John Romano: With playoffs looming, Bucs rookies are making names for themselves

John Romano, Tampa Bay Times on Dec 16, 2024

Published in Football

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TAMPA, Fla. — A year ago, they were just fodder for the mock draft industry.

Decent numbers with intriguing talent, but lacking the star power to warrant an official invite to the NFL draft party. For the most part, they were second- and third-day guys in the draft pecking order. The type of players familiar to scouts and diehards, but hardly household names elsewhere.

And yet, a couple days ago, they were difference-makers in Tampa Bay’s playoff push.

That journey from anonymous to indispensable evolved gradually across the past few months, but it was never more evident than in Sunday’s 40-17 victory against the Los Angeles Chargers that put the Buccaneers on the precipice of another NFC South title.

Bucky Irving? He’s the guy who watched five running backs get drafted ahead of him. And now he’s rushed for more yards (852) than those other five backs combined. On Sunday, he gained 117 yards on 15 carries including a critical 54-yarder in the third quarter with the Bucs clinging to a 20-17 lead.

Jalen McMillan? In a draft with seven receivers going in the first round, McMillan waited until near the end of the third round before his name was called. On Sunday, he had a career-high 75 yards on five receptions, including his fourth touchdown of the season.

Tykee Smith? In the Pro Football Focus draft preview, he was not listed among the top 100 players available. NFL.com didn’t have him in the top 200. On Sunday, with both starting safeties unavailable, Smith teamed up with second-year pro Kaevon Merriweather to help shut down Justin Herbert and the Los Angeles passing game.

Along with center Graham Barton, who was Tampa Bay’s first-round draft pick and won a starting job in Week 1, these rookies have played critical roles on a team that has been transitioning from a veteran-laden lineup in 2020-22 to one of the youngest rosters in the NFL.

“The way the league is going right now, coming out of college, you don’t get the luxury of sitting everybody for a year or two,” head coach Todd Bowles said. “So … if you’re drafting seven guys, at least four of them better be significant players right now and the other three better have a skill set for the near future.”

That’s easier said than done. Particularly for a franchise that hasn’t had a top-10 pick in the draft since 2019.

The Bucs had nine different rookies get at least 100 snaps on either offense or defense in 2023. Only Green Bay (11) and Arizona (10) had more. The trend has continued in 2024. Tampa Bay rookies have combined for 2,689 snaps on offense and defense, sixth-most in the NFL.

The amount of rookie production is obviously a compliment to general manager Jason Licht and his personnel department, but it’s also a reflection of a coaching staff getting 21- and 22-year-olds ready to play in the NFL.

“We start training them from Day 1 — how to be professional, for their moment not to be too big for them during the season,” Bowles said. “(We) put them in different situations at practice all day long. (It’s) nothing like playing in the games but they get in those situations, they see the guys in front of them.

“Midseason, we went through some trials and tribulations before our bye. Afterwards, they matured. They’re finishing plays. They’re doing everything the right way and it’s helping pay off. Our coaches do a great job of getting these guys ready.”

Irving leads NFL rookies in both rushing and yards from scrimmage. Smith is tied for first in forced fumbles and tied for seventh in interceptions. McMillan is in the top five of all rookies in receiving touchdowns. Barton has helped transform the running game from dead last to one of the best in the league.

That doesn’t even take into account smaller roles played by cornerback Tyrek Funderburk, linebacker Chris Braswell and receiver Kameron Johnson.

Spotrac.com has the Bucs with the third-youngest roster in the NFL.

Bowles said the maturation of the rookies has played an important role in the team’s current four-game winning streak that has Tampa Bay as the No. 3 seed in the NFC.

“I would like to think we learn from our mistakes. I think a lot of it is from the mistakes we had in the first half of the season,” Bowles said. “They’ve matured and grown up. Through injury or otherwise, those guys got to play a lot more and their confidence has grown and they’re really fitting in and finding their roles within the team right now and they’re settling in playing good football.”

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