Did A Cheap Shot Wake Up A Sleeping Giant?
August 3rd, 2023
Angry running.
Joe’s favorite play from last season had to be when Bucs running back Rachaad White delivered a ferocious stiffarm that planted Seattle safety Quandre Diggs into the Bavarian soil in Munich.
Just an awesome play. And Joe has a hunch more of that is coming this year from White.
Early in practice today, White caught a dumpoff pass from Baker Mayfield to the right side of the field. White was immediately met by Zyon McCollum. So White lowered his shoulder and trucked McCollum as if McCollum tried to tackle Mike Alstott when the pride of Purdue was in his prime and running with a full head of steam.
As White stepped over McCollum to continue his YAC, the crowd roared.
After speaking to White after practice, Joe thinks the hit he put on McCollum had its roots in Tuesday night’s practice in the Glazer Shed.
Towards the end of practice, White was running right and near the sideline he got cheap-shot by camp meat outside linebacker Brandon Bouyer-Randle (UCONN). It seems Bouyer-Randle raced in and blasted White in the noggin’ with a forearm shiver.
That sparked a punch from White and a fight.
So White told Joe that the hit he absorbed from Bouyer-Randle was basically a lesson, a wakeup call. If you don’t protect yourself, who will? And sometimes, blasting someone into the middle of next week is protecting yourself.
You know, dog eat dog?
“I hated to do that to my teammate,” White said of laying out McCollum. “I was trying to cut upfield. But the last practice, I got blindsided. So, when I’m out here, I’m going to try to protect myself.”
Joe almost hates to type the following, but Bouyer-Randle’s dirty hit on White may have awakened a sleeping giant. White had his best day of training camp running the ball this morning.
White went after it with an aggressive tone. Like he was attacking the defense.
“As you have [heard] what Coach Canales has said, I can do it all.” White said. “I can be finesse. I can be power. I can be [what the situation] calls for.
“I’m a guy that runs smart, runs hard. I don’t take unnecessary punishment. But when I need to deliver punishment, I can.”
When White can run angry consistently, he’s a much different runner. Just ask Diggs and McCollum.
August 3rd, 2023 at 4:21 pm
Rachaad White is about to bust out…
1500+ combined yards in 2023. Watch!
August 3rd, 2023 at 4:24 pm
My HS coaches always said delivering a hit hurts a lot less than taking one. Always be the guy applying superior force.
August 3rd, 2023 at 4:32 pm
Love to hear it.
August 3rd, 2023 at 4:32 pm
@ Pickgrin
Rachaad White is about to bust out…
1500+ combined yards in 2023. Watch!
I hope so. I like R. White as our RB1. If he can stay healthy the sky is the limit…
August 3rd, 2023 at 4:36 pm
@ Pickgrin
What do you think about our RB2 “Sneak” Vaughn?
He might be ready to bust out as well…
It’s been three seasons of kaput but hey he might be on the verge of greatness. According to some people here he is the best RB since Emmitt Smith.
LOL!!!!
August 3rd, 2023 at 5:10 pm
I liked Vaughn a lot coming out of Vanderbilt.
Felt like he had a lot of promise as a runner and receiver coming out.
Vandy’s Oline was not very good yet Vaughn was extremely productive vs SEC opponents….
His opportunities as a pro over 3 years thus far have been limited at best so its hard to say.
My guess as to why Vaughn hasn’t gotten many chances to date is due to Brady being a lot more comfortable with Fournette in there for blocking purposes – and Sneak didn’t help his cause by laying the ball on the ground a few times in his first couple years(which almost never happened with 4net).
Then last year – White was the shiny new toy and showed a lot of promise IMO so Vaughn again was kind of the forgotten man….
BA sure talked him up a # of times…. so there’s gotta be something there.
Its a long season – and even if White stays healthy (sure hope so) – Vaughn should get at least 100 or more carries and some receiving opportunities this year and give the Bucs a better idea as to what to do with him after his rookie contract is up end of this year….
August 3rd, 2023 at 5:18 pm
Nothing burger here. This is training camp. Stuff happens. Do it in the season and we have something.
August 3rd, 2023 at 5:34 pm
The one fortunate thing which may be overlooked here, is the cheap shot didn’t sideline a starting running back for 8-10 weeks, possibly longer. It’s about controlled aggression and if a camp meat bum can’t do it, then send him packing. There’s a proper time and place for everything and with such a small stable of RB’s they can’t afford to lose any, much less their number 1. The whole team should have beat his A$$.
August 3rd, 2023 at 5:45 pm
@ Pickgrin
“I liked Vaughn a lot coming out of Vanderbilt.
Felt like he had a lot of promise as a runner and receiver coming out.
Vandy’s Oline was not very good yet Vaughn was extremely productive vs SEC opponents….”
I am with you 100% – I felt the same way. The kid produced in the SEC behind a weak O-line.
“His opportunities as a pro over 3 years thus far have been limited at best so its hard to say.”
“My guess as to why Vaughn hasn’t gotten many chances to date is due to Brady being a lot more comfortable with Fournette in there for blocking purposes – and Sneak didn’t help his cause by laying the ball on the ground a few times in his first couple years(which almost never happened with 4net).”
I agree with these two statements as well.
And according to Joe’s camp notes – Sneak also fumbled a few days ago and he didn’t even get hit.
I hope Key can rise up and become the RB we hope he would be when we drafted him. But so far I am very disappointed.
I also agree with
August 3rd, 2023 at 5:51 pm
Sounds nice but sleeping giant? He’s not stiff arming any linebackers in the NFL. He got Zyon and quadry diggs last year but against a linebacker all he can do it’ Is protect himself from the shot that coming
August 3rd, 2023 at 6:51 pm
Slow the F down – he’s got a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG way to go before you can mention him in the same breath as the God Emperor of Trucking Mike Alstott. Don’t get crazy with that absolute heresy.
I saw a 20 minute long video the other day of Alstott that was just highlights of him running over people. Just endless plays of the A Train boot stomping defenders in an era of football that was known for physical play.
Having said that – this kid does seem to be feeling it. Lots of energy and lots of confidence.
Until the bell rings though, for now its all talk.
Save some of that energy young man. Long way to go yet. Put it on display when the bright lights turn on.
August 3rd, 2023 at 7:04 pm
We need a little anger in our offence. Good show Rashad!
August 3rd, 2023 at 7:23 pm
Pickgrin Says
“I liked Vaughn a lot coming out of Vanderbilt.
Felt like he had a lot of promise as a runner and receiver coming out.
Vandy’s Oline was not very good yet Vaughn was extremely productive vs SEC opponents….
His opportunities as a pro over 3 years thus far have been limited at best so its hard to say.
My guess as to why Vaughn hasn’t gotten many chances to date is due to Brady being a lot more comfortable with Fournette in there for blocking purposes – and Sneak didn’t help his cause by laying the ball on the ground a few times in his first couple years(which almost never happened with 4net).
Then last year – White was the shiny new toy and showed a lot of promise IMO so Vaughn again was kind of the forgotten man….
BA sure talked him up a # of times…. so there’s gotta be something there.
Its a long season – and even if White stays healthy (sure hope so) – Vaughn should get at least 100 or more carries and some receiving opportunities this year and give the Bucs a better idea as to what to do with him after his rookie contract is up end of this year….”
Great take!
August 3rd, 2023 at 7:24 pm
Pewter Power Says
“Sounds nice but sleeping giant? He’s not stiff arming any linebackers in the NFL. He got Zyon and quadry diggs last year but against a linebacker all he can do it’ Is protect himself from the shot that coming”
Fair enough. But didn’t he put on muscle this off season? We’ll see if he is truly ready I reckon.
August 3rd, 2023 at 7:25 pm
When Baker gets benched and Trask comes in, we’re going to see the running game a lot.
August 3rd, 2023 at 7:33 pm
My question is: Was McCollum playing a little soft because White was his teammate? And could that ‘trucking’ he experienced be a wake up call for him? One would hope.
August 3rd, 2023 at 8:22 pm
Rachaad is a softish, slow to get going strider who is best used as a receiver and 3rd down back, until proven otherwise. Not a powerback. That one play last season was overrated. Any decent athlete could have also guided Diggs sideways with his own momentum. Rachaad did nothing else to prove much of anything for the rest of the season. Can he do it going forward? Sure. But he has to do it. Same as Trask, Mayfield etc etc. It’s all bragging and noise right now.
And don’t ever mention him anywhere the same iota of breath as Mike Alstott. I hate even typing their names on the same page.
August 4th, 2023 at 12:30 am
Steele never fails to be wrong. It’s always the ones with strong opinions.
Rachaad White
40 Yard Dash: 4.48 seconds
40 Yard (MPH): 18.26 (MPH)
20 Yard Split: 2.58 seconds
10 Yard Split: 1.52 seconds
Nick Chubb
40 Yard Dash: 4.52 seconds
40 Yard (MPH): 18.1 (MPH)
20 Yard Split: 2.67 seconds
10 Yard Split: 1.62 seconds
August 4th, 2023 at 1:11 am
Emmitt Smith:
40 Yard Dash: 4.55 seconds.
Sometimes it’s about will and toughness.
August 4th, 2023 at 1:27 am
Steele confused Pigout Lenny and Nick Chubb.
Lenny is the Chubb a like. So slow his 40 yard dash is measured with a calendar
August 4th, 2023 at 1:28 am
Humm… White was a finesse runner in college, super nimble, extremely quick. What I loved about his college tape was that he’s a patient runner, very much in the mold of early Le’Veon Bell, with amazing start/stop ability. I hope the morons running the offense didn’t ruin him last year by saying dumb stuff, like in the NFL you have to run 100mph right into the back of your offensive lineman on every play like you’re Michael Pittman. Anyways, that start/stop ability, and being able to hesitate for a moment to read blocks, then explode, is why I’ve been so high on him. I’d really hate for him to suddenly make himself into a guy who tries to run over people, or ‘run angry’ because idiots on social media think that’s kewl, with a k.
But for training camp, that’s fine – I just hope he slows things down again and doesn’t forget how he got here, and does forget anything Leftwich told him.
August 4th, 2023 at 1:30 am
steele Says:
August 3rd, 2023 at 8:22 pm
Rachaad is a softish, slow to get going strider
————
You literally have no idea what you’re talking about. Film and workout numbers literally show the exact opposite to be true. In fact his numbers are nearly identical to Bijan Robinson, except White is quicker and bigger and heavier, while being 0.01s slower in the 40.
August 4th, 2023 at 1:48 am
Great points Rod. Agree 100%..
August 4th, 2023 at 3:28 am
I wanna see more of that folks!
From all of the running backs. LFG!
Go Bucs!
August 6th, 2023 at 6:34 pm
The real story is zyon actually touched an offensive player. Last season he was the worst player I’ve ever seen on a pro field. He couldn’t even get a hand on a. Receiver at any point. How he wasn’t cut is beyond me.