Buccaneers: 4 most exciting preseason players to watch in 2021
By Rob Leeds
The Buccaneers need to give Ke’Shawn Vaughn an extended evaluation
The Buccaneers have next to no longevity in their running back room. Ke’Shawn Vaughn is currently the only back that is set to return to the team in 2022, and it’s time for the Bucs to figure out what they have in the second-year RB.
Bruce Arians and company likely won’t start from scratch and should bring some combination of their free-agent RBs back for 2022, but it doesn’t hurt to see what Vaughn can do over time.
With minimal use in 2020, as is the norm for Buccaneer rookie backs it seems, Vaughn was never able to build up a rhythm. Even with some good moments like in games against the Lions, Vaughn could never string success for long enough to carve out a substantial role.
While Vaughn still has the deck stacked against him for 2021, the Bucs shouldn’t have to evaluate their top three backs for long, which should leave plenty of time for Vaughn to get an easy 20 touches per game in the preseason.
The coaching staff already knows that Vaughn should round out their group of running backs, which should lead to Vaughn being on the field for almost every offensive and special teams down in the preseason.
While it would be nice to give some of the practice squad guys a chance to show off in the preseason games, Vaughn needs to be the focal point of the rushing attack based on his ability to produce this season.
Vaughn is another player for the Buccaneers that could easily lead in a statical category for all teams in the preseason (rushing). Still, his ability to catch in the upcoming contests will be the best determinant of his growth.