foot-2 Bowles stated that he has to pressure his neck when trying up at Corridor in individual. However it’s not simply his top. Corridor is an enormous man. He’s as much as 290 kilos after taking part in final 12 months at Houston at 270 kilos.
“You stroll as much as him, he’s an enormous man,” Bowles stated. “I hardly ever look as much as anyone. With him being 6-foot-6 and me being 6-foot-2, I actually should snap my neck to truly lookup at him.”
Remember that Gerald McCoy, the final 3-technique defensive sort out the Bucs drafted early, was 295 kilos when he left Oklahoma. Corridor is just not undersized. That’s evident at first look. And at simply age 22, he’s solely going to get greater and placed on extra muscle in time.
Corridor can be extra athletic than McCoy, working a 4.88 to McCoy’s 5.04 within the 40-yard sprint. And Corridor’s 3-cone drill time of seven.25 was within the ninetieth percentile of all defensive tackles tracked on MockDraftable.com.
Bucs DT Logan Corridor – Photograph by: Cliff Welch/PR
Corridor’s 4.44 time within the 20-yard shuttle was additionally barely higher than McCoy’s 4.48 time again in 2010. It’s additionally clear that Corridor is extra fluid and might redirect higher in sure drills.
However we’re going to finish the comparisons of Tampa Bay’s second-round choose, who hasn’t performed a down but within the NFL, to McCoy, a six-time Professional Bowler proper there. Corridor appeared the half in a helmet and cleats on his first day of rookie mini-camp, and that’s not simply Pewter Report’s remark. That’s Bowles’ remark, too. The brand new Bucs head coach lauded Corridor’s work ethic.
“He’s a really humble man, however he works laborious,” Bowles stated. “He labored very laborious and that confirmed immediately. Clearly it was shorts and a t-shirt, however we just like the laborious work in him. He places within the work and he places within the time and I like that about him.”
The place Corridor, who’s sporting No. 90, which is Jason Pierre-Paul’s outdated jersey, will want some work is eliminating a false step in his move rush. That’s one thing that confirmed up on his Houston movie at occasions, and in addition confirmed up a bit in Friday’s observe.
We’ll go a step additional and say that Corridor’s athleticism undoubtedly confirmed up in line of defense drills, the place he towered over the opposite Bucs defensive linemen, together with Kobe Smith, who was on the observe squad final 12 months.
Smith wasn’t the one former practice-squader in attendance. Exterior linebacker Elijah Ponder and security Troy Warner had been different rostered Buccaneers on the observe squad that took half within the mini-camp.
Bucs CB Zyon McCollum – Photograph by: Cliff Welch/PR
Corridor’s athleticism was solely overshadowed by that of fellow draft choose Zyon McCollum. The fifth-round cornerback out of Sam Houston lived as much as his ridiculous testing numbers on the sector. His actions had been quick, agile and clean, and McCollum’s instincts had been additionally on show as he reacted nicely to each fast passes within the flat and deeper throws downfield. McCollum’s athleticism actually exhibits up in his capability to show and run with receivers downfield.
Exterior linebacker Andre Anthony, the workforce’s seventh-round choose, appears the half athletically. He strikes nicely on the sector, however his greatest query mark is questionable instincts. Sooner or later of rookie mini-camp is just not going to have the ability to correctly assess that. Anthony will probably be competing with Cam Gill and Ponder for a roster spot, and Gill has the clear inside observe.
One of many extra noteworthy try-out gamers on protection is linebacker DeCalon Brooks out of Florida State. Brooks is the son of Bucs legend Derrick Brooks. However after recording 46 tackles, a sack and a pressured fumble as a freshman in 2018, Brooks hardly ever noticed the sector, logging simply 4 tackles final 12 months and eight in 2020. Brooks didn’t actually stand out on Friday, and at 5-foot-10, 222 kilos with scant manufacturing in school, he’s a really lengthy shot to make it within the NFL. – By Scott Reynolds
Bucs Particular Groups Rookie Report
Rookie punter Jake Camarda, the Bucs’ fourth-round choose, has a booming leg. It’s as sturdy as marketed, and he impressed with each distance and cling time on Friday.
Kicker Jose Borregales, who spent final 12 months on the observe squad, was additionally in attendance for the rookie mini-camp. He’ll be competing with veteran Ryan Succop for the workforce’s kicker function this 12 months. The Bucs like Borregales, who was a Lou Groza Award winner at Miami. He was considered one of Tampa Bay’s protected observe squad gamers every week final 12 months.
White was returning punts on Friday, because the Bucs have stated they are going to attempt to combine him to their particular groups throughout his rookie season. Thompkins and undrafted free agent signee Kaylon Geiger, Sr. had been additionally returning punts at the beginning of observe. – By J.C. Allen
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