Buccaneers: Don’t expect much to change during training camp
By Rob Leeds
The Buccaneers have kicked off training camp for the 2021 NFL season, and while the motto is that this is a “new” team, don’t expect much change.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are doing precisely what a champion needs to after winning it all; not becoming complacent. The rallying cry across the team is that it all starts over again now and that no player is safe, and while there may be some truth to this, don’t hold your breath for too much change.
Blaine Gabbert isn’t replacing Tom Brady. No matter how well the Bucs’ number two plays over the coming weeks, there isn’t going to be a shakeup at the quarterback position or any other in a significant way.
During the first day, which is already too small a sample size, Brady seemed to love Jaelon Darden and Scotty Miller. Neither are starting receivers on day one of the regular season, and both will likely be buried pretty deep on the depth chart even with spectacular training camp performances. It’s hard to beat out Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Antonio Brown.
While some of these younger players are starting to make a name for themselves and pushing the vets, the same 22 players that ended the season, with the exception of Alex Cappa for Aaron Stinnie, will start the Super Bowl defense campaign.
It’s the right decision by Bruce Arians and the rest of the coaching staff to find new ways to push their players, but a team like the Bucs is too top-heavy for anyone to buy into the notion that jobs are on the line for the key players.
The first team will remain intact, and more than any other year, camp will be centered around players that are trying to build roles as the fourth or fifth guy at a position or on special teams, but that isn’t a bad place to be for the champs.
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The coming weeks will do plenty to show what the identity of this team will be, but no matter how well some young rookie or newcomer looks in a 10-second clip on Twitter, don’t expect too much to change.
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