One To Watch
July 21st, 2021
Perhaps Byron Leftwich was smiling at the White House yesterday because one of his players looks ready to break out?
Yes, football talk was in the air yesterday at the White House.
Joe was just drooling to pick up nuggets with all those assistant coaches and players milling around following the Bucs’ ceremony with the President.
What/who should Joe keep an eye on in training camp?
One name that came up multiple times was Ke’Shawn Vaughn. The consensus was that the second-year running back looked like a man on a mission before the Bucs’ vacation started six weeks ago, primed to take the sophomore leap so common among very good players.
Playing faster, more confidently, good hands, versatility and “ready” were among the adjectives Joe heard about Vaughn from various sources.
Obviously, Vaughn’s sample size was very limited last year, but he did average 4.2 yards per carry and mostly looked smooth catching the football. His big highlight came via a critical touchdown catch against the Chargers, and he also stood out taking a massive hit and fumbling against the Bears.
Imagine if Vaughn is ready to push Ronald Jones and Leonard Fournette in training camp, and that new veteran RB Giovani Bernard quickly gains Tom Brady’s trust. The Bucs would be running four-deep at the position, while the rival Rams just lost their top running back this week.
July 21st, 2021 at 6:16 am
Having an actual good running back would be awesome this year. We can get by with the average to above average that we have now, but I’m hoping that this kid blows up since we know what they are.
July 21st, 2021 at 6:21 am
Yesterday must’ve been sensory overload for you guys since you haven’t been able to see the owners, coaches, players up-close
July 21st, 2021 at 6:43 am
Vaughn has THREE established RBs in front of him … on a passing team. He’s kinda in the same position that Tyler Johnson is in; lots of potential but with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin & Antonio Brown in front of him, he more than likely won’t see a whole bunch of touches this year.
From the Bucs’ TEAM perspective however, that’s an awesome position to be in, especially considering that the Bucs only run a tad over 36% of the time. Rams in comparison ran over 43% of the time last year, so losing Akers might end up being huge. Not only did Akers get about a third of the rushing load, but he was also their most effective back in the passing game in terms of catch percentage.
July 21st, 2021 at 6:58 am
I like Vaughn a lot. Unfortunately for him, D Rules is right. Not much chance to show his abilities this year.. Sad for him, but good for the O – great RB depth.
July 21st, 2021 at 7:32 am
I really liked Mr. Vaughn coming out of that “powerhouse school”, Vanderbilt. He pretty much had his way with SEC defenes’es.
July 21st, 2021 at 7:36 am
Really like K-V…I’m hoping we build up some huge leads and he gets to carry late in games…..save Rojo & Lenny.
I am very happy with our RB corps.
July 21st, 2021 at 7:37 am
Also, if that’s Vaughn in the picture…he really changed his look…..cut his hair etc. Dressing up for the WH…..
July 21st, 2021 at 7:55 am
KV will get his chance at some point!! KV hold on to that ball!!! Go BUCS!!
July 21st, 2021 at 8:42 am
TBBF … You got me curious with your ‘build up some huge leads’ comment. Kept thinking that’s not really who the Bucs are, even though we scored over 30 PPG average last season.
Looking at all 20 games, Bucs pretty much dominated in 6 of those (SB against Chiefs, regular season against Lions, Vikings, Panthers, Packers, Broncos) in that we not only won by more than 1 TD but we were also ahead by at least a TD all throughout the 4th qtr in each of those games. But still, that’s only 30% of our 2020 games.
Bucs lost 5 other games however (25% of our games), meaning that we were giving it our best shot throughout the 4th qtr I presume. Hard for players like Vaughn & Tyler to get much playing time in games like that.
In the other 9 games, Bucs won BUT … at some point in the 4th qtr the game was in doubt in that we were either losing or ahead by less than 1 score. Again, hard for players like Vaughn & Tyler to get much playing time in close games like that.
As an aside, what surprised me is that both Vaughn & Tyler got relatively little S/Ts play last season. Of the 460 total S/Ts snaps, Vaughn only got 37 (8%) and Tyler only got 48 (tad over 10%). Heck Barner got almost as many as the 2 of them combined (75 S/T snaps) and he only played in 6 games.
July 21st, 2021 at 8:54 am
he also lost a crucial fumble in the game against washington which allowed them to get back into the game. he needs to protect the ball better or he wont find time on the field. looks great when he is running it though but need to protect the rock!!
July 21st, 2021 at 8:56 am
So he looked good in shorts Kenny bell style that’s great I’m sure he’ll put on a show in the preaseason.
Can’t have a breakout season unless you can get on the field and he’s firmly planted fourth on the depth chart
July 21st, 2021 at 9:03 am
Personally I dont believe RBs can be effective in a rotation of 4. the position requires a bit of a rhythm which can take those guys 8-10 carries to get in a groove. I think you have Vaughn pushing Rojo for opportunities and the new guy pushing Fournette….the two that win get the bulk of the work.
July 21st, 2021 at 9:14 am
@Tampabaybucsfan
I thought that may be a picture of Byron Leftwich not Vaughn…. But maybe I’m wrong.
July 21st, 2021 at 10:04 am
It says BL under the picture.
🙄
July 21st, 2021 at 10:07 am
Maybe the Rams will want to trade for one of our top 2 RBs?
July 21st, 2021 at 10:33 am
Long season, 17 games. I hope we don’t see much of Vaughn this year, but the reality is with injuries, or backs just being banged up we will. The kid had no real off season last year, I’m sure he’ll look a lot better this year. He’s young, and is the only back under contract after this season, he’ll get his chance. Trading a promising young back being paid on a 3rd round rookie contract is one of the dumbest things I’ve read on this site.
July 21st, 2021 at 12:00 pm
I saw him in a clip a few months ago and he did look really quick. I had to do a double take and look up his number to see who that was. Vaughn has been flashing skills in the offseason, and when you do that consistently against what is a very fast defense, that will likely get you some opportunities for playing time. In the meantime, he’s got to play well on Special Teams to even be active on game day.
July 22nd, 2021 at 4:33 am
Divide up the carries the first 10 weeks.
Save their legs and heads for the playoffs.
We want 4 fresh backs in the playoffs.
July 22nd, 2021 at 9:23 am
We have four solid backs. The Rams, who we play, just lost their top back, and the training camps are just opening. We’ll need all four of them. I’m hoping Vaughn shines this preseason, he’s going to get a lot of carries.