HEAD COACH TODD BOWLES

(On what he's seen from LB Anthony Walker Jr.)

"[He is] very intelligent from a communication standpoint, which we thought he was when we got him. He really fit right in once he came here – I feel like he's been here the whole time. He's got a good grasp of the scheme and an understanding of what to do. Him and 'Voss' (SirVocea Dennis) are really hitting it off."

(On the Buccaneers having a large number of players report for voluntary OTAs)

"It says a lot. Some guys are nicked up and we understand that. There [were] probably about seven of them missing and probably about five of them are nicked up a little bit. We understand where they are in their training and we keep in contact and everything else. The turnout we had today was great, and it gives the guys a chance to get more reps and get the system down."

(On if he expects to see OLB Haason Reddick during voluntary OTAs)

"I'm sure one of these days we'll see him."

(On what he wants the players and coaches to get out of the OTAs)

"From a coaching standpoint, we're trying to make sure they're fundamentally sound, they're where they're supposed to be, they're communicating, and they're right from a technique standpoint. From a player standpoint, understanding the scheme and being able to do your job and have all the answers to the best of your ability – the best of your knowledge – and get [that] out of [it] so that when everybody gets to [training] camp, there's clean competition."

(On if players that are 'nicked up' are due to lingering injuries from last season, or maintenance injuries from training)

"Some are, some aren't. It's a little of both."

(On if there's an update on WR Chris Godwin's health status)

"Not really. He's working hard. He's coming around. We'll see more when we get to training camp. We're hopeful of Week 1…Nothing has really changed. If anybody can come back and play, it's going to be Chris."

(On if the team was running live call-it periods towards the end of practice on Tuesday)

"No, we had everything scripted the first week. We haven't gotten into that yet. We've still got some fundamentals and some things that we need to work out before we get to that."

(On LB SirVocea Dennis recording an interception in Tuesday's practice)

"He's been like that the last couple of years. We've just got to keep him healthy. We feel like he's a lot healthier going into this season than he's ever been. Knock on wood, if he's healthy, we think we've got a heck of a player."

(On Bowles saying he had a 'Eureka' moment earlier in the offseason, and if that moment was deciding to have all of the different position groups in the defensive secondary meet frequently)

"No, that's not a Eureka moment – they've been in the same room quite a few times. A Eureka moment is figuring out what you want to do, schematically, for the next year and trying to put all the pieces in place with the coaches and understand what we want to do going forward. That was kind of the Eureka moment. It wasn't anything flashy to say, 'We're doing this,' or, 'We're doing that." It was kind of how we wanted to attack the season differently and what we want our guys to look like when they play."

(On the secondary breaking up a few passes in Tuesday's practice and if that's what he'd like to see)

"I'd like to see more interceptions. We've been breaking up the passes – we've got to come down with them. It's day one, it's shorts and t-shirts, I'm not going to give the offense credit so I'm not going to give the defense credit."

(On how Offensive Coordinator Josh Grizzard is coming along, and if the team will do any call-it periods during OTAs)

"That would probably be next week. There won't be anything this week – it'll probably be next week. We have some fundamental and technical things to get out of the way before we start getting into those types of things. He's coming along fine. He's very calm. The coaches have been together for a little bit, so that always helps, too. He's doing great."

(On if he was pleased with the players' level of conditioning on Tuesday)

"Yeah, so far. I'll go back and look at the tape and see."

(On if any of the offensive linemen who did not practice on Tuesday are at risk of missing the beginning of training camp)

"Not at this time, no."

(On what WR Jalen McMillan needs to do to build off of his rookie campaign)

"Just keep mastering the offense…Obviously, it's always a route thing – getting all of his routes down. That's for all of the [wide] receivers right there. He has a good grasp of the knowledge of the offense and that'll help him play faster."

(On RB Rachaad White's Instagram post over the weekend referencing a 'last ride')

"I don't know what that means because I don't have twitter, first of all. Last ride, for me, is kind of like The Magnificent Seven and going into those types of deals. I don't know what different things mean. I think Rachaad has been here, he's been great, he plays hard, he practices hard. We're going to need all three of [the running backs]. I'm not really into tweets."

(On what has stood out to him about this year's rookie class)

"I don't know if anybody has stood out because they're all learning, right now. They're learning, they're conditioning, they're getting mixed in with the vets from a sprinting and lifting standpoint. They're in the same rooms, so they get to see how things go from a [smoothness] standpoint. The biggest thing for the rookies right now is we're trying to get them all up to speed, on the same page, so when they get to training camp, they're on the same ground and they can compete."

(On how he views S Tykee Smith, positionally)

"He's a safety, but he's always a nickel. Depending on the game, he gives us a variety to do different things. We'll see as it goes. He's playing safety right now, but he's taking reps at nickel, as well."

(On who will be competing for the nickel cornerback position)

"All of them. You've got Tykee, you've got [Jacob] Parrish, you've got J.J. [Roberts], you've got Zyon [McCollum]. Depending on how the team shakes out and what kind of mix we have, they're all different types of players. You've got 'Izzy' (Christian Izien) – we've got a bunch of nickels right now. We need safeties and corners. We've got about four or five guys that can fill that nickel role."

(On if the team might be open to adding a veteran player to the safety position)

"It's something you look at. It's got to be the right fit and everything, but we like the group we have right now and we're going to go with those guys."

(On LB Lavonte David saying in a recent interview that he contemplated leaving the Buccaneers before former Head Coach Bruce Arians and Todd Bowles joined the coaching staff)

"I remember us having a conversation because he hadn't played in a 3-4 [defense] before, so he was very skeptical of playing the Mo linebacker position. I told him it was pretty much just like the 4-3 [defense], it was just the difference of it. With Bruce talking to him, then having a sit down with me, as well, we talked scheme-wise…He came in, bought in, and he kind of took off from there. It's a credit to him, being able to play in various schemes, different types of scheme, and change his game – whether he's a dropper in a Cover-2 scheme, whether he's a blitzer in our scheme, or whether he's a cover guy. That's a credit to him being a good football player."

(On LB Lavonte David saying in a recent interview that he will occasionally wave off Head Coach Todd Bowles' defensive calls)

"He waves me off, I give him the finger [laughs]. They kind of work well together. That's never happened. I was joking, in case anybody wants to put that in there. It was a joke."

(On if he can feel the level of competition at the cornerback position increasing)

"You could feel it after draft day. You come back in here and you draft two players at your position, you better be on your job. There's expected to be heavy competition in camp."

(On Simeon Rice being inducted into the Buccaneers Ring of Honor)

"I remember him more as a Buccaneer. He was a hell of a pass rusher. They had guys that could really get after it back then and he was a big part of it. He had some [impressive] stats for years. He's exactly what you want – he's tall, he's long, he's lengthy, he could run, and he could turn the corner."

CENTER GRAHAM BARTON

(On what OTAs mean to him and how it feels coming in with a year under his belt)

"Last night, I went and watched OTA 1 practice last year – just buzzed through a few clips and just to see how much improvement there's been for me was a good feeling. [I'm] coming out here much more comfortable in this system, got a few more tricks of the trade. Like you said, it's optional but this time is so important for learning and getting settled in so when July hits, you're ready to roll. There's so much you can learn, there's so much football to learn. OTAs are a great time to think outside the box a little, try different things, maybe tweak things from the prior season and see what you like and what you don't like, whether it's stance or etcetera. [I'm] just trying to take this time to just get better, fine tune some things and continue to learn."

(On how comforting it is to have G Ben Bredeson and G Cody Mauch back next to him for the next season)

"It's great, just having five guys – throw Tristan [Wirfs] and Luke [Goedeke] in there too – just having five guys who are back together, the chemistry is already there. The understanding of strengths and weaknesses is there, understanding how we communicate – that's all already there so now it's really just, 'Hey, here's where we can build.' OTAs for a lot of teams right now are, 'How's our O-line going to gel? Who fits in where? What should we do? How are we going to communicate this and that?' We've got a lot of that stuff down. Now it's just improving chemistry-wise and improving football and you can focus on different things since we've got that groundwork down but it's awesome. We love those guys and we all have a great time so I'm happy to be around them."

(On how his relationship with QB Baker Mayfield has grown and developed)

"Coming in last year, being a wide-eyed rookie, Baker was just always great and instilling confidence in me and helping me out there. It's really awesome when the guy right behind you, you just feel a lot of trust and love from and I definitely felt that from him from day one. Just having that and watching that relationship grow throughout the year – now just taking the next step in that relationship and making sure we're on the same page with what we're seeing on the field, front structures, how on certain plays he's going to react, if he's going to change anything, if he wants me to change anything and just kind of making sure we're looking through the same set of eyes. I think that's the next step and something to work on this offseason."

(On how confident he is for this season now that he has a full offseason to focus on improving and what advice he would give to rookies)

"It's definitely a crazy time through the pre-draft process and then right onto a team. Having some down time was nice but I think the biggest thing is you still have to use that time wisely. Obviously relax, get away from football but continue to learn, continue to improve, just find little things in the offseason you can do for an hour or two hours a week that will make you a better football player. That's kind of how I approached my offseason, just find little things outside of your regimented offseason lifting and stuff. I'd say to a young guy, and I've said to some of the rookie offensive linemen or whatever, 'Just take it one day at a time.' This is a lot. They're here until four, five o'clock every day. Nothing you can do about it. Just continue to learn, make mistakes, correct them, move on but just wake up every day ready to learn something and improve from the day before."

CORNERBACK ZYON MCCOLLUM

(On what having new young players in the cornerback room does for the group)

"Off the bat, it's new energy. In the room you can just kind of feel it – the intensity is just starting to rise up and it's good. To embrace it as a room and to come together, I mean, everybody is fighting to be that next level and get to that next level. We're trying to catch these young guys up as quickly as possible. Going into training camp, we want to be able to go into the season at our best and when they're playing at their best, it allows us to rise our game to an even higher level. They've just been getting in shape, getting to know the playbook, and it's good to have new energy in the room, for sure."

(On what his thoughts are on CB Benjamin Morrison and CB Jacob Parrish)

"Morrison is definitely detail oriented. He's a smart guy, he's sharp, he's always asking questions. He's a little bit quiet – I mean, all rookies are a little bit quiet but he's definitely in the meeting rooms paying attention, he's pulling us to the side on the sidelines asking us what we see in certain sets. Jacob, I can tell he's just a dog. He's going to work, he's not going to complain about anything. The coaches, whatever they ask of him, he's going to do it with no questions and he's going to do it at a high level and he's catching up pretty fast."

(On if entering a contract year adds to his drive)

"It adds so much to it. I love the Bucs and I want to make plays for the Bucs and myself and my family and knowing the opportunity that I have in front of me, it's really really exciting. It puts a new chip on my shoulder. I feel kind of like I was a rookie coming in here, I have to prove it all over again and continue to rise my game to the next level."

(On if he feels the defense can get back to having success and if that will help the team go far)

"Definitely. We know the offense is a top-tier offense and they put up a lot of points. Us as a defense are being really really hard on ourselves. We were like, 'If we can stop the offense from scoring, seven, 14 more points, we win a Super Bowl.' That's just the attitude that we have, that we have to come in together and step up to really make this team one solid unit that could really be a force for years to come, not just this year."

WIDE RECEIVER JALEN MCMILLAN

(On what he wants to see from his draft class in their second season)

"I just want to see us be pros. I want to see us lead the younger guys but also be a beacon of light towards the older guys and just stay in our lane and make plays."

(On his impressions of WR Emeka Egbuka so far)

"He's a pro. He's really serious about practice and already knows damn near half the playbook. I'm really excited for his growth and his future here."

(On what he wanted to work on and improve upon this offseason)

"Just be where my feet are, [have] intent with all my actions. I feel like last year, I was more focused on, 'How am I going to look in the future?' instead of worrying about what I wanted to accomplish in the moment, and as y'all can see, as I focused on the moment, I did good things."

(On what some of his goals have been during this offseason)

"Definitely [to] get stronger, get faster, get smarter, just keep my circle tight. I think I was on a great run last year so just continuing that and not falling off."

(On how cool it was to have moments of opportunity and growth at the same time with former college teammate TE Devin Culp)

"That was dope. It kind of brought me back to 'U-Dub' and just seeing each other make plays – we kind of just build off our own energy and kind of compete with each other so it's fun going back to that."

-BUCCANEERS-