The Buccaneers got a rough break before kickoff against the Vikings, and it came in the most ordinary place possible: warmups.
Tampa Bay defensive tackle Rakeem Nunez-Roches was a late scratch Sunday, showing up on the inactives report about an hour and a half before the game after tweaking his ankle during pregame work. The injury knocked out a useful depth piece from the Bucs’ defensive line just as they were trying to steady things against Minnesota in Week 3.
Nunez-Roches, who was part of Tampa Bay’s Super Bowl-winning team in 2020, was brought back by Jason Licht to help fortify a rebuilt defensive front. This season, though, his role has been limited.
He has two tackles, both assisted, across 35 snaps as a rotational player. Per SumerSports, Tampa Bay’s defense has posted a 0.0252 EPA/play with him on the field, a sign that his impact has been modest in the early going.
Even so, he still gives Todd Bowles something valuable: familiarity. He knows the system, and that kind of veteran depth matters when the game plan starts thinning out.
With Nunez-Roches unavailable, the Buccaneers will turn to DeMonte Capehart and Elijah Simmons. Capehart, one of Tampa Bay’s two sixth-round picks out of Clemson, has not played yet this season and is set to make his NFL debut against the Vikings.
Simmons will also be active for the first time for Tampa Bay, though he has been with the team before after being signed from the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad last year. He has experience in the system and could be leaned on more heavily now.
Tampa Bay and Minnesota are set for a 4:05 p.m. kickoff Sunday. A loss would drop the Buccaneers to 0-3 and extend the slide that began midway through last season.
In Other News...
Bucs Loss Exposed A Bigger Problem Than Fans Wanted To See
The Buccaneers 23-16 loss to the Vikings in Week 3 was more than just a one-score setback. Tampa Bay kept bumping into the same problems on both sides of the ball, with the offense never finding much rhythm under coordinator Zac Robinson and the defense undone at key moments, including an 86-yard punt return touchdown that tilted the game in Minnesotas favor.
Baker Mayfield finished with a 50% completion rate, one touchdown and one interception, then added a right hand injury late in the game to an already frustrating night. There were also rough stretches for players such as cornerback Jacob Parrish and right tackle Luke Goedeke, leaving the Bucs with an uncomfortable reminder that the issues exposed Sunday go well beyond a single bad sequence or a single phase of the game. [Read more 🡒]
Baker Mayfield Injury Just Raised The Stakes For A Reeling Bucs Team
Tampa Bays rough Week 3 got even messier late in the loss to Minnesota, when Baker Mayfield dislocated his thumb near the end of the game. The Buccaneers were already dealing with the sting of another defeat, and the injury to their starting quarterback quickly became the biggest concern coming out of the night.
Todd Bowles said Mayfield will undergo an MRI to get a better read on the injury, leaving the team waiting on a clearer update. Mayfield was replaced by rookie Jalon Daniels after leaving the game, and for a Bucs team trying to steady itself, the timing of the setback only adds to the pressure heading into the next stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Loss Exposed Problems Fans Wont Stop Arguing About
The Buccaneers latest loss did more than dent the standings - it reopened the same arguments that have followed this team for weeks. Between the defenses uneven stretches, the offenses uneven rhythm and a special teams sequence that left plenty of second-guessing behind, the game against Minnesota became the kind of all-around mess that forces a closer look at how Tampa Bay is being coached and why so many drives still seem to stall at the wrong time.
Todd Bowles now has a familiar debate on his hands, because the scrutiny is not just about one bad afternoon but about how the Bucs handled key moments through the first three quarters. Baker Mayfield, Bucky Irving and a few others had their moments, but the bigger issue is whether the teams decisions and execution can keep matching up against good opponents when the game starts tightening. [Read more 🡒]