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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers training camp is underway, and the team starts its 2023 NFL preseason on Friday, August 11, against the Pittsburgh Steelers. As players fight and claw for Buccaneers' roster spots and starting positions, some players are rising to the top while others are struggling. Here are the three key players struggling early in Tampa Bay during NFL training camp, starting with quarterback Baker Mayfield.
QB Baker Mayfield
It’s been five years since the 2018 NFL Draft, and it’s officially time to call Baker Mayfield a bust. While Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson have become stars, Sam Darnold has become a borderline starter, and Josh Rosen flamed out, the No. 1 pick in that draft is much closer to Rose than even Darnold at this point.
Mayfield is getting — what seems like — his final shot at being an NFL starter with the Buccaneers, a team that feels like it's tanking a bit for the QB-heavy 2024 draft. And the former Oklahoma QB may not even win the job in that situation.
Mayfield has struggled throughout Buccaneers training camp in nearly every aspect of the game, including taking snaps from the center (more on that below). The once highly-touted prospect threw seven interceptions in his first nine practices and hasn’t been all that accurate throwing to his solid group of wideouts.
And he’s being outplayed by Kyle Trask, a QB who started just one full season since his freshman year in high school.
Mayfield and Trask are currently both listed as QB1 on the Buccaneers' roster ahead of the team’s first 2023 NFL preseason game against the Steelers. So, unless Mayfield shows up in a big way during that game — because he’s thrown 2,250 more NFL passes than Trask — he will be holding the clipboard in Week 1 vs. the Minnesota Vikings.
TE Payne Durham
The good news about rookie tight end Payne Durham struggling is that it’s not all bad news.
While wide receivers in recent years have made an immediate impact on their new teams, that’s not the case for tight ends. Running routes and catching passes is just half of a TE’s job, while the other half is being the team’s sixth or seventh offensive lineman. It’s that second part that usually lags behind.
This is exactly what is happening to Payne Durham in Buccaneers training camp.
The 6-foot-6, 253-pound fifth-round pick from Purdue is NFL-ready as a receiver. However, a tight end that can’t block isn’t going to play except in specialized situations. That’s where Durham is at early in Buccaneers training camp, according to his coach, Todd Bowles.
“Offensively, I know he’s a heck of a red zone target,” Bowles said of his rookie TE. “He’s a lean guy and he’s a tall guy; he can put some muscle on his frame. But he’s a big target for us that he can catch the ball. We’re working on the blocking and getting stronger.”
If Durham doesn’t prove he can be an all-around tight end by the end of the 2023 NFL preseason, he will likely end up as TE3 on the Buccaneers’ roster. Second-year pro Cade Otton already has a the lead in the race to be the starter, and Ko Keift is the team’s blocking tight end, which will limit the rookie’s time.
OL Nick Leverett
The Tampa Bay offensive line could be one of the bright spots of the team this year. The Buccaneers roster features All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs, long-time NFL starting right guard Matt Feiler, Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen returning from injury, promising second-round pick Cody Mauch at right guard, and up-and-coming 2022 second-round pick Luke Goedeke at right tackle.
One of the players competing with the rookie, Mauch, is third-year player Nick Leverett, who started 10 games at guard last season. Since the rookie is the favorite to win the job, Leverett is also working at center to increase his value to the team and secure his place on the Buccaneers' roster as a player who can play multiple positions.
Unfortunately for the player and the team, neither is going that well in Buccaneers training camp.
The lineman’s play at center has been particularly troubling, as he and Baker Mayfield weren’t able to get on the same page early in camp. After fumbles on back-to-back plays on the QB-center exchange, coach Todd Bowles raged about the pair’s mistakes.
“The quarterback-center can’t have fumbles, regardless of what I saw,” Bowles said. “I’ll figure it out when I see the film – whose fault it was – but the ball can’t be on the ground.”
That’s not a good sign for a player who is not just fighting for playing time but his spot on the team ahead of the 2023 NFL season.
