By: Jake Rajala

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers can’t rely on Tom Brady to carry the team on its shoulders in 2022 – as they need a potent rushing attack displayed in their offense. The Bucs don’t have R-Jo (who left for Kansas City this off-season), but they still carry Leonard Fournette, the 2022-third round pick Rachaad White, Ke’Shawn Vaughn, and Giovani Bernard. The lead horse is unequivocally Playoff Lenny (and he ousted a strong 812 rushing yds and 8 rushing TDs in 14 contests a season ago). He garnered a fine 73.9 grade by PFF in 2021. It was certainly wise for the Brady bunch to bring back Fournette on a three-year deal worth $21 million dollars.

Fournette is definitely the bowling ball RB, while Rachaad White can be the pass-catching threat from the RB spot. Besides rushing for 1,000 yds and 15 TDs last season, White recorded 456 yds receiving yards. As noted by The Sun Devils, he was the second-highest-graded player in the Pac 12 & the second-highest graded RB in the FBS. Greg Auman of The Athletic reported that White stood out during the first week of camp with size and sure hands. White is technically competing with Vaughn for the RB2 ticket, but It’s safe to say that White is primed to be the Bucs RB2 at this moment.

Vaughn (third-round pick in the 2020 draft) ran for 180 yds (with 5.0 YPC) and 2 TDs in 2021. He proved his worth in the back-end of the 2021 season with his best outing against the Philadelphia Eagles: 7 rushing attempts, 70 rushing yds, and 1 rushing TD. He may be slightly overshadowed by White, but he is still a superb RB3. The last Bucs RB is none other than Giovani Bernard. He might be a bit more washed than his 45-year-old QB, but he should make the roster and find a way to be involved in moments of the 2022 season. The former Bengals RB garnered 123 receiving yds and 3 receiving TDs last season.

The Bucs will most likely not rank in the Top 15 of rushing yds in the upcoming season, but they can absolutely be efficient and deadly in the right moments (such as against the Saints stingy run defense and in playoff match-ups) w/ their bruising RB1 and the rook from Arizona State. I believe the Bucs rushing attack will make their fans feel comfortable about its ability in the post-Brady era (hence, when the Bucs aren’t comfortably leading the league in passing attempts).

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By: Jake Rajala

The GOAT in the NFL is unequivocally the ageless quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Tom Brady. The Bucs QB has seven Super Bowl rings and he’s still pressing on for his eight SB victory. With that said, there has been kryptonite to Brady in recent memory: The New Orleans Saints. In particular, the Saints defense has been a personal hell for Brady — which was evident in Brady dropping a goose egg against the Saints in Week 15 of last season.

With that said, I believe the Bucs should feel more confident against the Saints and there ought to be plenty of optimism for them to at least split games against the Saints next season. It will certainly be a challenge for Mike Evans to have an outstanding outcome against Marshon Lattimore, but the Bucs will have new, numerous x-factors on their offense in Russell Gage and Rachaad White that could find success against the Saints defense. Antonio Brown was an understandable subtraction from the Bucs offense, but they did miss a strong WR3 presence against the Saints in their second battle a season ago. Gage, who might be the next Julian Edelman, could exploit the Saints rookie Alontae Taylor and be a third-down magnet for Brady. The Bucs rookie RB will also aspire to be James White 2.0 in Brady’s offense. White can certainly not excel in the rushing game, but he can also be a threat as a receiving back — which was shown with his 456 receiving yards in 2020.

The last element in the Buccaneers quest for revenge against the Saints is none other than Brady’s mindset. He has been bruised and pushed around by the Saints for two straight regular seasons. I fully expect him to have his best plan to start fast, take care of the football, and make pivotal throws against the Saints in their next bloody show-down. Perhaps the Bucs will even completely turn the table against the Saints — as the Bucs and the potential last ride of Brady could win both divisional match-ups in 2022.

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By: Jake Rajala

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers witnessed their bionic quarterback Tom Brady return for his last ride in 2022. TB12 and the rest of the Brady Bunch will surely aim to win their second Super Bowl in three seasons. With that said, the Buccaneers squad that will miss many faces from their Super Bowl LV could certainly benefit from ascending x-factors. Hence, I’m going to simply untwine three breakout candidates on the Buccaneers.

Joe Tryon

The tides are turning for the Buccaneers defense and they must replace old magic with young faces. The Bucs will most likely not bring back JPP and Ndamukong Suh. Tryon should nicely fill in for JPP, who fell off a cliff in 2021 (2.5 sacks). It was also noted that Tryon stayed in Tampa Bay this off-season to focus on improving his craft. Per, NBC Sports, the ILB/Pass-Game Coordinator Larry Foote stated that he’s impressed by his off-season and that “We’re expecting big things from him”.

Russell Gage

Russell Gage’s fantasy ceiling is quite exceptional, to say the least. The Bucs new WR will permanently replace AB and aspire to crack 1,000+ yards in 2022 (770 yds in 2021 and 786 yds in 2020). According to FanNation, he was the best under-the-radar FA signing this off-season. I fully expect Scotty Miller Gage to have a career season in the Byron Leftwich throw it around the yard offense.

Rachaad White

The Bucs nicely replaced Ronald Jones with the 2022 third-round pick Rachaad White this off-season. In fact, it should be expressed that White is a far more talented receiving back than the former Bucs veteran RB. The former ASU RB with 1,456 all-purpose yards (456 receiving yds) in 2021 should have a firm role as a sturdy all-purpose RB alongside the power-back Playoff Lenny. James White was the x-factor in Super Bowl LI and Rachaad White may be the x-factor for Brady in his next potential SB show-down.

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