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Tampa Bay Buccaneers

2021 Buccaneers Training Camp Takeaways: Day 2

Practice in the sweltering heat continued Monday as the team took the field for day two of training camp.

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In a day that was 'hotter than fish grease' as wide receiver Jaydon Mickens put it, the Buccaneers continued practice, trotting out for their second day of training camp on Monday. Held at AdventHealth Training Center, where the team practices all year round, the stadium, and therefore last year's Super Bowl banners are always in clear view.

And while Head Coach Bruce Arians has cautioned these last two days of dwelling on the championship success last year, it's that taste of it that keeps the players motivated this year.

This was also after Smith commented on how hot it was and talked about how players can lose up to 10 pounds in a single practice in this heat.

Anyway, here's a few more things that stood out beyond the sun:

-I'm going to be honest, I'm not quite sure how it happened but outside linebacker Joe Tryon ended up with the ball running down the sidelines in special teams drills and if you're telling me this guy has ball skills on special teams on top of his physical abilities rushing the passer, then that makes me very excited.

-Defensive Coordinator Todd Bowles likes to start practices out on the right foot for the defense – literally. He makes every defensive player line up and then has another one of his coaches simulate a hard count with the infamous ball on a stick. If one single player jumps, they stay at five. If they do it perfectly it goes down to four, then three and so on. But if a guy jumps again, it goes back up to five. Bowles wants five clean get-offs from his entire defense before they start practice.

-I cannot stress enough how quick inside linebacker Lavonte David is laterally. It doesn't matter if it's a running back, tight end or even receiver, David keeps up with all of them in coverage.

-Rookie wide receiver Jaelon Darden had an insane sideline catch where he tipped the ball up to himself, then twisted around to catch it while falling out of bounds and still managed to drag both feet. He even earned a 'good catch' from Bowles, who was standing right there.

-Wide receiver Scotty Miller seemed to get in the mix a little more today. The receivers did a little bit of shuffling around and we saw a lot out of both Miller and Darden on the first field.

-In the seven-on-seven period, quarterback Tom Brady seemed to be getting the running backs more involved in underneath routes. Running back Ronald Jones even made it into the end zone on a short slant during the period.

View some of the photos from Buccaneers Training Camp practice at the AdventHealth Training Center.

-The practice condensed to one field for the final few periods of the day. Cornerback Antonio Hamilton had a leaping pass breakup on a long pass over the middle in which he disrupted the middle of the throw.

-The fans in attendance were thrilled to see a long pass from Brady to wide receiver Mike Evans as Evans leapt up along the sideline as Brady put it right in the bread basket. Earned its fair share of applause from the crowd as the team marched down the field in situational drills.

-The series ended in a touchdown by running back Giovani Bernard after catching a short pass from Brady. It earned a, "Nice drive, 12," from quarterbacks coach Clyde Christensen.

-In the last period, cornerback Ross Cockrell, whose sister Anna is competing in Tokyo as part of Team USA Track and Field, nabbed himself an interception. There had been pass breakups and near misses for the second day in a row but Cockrell came away with a clean pick after jumping a route ahead of the intended receiver.

-Drops were again a thing today as Arians lamented his displeasure with the last 30 minutes of practice. He blamed the heat and his players not being quite as accustomed to it as they should be but he's liked what he's seen to start practice the last couple days.

-The very last situational drill of the day saw the defense stop quarterback Blaine Gabbert, taking away options downfield and 'pressuring' him (without actually touching him because no contact is allowed at this stage). That ended the day on a high note for the defense as a result.

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