Coming into the 2025 season, the Bucs felt they had done a lot to shore up their depth at several different positions. It was easy to see the effort was there, as they flooded a number of position groups with more talent. The early returns from training camp were good, but there was still the matter of seeing everything and everyone come together when the lights came on in Saturday night’s preseason opener at Raymond James Stadium.
Good news: Tampa Bay’s 29-7 exhibition win over the Tennessee Titans saw some performances that will only further the feeling that this is a deeper team than it was last year. There were plenty of returners who continued to stand out as valuable depth pieces, but there were also some newcomers who burst onto the scene – especially on defense.
Bucs’ Offensive Skill Position Groups Might Be The NFL’s Deepest
The Bucs already knew they were deep at running back. Of course they did. There can’t be many teams – if any – that can match the three-headed monster Tampa Bay has in Bucky Irving, Rachaad White and Sean Tucker. Irving didn’t play Saturday night, and White unfortunately left with a groin injury after rushing for 28 yards on six carries.
No matter, though, as Tucker continued to build on what he did last year, breaking free early on for a 23-yard run before punching the ball in for the team’s first touchdown of the night. Overall, the former Syracuse star ran for 50 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries, averaging 3.8 yards per carry behind the second- and third-team offensive lines.
Bucs RB Owen Wright – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
But how about the newest addition to Tampa Bay’s backfield? Owen Wright was only recently signed due to injuries at the running back position, yet he looks to be another exciting find who could prove to be even more valuable depth for the Bucs offense. Wright looked quick and elusive Saturday night, rushing for a team-high 87 yards on 18 carries. And after having two touchdowns called back due to penalties, he finally did find the end zone late from 15 yards out.
There’s also the fact that Josh Williams, an undrafted free agent out of LSU who the team is high on, was unable to play Saturday night as he continues to recover from an injury he picked up early in camp. If he can return soon and live up to the expectations the Bucs have for him, that’s just another good depth piece in the backfield.
Then there’s the Bucs wide receiving corps, which is also the envy of the league. Obviously, there was no Mike Evans Saturday night, and Chris Godwin is still working his way back from injury. That left second-year receiver Jalen McMillan and 2025 first-round pick Emeka Egbuka as Tampa Bay’s starting receivers, and they wasted no time, making an impact right away.
Bucs WRs Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
First, it was McMillan with a 25-yard catch on the game’s first play from scrimmage. It was an athletic contested catch for the 2024 third-rounder, and it set the tone early. Just a few plays later, it was Egbuka making a contested catch, this one for a 21-yard gain.
It was only a small glimpse, but those two plays were easy examples for the level of firepower the Bucs have behind their top dogs at receiver. And it doesn’t stop after the top four, either.
Ryan Miller, a former tight end-turned-receiver entering his third year with the Bucs, was the team’s leading receiver Saturday night with six catches for 66 yards. He proved to be a steady option off the practice squad last year when the receiving corps was dealing with an injury crisis, and he may be hard to ignore when it comes time to decide on the final one or two receiver spots on the depth chart.
Bucs WR Ryan Miller – Photo by: USA Today
Saturday also saw undrafted rookie Garrett Greene have a solid debut, recording a 17-yard punt return while also catching both of his targets for 22 yards. The former West Virginia quarterback is having a good camp as a wide receiver.
Of course, the Bucs also have seventh-round pick Tez Johnson, who they’re excited to see when he can make his return from injury. Training camp has also featured some good moments from veteran Sterling Shepard and Dennis Houston, plus there are the usual mainstays like Trey Palmer and Rakim Jarrett still hanging around. Houston suffered a groin injury early on Saturday, so his status for the remaining two preseason games remains uncertain.
It’s hard not to love what the Bucs have up and down the depth chart both at running back and wide receiver, and Saturday night was only further evidence.
Bucs’ Additions To Linebacker Room, Secondary Already Shining
The Bucs were unbearably thin at the inside linebacker position last year, with very little in the way of reliability outside of Lavonte David, especially once SirVocea Dennis went out with a season-ending shoulder injury. The team didn’t exactly go out and make any big-time additions to the room this offseason, but a couple of under-the-radar undrafted free agents already looked the part of potentially valuable depth pieces in their respective preseason debuts Saturday night.
The big star of the night and a guy to continue watching going forward is Nick Jackson out of Iowa. He recorded Tampa Bay’s first sack against the Titans on a blitz before coming up with an interception on a tipped pass at the line of scrimmage later in the drive. It was a splashy debut for the experienced ‘backer, who played an NCAA-record 73 collegiate games over the course of his career.
Bucs ILB Nick Jackson – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R
Jackson’s interception came as a result of a great play by another undrafted inside linebacker, John Bullock. Bullock, a Nebraska product like Lavonte David, came rushing in on a blitz and got his hand on Brandon Allen’s pass, deflecting it into the air. Jackson was then right there to haul in a one-handed interception.
Jackson wound up being the Bucs’ highest-graded defender of the game, according to PFF’s live metrics. And Bullock was credited with a second pass defensed, too.
The Bucs are still waiting for veteran Anthony Walker Jr. to return from the non-football injury list, and they’ll feel good about the group they have in David, Dennis, Walker and Deion Jones. But look for Jackson to potentially sneak onto the roster, too. More performances like the one he had Saturday night may make that a certainty.
The secondary is another group that badly needed an infusion of depth. The Bucs drafted two cornerbacks, signed a couple and brought in a plethora of undrafted free agents at cornerback, nickelback and safety. That paid immediate dividends on Saturday night, with just about every member of the Tampa Bay secondary making a play.
Jacob Parrish, the team’s third-round pick who will challenge for the starting nickelback role, made a good impression early, recording two pass breakups. J.J. Roberts, an undrafted free agent who can play safety and nickel, had two pass breakups as well. One should’ve been an interception, and the second was a deflected pass that ended up being intercepted by Tyrek Funderburk, a member of last year’s UDFA class.
Bucs safety JJ Roberts – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R
Josh Hayes, a sixth-round pick from two years ago, came under a lot of fire last year, as did Funderburk. But in addition to Funderburk’s interception, Hayes recorded two pass breakups of his own Saturday night and nearly had an early interception of Cam Ward.
Cornerback Roman Parodie, another undrafted free agent in this year’s class, put the exclamation point on the Bucs’ preseason-opening victory with a 39-yard pick-six with under two minutes left, too.
And of course, there was the always-popular Shilo Sanders, who also made a good impression Saturday night with a pressure on a blitz and a couple of big hits in the secondary.
Do you get the picture? The Bucs were left bare late last season and into the playoffs in the secondary, and it cost them. They made an effort to shore up the depth back there this offseason, and while it’s early, things are trending in the right direction.
And that’s even without second-round cornerback Benjamin Morrison in the mix as of now.
Does Any Of This Matter?
Yes, it was only one preseason game. And yes, a lot of these guys may not make the final 53-man roster and will likely end up on the practice squad. So, does any of this matter? Of course it does.
Bucs GM & HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
While the Bucs have a whole lot of high-end talent all over their roster, depth is key. They’ve learned that the hard way on multiple occasions, particularly in 2021 at the receiver position and last year at cornerback. And the fact that so many of these potential depth pieces they’re high on have already started to show some value? That’s great news.
While it may not fully work out this way, just imagine the concept of Tampa Bay being four or five deep at running back, seven or eight deep at receiver, five or six deep at linebacker and even 10 or 11 deep in the secondary. That’s the makings of an elite team, and it goes to show the hit rate general manager Jason Licht and his staff have both within the draft and maybe even more so in the undrafted free agency market.
The arrow is pointing up on a whole lot of fronts as far as the Bucs’ depth is concerned. And that’s a good place to be at this time of the year, isn’t it?
