3 Things That Turned Our Heads at Buccaneers' Final Day of OTAs

It was a big day for the offense during the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' final OTAs practice.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin (14) trains at AdventHealth Training Center. | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers held their last day of OTAs on Thursday, ringing in the last practice before mandatory minicamp next week — where everyone must participate as training camp looms.

As always, BucsGameday was live on site at One Buccaneer Place to catch all the action. And while last week's OTAs practice open to the media was all defense, it was an offense-dominated practice on Thursday as the Bucs closed out this phase of the offseason.

Here are three things that turned our heads during Tampa Bay's final OTA outing:

Bucky Irving is Back

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving (7) runs against Carolina Panthers cornerback Chau Smith-Wade | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Buccaneers running back Bucky Irving was not only present, but he was doing individual drills during the beginning portion of OTAs. This is the first time the media has seen him work during the offseason after he had surgery on his shoulder before camps started.

Irving still didn’t participate in team drills, but his appearance is a welcome sign. Irving’s timetable has been training camp, and with his appearance today, expect him to ramp up his work at mandatory minicamp next week before training camp begins in late July.

Running Backs Got a Good Chunk of Work

Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Sean Tucker (44) on the field in the third quarter at Bank of America Stadium. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The Bucs may not have had Bucky Irving in team drills, but they ran the ball quite a bit regardless. Running back Kenny Gainwell took the brunt of the reps at running back (and caught a few passes, too), and other running backs like Josh Williams also got their reps in.

Offensive coordinator Zac Robinson has been slowly installing his offense this offseason, and it seemed like the run game was a point of emphasis during this last session of OTAs. We’ll see where the emphasis lies during rookie minicamp next week, but Robinson is making sure that every aspect of the game is getting equal time during these offseason workouts.

The Bucs passed a bit more during their subsequent periods, but screen passes to players like Gainwell and Sean Tucker were still plentiful. It was definitely a day for the running backs at One Buc Place.

Chris Godwin Has a Day

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr. (14) celebrates with wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (2) | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

When the Bucs did pass to their receivers, though, Chris Godwin had the brunt of the work for the wide receivers. He caught a touchdown pass during 7v7 redzone work early during the practice, and he also got a few targets during the team’s second 11v11 period that featured a few more passing plays. He did particularly well when matched up against Bucs cornerback Zyon McCollum.

Godwin is trying to stake his claim as the team’s No. 1 wide receiver with the departure of Mike Evans. He featured heavily during the first week of OTAs we saw, too, so if he keeps this up, he could be the focal point of Tampa Bay’s passing offense in 2026 — in a year where he needs to impress to get the third year of his contract.

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