Bucs Mini-Camp Insider 6-13: Kyle Trask’s Tough Day

• The same could be said for Trask, who had a rough outing with multiple interceptions and another near interception. Trask’s first interception came at the hands of rookie linebacker SirVocea Dennis, who jumped an underneath route and took it back for a touchdown. Trask then should have suffered another pick, as reserve cornerback Duron Lowe had a pass hit him in the hands, but he dropped it.

Trask’s second interception came on an errant throw to tight end Tanner Taula. The high pass was deflected at the goal line by undrafted free agent linebacker Brandon Bouyer-Randle and rookie nickelback Chris Izien made the pick in the end zone. Trask did end his uneven practice on a high note, rolling out to his right and throwing a dart to a diving Jarrett for a touchdown against Josh Hayes.

• John Wolford continued to look solid, and better than the typical No. 3 quarterback. Although he contributed to the big day by the Bucs secondary, throwing an interception to cornerback Anthony Chesley, who stepped in front of Taula outside the numbers.

Running Backs

• The Bucs continue to work at their mid-zone run scheme with Rachaad White leading the way. Backup Ke’Shawn Vaughn was the one making a couple of splash plays on Tuesday, though. Vaughn had a nice touchdown catch in the red zone and also had two nice cutback runs where he ran to daylight pretty decisively. Vaughn appears to have an early lead over Chase Edmonds and other running backs for the backup spot right now.

Wide Receivers

• Russell Gage watched practice, but continued to miss time with an undisclosed injury. Gage, who disappointed last year due in part to a season-long hamstring injury, might not take a snap in the new Dave Canales offense until training camp. That could cause him to lose some ground for the No. 3 wide receiver position. Rookies Trey Palmer and Rakim Jarrett have been impressing in Gage’s absence.

• David Moore made some noise on Tuesday with two really good catches downfield – one on a throw from Baker Mayfield and one on a throw from Kyle Trask. It’s a bit of a logjam at wide receiver for the No. 5 and No. 6 spots, and one of those will go to a return specialist – whether it’s Palmer or Deven Thompkins. But Moore is a veteran who has several years of playing in Seattle under his belt. He’s a dark horse to keep an eye on in training camp.

Tight Ends

• The tight ends continue to be underutilized in the passing game with just a few passes going their way. Cade Otton and undrafted free agent Tanner Taula continue to be the favored targets in the passing game. Payne Durham, a Day 3 draft pick, recently has shown up in the passing game like many thought he would as of yet. Durham is not fleet of foot, so he’s rarely open. But he is known for making contested catches and perhaps he hasn’t earned enough trust with the quarterbacks yet to get targeted.

Offensive Line

• Center Ryan Jensen participated in individual drills during Tuesday’s mini-camp, which was an encouraging sign, but was wisely held out of team drills. The same is true for guard Aaron Stinnie, as he recovers from his torn ACL. So it was no surprise to see Robert Hainsey taking all the reps at first-string center.

Jensen will likely be held out of team periods until training camp starts. Stinnie faces an uphill climb. The Bucs have a plethora of guards, and Stinnie is a one-trick-pony, unable to play tackle or center to give him any versatility.

Bucs Defensive Notes

Bucs Head Coach Todd Bowles Addresses The Devin White Situation

After practice, Bucs head coach Todd Bowles addressed Devin White showing up to practice and was asked if his star linebacker was a hold-in, which is showing up to avoid being fined, but not participating because he may still be unhappy about his contract situation.

“No, it’s not a hold-in,” Bowles said. “We’d like to see where he is physically, so we don’t feel like we need to put him out here right now until we test him and do everything. Two or three days of camp is not going to help him that much.”

Was Bowles being truthful or was covering for his young linebacker, who really is a hold-in? Bowles said White will be ready to go for training camp, so we’ll find out in late July if White intends to practice with the Bucs at that time.

Defensive Line

• Rookie Calijah Kancey, the team’s first-round pick, joined Logan Hall and Vita Vea with the first-team defense on Tuesday. Kancey has spent a good deal of time with the second team during the offseason as he learned the defense. Kancey’s quickness is apparent and he penetrated the backfield, even though the offensive line isn’t in pads and can’t really block. However, there were some plays where Kancey was double-teamed and pushed around near the goal line that were concerning.

• It appears as if Greg Gaines won’t be replacing Akiem Hicks or Will Gholston in the starting lineup. During the offseason he’s been taking reps at nose tackle behind Vita Vea. So Gaines will be viewed as Rakeem Nunez-Roches’ replacement instead. Gaines will battle Deadrin Senat, the other reserve nose tackle, for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart behind Vea. Senat made a couple of nice run stuffs on Tuesday.

Outside Linebackers

• Shaq Barrett showed up to mandatory mini-camp and was seen outside working with a trainer as he continues his recovery from a torn Achilles tendon. The hope is that Barrett can return to form this season as the jury is still out as to whether Joe Tryon-Shoyinka can take the next step as a consistent pass rusher.

• Bucs head coach Todd Bowles mentioned undrafted rookie free agent outside linebacker Markees Watts as someone who has impressed in the offseason, and Watts showed why. He bulled his way through a tackle-tight end double team to force an incompletion by third-string quarterback John Wolford. In addition to draft picks YaYa Diaby and Jose Ramirez, Watts is one to watch when the pads come on in training camp.

Inside Linebackers

• With Devin White out, KJ Britt started alongside Lavonte David and rookie SirVocea Dennis and JJ Russell were on the second team. Early in the first 11-on-11 session Dennis recorded an interception off Kyle Trask and took it to the house. Dennis was known for his blitzing and pass rush prowess at Pittsburgh where he recorded seven sacks last year and 15 in his career playing behind Calijah Kancey. But it’s been his untapped pass coverage skills that have been on display this summer.

• Britt, a core special teamer, will need to step up his game on defense to fend off Dennis. The third-year product out of Auburn gave up a touchdown catch to Ke’Shawn Vaughn in coverage and still appears to be a step slow against the pass.

Secondary

• Veteran Dee Delaney continues to get the first-team reps at nickelback, as he has all of the offseason during the OTAs. Delaney had a nice pass breakup on fourth down in the red zone, stepping in front of Chris Godwin to swat Baker Mayfield’s pass away. Undrafted free agent rookie Chris Izien and Josh Hayes, a sixth-round draft pick, split the other nickel reps. Izien had an interception off a deflection towards the end of practice, while Hayes gave up a diving touchdown catch by Rakim Jarrett on the last play of practice.

• Antoine Winfield Jr. and Ryan Neal are the two starting safeties and Bucs head coach Todd Bowles makes sure that tandem is always on the field together to build chemistry and communication. That’s a smart move and it’s apparent that the camaraderie is building between the two veterans. Undrafted rookie free agent Kaevon Merriweather is making a strong bid to win a roster spot as the No. 3 safety.

• Bowles mentioned undrafted rookie cornerback Keenan Isaac as one to watch in training camp. On Tuesday Bowles deployed two backup cornerbacks with the rest of the starters on defense. Isaac, a long, 6-foot-2 cornerback from Alabama State, played opposite Zyon McCollum, and did a nice job of defending tight end Payne Durham on a corner route in the end zone, resulting in an incompletion. Bowles will sometimes mix and match his units in practice, and had starting cornerbacks Carlton Davis III and Jamel Dean play with the second-team defense for a series on Tuesday.