7 winners (and 4 losers) for Buccaneers in preseason win over Chiefs

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 16-15 on Saturday night to improve to 2-0 in the preseason. 

The game provided plenty of positives, both from individual players and units as a whole. Some of Tampa Bay’s weaknesses were also exposed, and they need to be cleaned up or addressed quickly.

With roster cuts just a week away, which Bucs players did the most to solidify their roster spots, and which could have played themselves off the team?

Winners and Losers from Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 16-15 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs

Winner: QB Jalon Daniels

Jalon Daniels is the Buccaneers’ biggest winner for the second week in a row. The Bucs were down 9-0 until Daniels came in and led three scoring drives in the second half. 

Despite lackluster protection from the backup offensive line, Daniels’ mobility allowed him to survive pressure and make plays in a way Jake Browning simply couldn’t. His arm strength was on full display, especially on his touchdown pass where he zipped the ball in to tight end Ko Kieft. 

You could just feel the vibe shift when Daniels enters the game. There’s a different level of energy and urgency when he’s at the helm. The Raymond James Stadium crowd was completely behind Daniels, and he has won the hearts of Bucs nation with his Cinderella story as an undrafted rookie. 

Daniels is already the second-best quarterback on this team. Browning could still get the nod as the backup quarterback due to his veteran experience, but rest assured, Daniels will be on the roster in some capacity.

Winner: OLB Anthony Nelson

Anthony Nelson is fighting to earn a roster spot as the OLB5. He already held the edge, but he just cemented his status against the Chiefs. 

Nelson recorded 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble in the first half, along with a perfect contain to prevent a Justin Fields scramble on third down. He’s likely to take the final outside linebacker spot on the depth chart.

Loser: OLB Chris Braswell

Chris Braswell didn’t even suit up against the Chiefs, and still made the loser’s column. 

The rest of the Bucs pass rush took advantage of their opportunity against the Chiefs with just about everybody making a play or generating pressure. 

Braswell continues to sink down the depth chart, and his time with Tampa Bay is all but over.

Winner: Bucs’ Pass Rush

Nelson already got singled out individually, but the entire pass rush deserves kudos for constantly getting after Chiefs quarterbacks last night. 

Rueben Bain showed off his strength by throwing a blocker out of the way and getting a pressure, while Yaya Diaby won on the opposite side of the line and got into the backfield on the same play. 

Nelson led the team with 1.5 sacks, and Mohamed Kamara notched 0.5 sacks as well.

David Walker didn’t get home for any sacks, but he had several pressures and dominated the Chiefs' reserve offensive tackles on just about every snap he took.

Al-Quadin Muhammad similarly didn’t finish any sacks, but got into the backfield several times and landed a QB hit. 

It was an impressive group effort, and explains why Todd Bowles called it the deepest outside linebacker room since he’s been in Tampa Bay. Altogether, the Bucs recorded eight pressures and two sacks. 

Winner: WR/KR Kam Johnson

Kam Johnson had several effective returns. He had a 23-yard punt return and later added a 28-yard kickoff return to set the team up at their own 30-yard line. 

In addition to his solid night on special teams, Johnson also shined in the pass game with four receptions and 56 yards, which tied for the team lead.

Johnson helped solidify his roster status against the Chiefs and is in the driver’s seat for the returner job. He’s dangerous with the ball in his hands, and that’s the kind of player the Buccaneers value.

Loser: WR Ted Hurst III

Ted Hurst had a night to forget against the Chiefs. He didn’t have any receptions and was only targeted once. His only significant moment of the night was slapping the helmet of Chiefs’ rookie Mansoor Delane, resulting in a 15-yard penalty. 

He needs to keep his cool and avoid any boneheaded penalties that hurt the team, but it’s a rookie mistake that he’ll quickly learn from. The team is expecting big things from Hurst this year, so he needs to shake this one off.

Winner: LB Caden Fordham

Earlier this week, Todd Bowles mentioned Fordham as a player that really stood out to him during the preseason opener. 

Fordham had another strong showing this week, recording six solo tackles, including one tackle for loss. One of his tackles came on special teams, which is crucial as he’ll have to be a special teams contributor to make the roster. 

At the very least, Fordham solidified himself as a player the coaching staff would like to keep around on the practice squad. 

Loser: OT Marshall Foerner

Marshall Foerner had a rough go of things against the Chiefs. He got beaten badly for a sack on Jake Browning and was later called for a false start penalty. 

The backup offensive line as a whole was a major disappointment, but Foerner particularly hurt his chances of earning a roster spot. 

Loser:  Bucs' backup offensive line

The Bucs’ backup offensive line was the most disappointing aspect of the game with an awful performance all around. 

There were several false start penalties, one by Marshall Foerner and another by Paul Rubelt. Luke Haggard had an egregious holding penalty.

It was impossible for the offense to get anything going behind the turnstile of an offensive line, until Jalon Daniels came in and bailed them out with his escapability. 

It was a discouraging night for the backups, and if the Bucs suffer offensive line injuries like they did last season, they’ll be doomed relying on the guys who played last night. 

Winner: Bucs' running backs 

The Bucs running game was effective, despite a poor performance from the blockers up front. 

Bucky Irving got just three carries, but he rushed for 14 yards at 4.7 yards per carry.

Josh Williams surprisingly came in as the second primary running back, and rushed for nine yards on two carries. Where he really stood out was in the receiving game, in which he caught two passes for 24 yards.   

Sean Tucker played most of the second half and ran for 23 yards and a touchdown on five carries at 4.6 yards per carry.

It was an efficient night for the running back room which helped take some pressure off the offensive line who struggled consistently in pass blocking. 

Winner: Bucs’ special teams units

Last week, Tampa Bay’s special teams landed in the loser’s column. The kickoff coverage was poor, and punter Riley Dixon didn’t have a great night. 

This week, the Bucs showed some quick progress in that department. They allowed 24 yards per kickoff return and three yards per punt return, just a week after allowing 29 yards per kickoff return and 12 yards per punt return. 

Riley Dixon punted five times and averaged a solid 47-yard average, and two of his punts backed the Chiefs up inside their own 20-yard line. 

The return game was also impressive. Kam Johnson had a 23-yard punt return in the first quarter and later added a 28-yard kickoff return. 

The Bucs improved on all aspects of special teams from a week ago, which is an encouraging sign from Danny Smith’s unit.

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