It was a preseason finale to forget in Jacksonville Friday night, as the Buccaneers faltered to a 19-0 shutout at the hands of the Jaguars.
The offense, even with dynamic undrafted rookie QB Jalon Daniels starting, could not muster even 100 total yards…all game. Preseason or not, that’s pretty gross, and in fact it was the lowest total any team has posted all preseason as of this article.
Nevertheless, the exhibitions end and the real festivities begin soon enough. Final cuts are due by Sunday, so we’ll
do a recap of who helped themselves and who did not.
Winners
Ayden Garnes
As if he hadn’t shown enough already, but UDFA Ayden Garnes produced some noteworthy snaps and showed how useful he can be in a reserve role. The 23-year-old out of Arizona notched 4 tackles and a pass breakup, which should more than solidify his place on the 53-man roster.
Another quality UDFA find from Jason Licht’s scouting crew.
Jack Pyburn
College eligibility fiasco aside, Jack Pyburn has shown some serious pass-rushing chops throughout this preseason. With 2 sacks against the Jags, Pyburn leads all of the NFL with 4 total, and he also made a splash play in the run game with a tackle for loss.
In what looks to be a completely remade edge rushing group (for the better), Pyburn might just force his way into the EDGE6 role behind Rueben Bain, Yaya Diaby, Al-Quadin Muhammad, David Walker, and Anthony Nelson.
Losers
Elijah Klein
Sometimes you just need to admit defeat.
The Bucs have a established an excellent draft record when it comes to finding offensive linemen, but former sixth-rounder Elijah Klein simply has not shown enough.
The coaches stuck him at right tackle Friday in an effort to keep expanding his versatility, but is flexibility really that valuable when you’re not particularly good at anything you’re being asked to do? He got whipped for two sacks, displaying a clear lack of functional athleticism to hold up there.
He was not the only one who struggled, far from it in fact, but Klein has not been very noteworthy on the interior this preseason or in his prior seasons either, so you have to seriously wonder if there’s any merit in trying to continue this experiment.
Receiver Depth
In an opportunity to make good final impressions, not many receivers made much of an impact.
Garrett Greene, a converted college QB, has generated both of the team’s biggest catches all preseason (his lone catch Friday went for 18 yards) and showed promise last preseason too, but the fundamentals of the position are still a work in progress. He’s had multiple drops as well, along with route running snafus. The practice squad remains the best place for him.
Kam Johnson had a bad drop as well, and it was a reminder that he’s explosive but not always a quality passing option. Dean Patterson made some highlight reel grabs in the previous two games but couldn’t put a ribbon on it, catching 2 passes for only 2 yards.
It will be interesting to see how the final receiver spot and practice squad spots shake out.
Devin Culp
After the Bucs drafted Bauer Sharp, the writing felt on the wall for Culp, who has athletic chops but could never seem to carve out a bigger role.
The last two games, Culp received 3 total targets, so either but the Bucs don’t really see the need to play him or they want to possibly stash him on the practice squad. Either way, it feels more of inevitable parting at some point or another.
