Wednesday morning's practice is over, after being delayed a bit by rain. All accounts had it being a slick, muddy surface they were practicing on, which may not be a bad thing. You don't always get 80 degrees and sun on game day. Couple of injury updates, some playmaking abilities on display, and one of the old-timers makes a play.
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- Geno Hayes is getting to run with the ones on defense. While no one will ever be able to replace Derrick Brooks, Hayes comes from the same lineage as Brook. Undersized linebacker with great speed from Florida State. Hayes is still raw and coming off an injury, but I thought he was a bit of a steal last year, and I'll continue to think that until proven otherwise. Dominik said our deepest position was linebacker. I'm starting to believe him with Hayes, Barrett Ruud, Angelo Crowell, Jermaine Phillips, Quincy Black, Adam Heyward etc.
- Antonio Bryant, Kellen Winslow, Torrie Cox, and Angelo Crowell all sat out with injuries, though Raheem Morris said he expects Bryant and Winslow to be back tomorrow.
At the tail end of practice, Michael Clayton looked to tweak a hamstring after a touchdown catch. Dude is on fire right now. It's practice, but he's improving.
- Josh Vaughan is getting some snaps at fullback. Alot of people feel he could be squeezed out of a roster spot with four quality backs ahead of him, but depth at FB is key, and if he can pick up special teams, he may find a niche with the Bucs
- Phillips drew alot of praise from the coaches. He was challenged to be physical and to play at full speed and he did so today. I've never been worried about him being physical, it's more the wrapping up of ball carriers I'm concerned. Still early in the project though, keep it going Flip.
- Some trickery in the red zone as a reverse was run. I hear that Trueblood annihilated Stylez G. White. He's got a mean streak, if he can keep from the troublesome false start.
- Byron Leftwich was the QB of the day, looking the best. He was zipping throw around the field and threw no picks. Always a key. Luke McCown looked adequate today, and while he made no mistakes, didn't appear up to par with Leftwich. Seems he's still the leader though.
- The running game had some ups and downs. A few good runs by Ward and Clifton were the good, a few guys being hit in the backfield was the bad. The new scheme is coming along nicely though.
- Quincy Black is shaping up to be a force. If he can translate his practice play to game play, he will be a treat to watch. It'll be interesting to see how they use him throughout the game.
The team has a second practice this afternoon, weather permitting. All things are shaping up on schedule. Of course, this is just training camp. We're still facing our own guys, and alot of the time not even going first string against first string. It's always tough to read what performance in training camp means, especially for veterans. You can usually predict who will or won't make the team, but with guys like Clayton, it's tough. You know he's on the team, he's had some trials the last few years, but this training camp, he's doing everything and doing it well. Does this mean he's a 100 catch 1,400 yard guy? Maybe. You don't know until you get on the field and see it happen in live action.
As always, Buc 'Em keeping you updated on the Bucs training camp.