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Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Takeaways from 2021 Bucs OTAs: June 3

OTA practices for the Bucs concluded on Thursday as the team gets ready for mandatory minicamp next week.

takeaway

That's a wrap! Well, on OTAs, that is. The Buccaneers wrapped up voluntary workouts on Thursday with over 40 players taking the field for the shortened practice. The work began last Tuesday and six days of meetings and practices later, the Bucs are ready to move into the final component of Phase Three of the NFL offseason program.

That will come with mandatory minicamp, starting June 8. It will mark the return of many of the veteran players to AdventHealth Training Center for the first time since winning Super Bowl LV. They'll go through three training-camp like days of meetings and practices before breaking for the summer.

Though Thursday's practice was abbreviated, it may have been the most eventful of the bunch. Even coaches were jawing back and forth (all in good fun) between the offense and the defense and defense seemed to rule the day after all was said and done, despite the fact contact isn't allowed.

Here are a few notes from the Bucs' last OTA practice.

-Running back Ke'Shawn Vaughn continued to show how much work he's put into becoming a better receiver in individual drills. He caught every ball that came his way and his hands look a lot more natural.

-The defense came out of the gate having a good day. There were quite a few incomplete passes in the first team period with a lot of receivers ending up out of bounds despite make their catches.

View the best photos from the sixth day of Bucs OTAs.

-Cornerback Nate Brooks had a good day, starting it out with reading a play perfectly. He got to a ball at the same time as a receiver and forced a pass breakup on a pass from rookie quarterback Kyle Trask.

-Though the defense wasn't actually allowed to make contact with the quarterbacks, they were forcing them to get the ball out much quicker with near constant hypothetical pressure. Keep in mind this is a defense that ranked second in the league last year in pressures per game. It seems nothing has really changed.

-In the last team period of the day, a ball went off the fingertips of Travis Jonsen and was tipped up in the air, It was Brooks that came down with it, who was one of three defenders in the area.

-The very next play ended in another interception for the defense as rookie safety Augustus (nicknamed Augie) Contressa stepped up and nabbed a ball that seemed to be thrown right to him. It was, in reality, a good heads up play by the young defensive back.

-Defensive tackle Khalil Davis was hustling in coverage and was able to disrupt a screen pass without even needing to touch the ball.

-The offense was able to get some things going at the end. The day ended on a tight-window throw from quarterback Ryan Griffin right into the chest of wide receiver Jaydon Mickens, who jumped up and came down with it right across the goal line for a touchdown in between two would-be defenders.

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