Stars need to shine in final preseason game
TAMPA, Fla. — Bucs assistant head coach Harold Goodwin didn’t like the reminders of Super Bowl 55 that were affixed to every corner of Raymond James Stadium when the team gathered for the first preseason game against the Bengals.
“They had all those (Super Bowl) banners around the inside of the stadium. I’m so glad they got them out, and I’d like to get rid of all of them personally,” Goodwin said. “You got to let that go. Even though we’ve got a lot of the same faces, that was last year’s team, and that’s the mindset we’ve got to have. We’re building for 2021.”
Starters on offense and defense were limited to only six plays in the preseason opener against the Bengals, and hardly any front-line players dressed for the second preseason game last week against the Titans.
Instead, they took most of the repetitions in two joint practices against Tennessee prior to the game.
Now, it’s time to see Tom Brady throw passes, Leonard Fournette run, Mike Evans catch and Devin White tackle in the final preseason game Saturday at Houston.
Head coach Bruce Arians plans to play his starters the first half, particularly since the Bucs will still be 12 days from the NFL’s opening night against the Dallas Cowboys.
“I mean, it could always change, but I want to get some good work in,” Arians said. “It’s a long time before we play, and we need game speed. We haven’t had any yet.”
Bucs defensive coordinator Todd Bowles said he liked the way his starters performed in the second joint practice against the Titans. They dominated the line of scrimmage and covered up receivers the way they did in the win over the Chiefs in the Super Bowl.
“That was kind of more where we were and where we want to be going forward, and it’s just a matter of carrying everything over and doing the little things,” Bowles said. “When you have half veterans and half young guys mixing, the communication has to jell. I think you need the practices to get you in the right frame of mind for the season. I think they got there the last day of camp, when we practiced against the Titans.”
Arians has been busy inoculating the Bucs against big-timing any opponent since they won the Super Bowl in February.
But the Bucs are young in some areas, particularly in the secondary, and they needed to be humbled a bit by the Titans in the first joint practice to get their attention.
“That’s a very good football team,” Bowles said. “You can say it and preach it all you want. The veterans who have been there know that, but the young guys have to see it. You can talk about it until you’re blue in the face, but they have to see it, and I think they’ve seen it and they understand it’s competition every day.”
Competition for jobs on the final 53-man roster has been fierce, particularly since the Bucs have 22 returning starters and realistically about a half-dozen or so jobs available, with many of those likely to go to draft picks such as Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, linebacker K.J. Britt and receiver Jaelon Darden.
There is at least one battle for a starting job at right guard between Alex Cappa, who struggled in pass protection the first two preseason games, and Aaron Stinnie, who filled in admirably during the playoff run.
The second half of Saturday’s game will feature battles at tight end, defensive back, linebacker and offensive line for the final roster spots. With Ryan Succop on the COVID-19 list, Miami’s Jose Borregales will handle the placekicking duties.
“Well, you know you’ve got 16 practice-squad jobs that are really important,” Arians said. “Roster spots? It’s hard to say. There are three or four guys still fighting.”
The Texans are arguably the worst team in the NFL, with a firstyear head coach in David Culley and inactive quarterback Deshaun Watson’s future unsettled amid 22 civil lawsuits accusing him of sexual assault.
A better test may have emerged from those joint workouts with the Titans. But the Bucs stars need to shine in their final tuneup before the Cowboys come to town.
“It’s just so hard in training camp, because you’re trying to rotate guys in,” linebacker Devin White said. “You can be physical, but you can’t really play out your plays. We’re ready to get into that environment where we’re stacking them against other teams. When we come out this week, I think we’re going to come out fast in these two quarters that we’re getting this weekend, and I think it’s going to help us in that Thursday night game.”