Rashaan Melvin: Good As Advertised
August 5th, 2013
Rashaan Melvin battles Mike Williams for a pass in a recent Bucs training camp practice.
Joe remembers after rookie minicamp this spring Joe got a text from a trusted Bucs source to look out for a rookie from Northern Illinois, a cornerback by the name of Rashaan Melvin.
What? Joe texted back “thanks,” but wondered why he was being told to keep an eye on Melvin. Melvin was an undrafted free agent, much like Leonard Johnson the previous season. Then, no one told Joe to monitor Johnson, perhaps because he was a well-known player who grew up in Largo.
During OTAs and minicamp, Melvin didn’t do much if anything that jumped out. No, no, the same source told Joe in July. You will want to watch him, Joe was told again.
Now Joe knows why. Melvin has completely blown up in training camp. Will he unseat Darrelle Revis? No. Will he usurp Johnthan Banks for a starting gig? Maybe not. But if the Bucs need to call on Melvin, there will not be a steep drop off.
Last week, Melvin, who has seen considerable snaps with the first team defense with Revis being limited and Johnthan Banks slowed by a mild hamstring, talked about defending Vincent Jackson and Mike Williams.
“Going against V-Jack and Mike, they’re both different,” Melvin said. “Mike has very good hands, and V-Jack runs great routes and they’re able to get over. They’re known around the league and I’m just trying to focus on what I can control, and being disciplined in my routes and coming out of my breaks. So going against those guys has really helped me improve my talent and my technique.”
This is what Bucs coach Greg Schiano talks about when he mentions competition. Good players bring out the best in good players. This creates good team depth.
In retrospect, Joe can see why Melvin may have slipped through the cracks. He played in the MAC. Then again, the Huskies made it to the Orange Bowl last year. They had to have some decent players to accomplish that feat.
August 5th, 2013 at 7:12 am
cannot wait until Thursday! Will finally get to see all this hype on the field. 3 days and counting until we see the greatest team ever assembled ( according to some on here) in bucs history, will hit the field and line up against another team. Cannot wait for all the speculation to end and real football talk to start.
August 5th, 2013 at 7:16 am
Interesting to see the starting line up Thursday. Especially at cb. With Revis not playing and banks limited Melvin could get a chance to start.
Also on offense I wanna see freeman play for about a qtr and give the rest of the snaps to glennon. Freeman needs all the work he can get.
August 5th, 2013 at 7:58 am
We will see Freeman on 1 or 2 possessions as it should be. No team is going to expose it’s starting QB to an opposing defense composed of primarily fringe players desperate to earn a roster spot by destroying the other team’s QB. Not going to happen!
August 5th, 2013 at 8:05 am
I can’t wait to see the young guys play. Just to find out what kind of depth they actually have on this team, because it seems to me it’s all youth. Oh and I can’t wait to finally sit in my seats. I’m not used to shelling out 1300 bucks on something I can’t touch or use for 3 months. The wait has been like agony for me.
August 5th, 2013 at 8:30 am
I agree, can’t wait until Thursday. I watch individual players during the preseason as opposed to the game as a whole in the regular season.
August 5th, 2013 at 8:41 am
@Bucs1987- I know what you mean, it’s all hurry up and wait, and that’s easier said than done! Once the first preseason game is played, then it seems the regulars season takes forever to get here, and it seems the Bucs get the short end all the time……If they stink up the joint, people quickly forget that it’s just preseason games and we’re not seeing the REAL Bucs, but maybe their depth on display, if they play lights out, well, we have to hear all the pessimist try to rain on our parade by quickly reminding us to not get excited because after all, it’s just preseason and means nothing, so true Buc fans have to endure a month football that seems to not amount to much, but it really does because we need depth and this preseason will surely give us an idea of what we have behind our starters.
August 5th, 2013 at 8:43 am
guess we know why wright is walking the streets.
I love it when they get someone from no where and develop them. Go Melvin!
August 5th, 2013 at 9:15 am
the_buc_realist Says:
August 5th, 2013 at 7:12 am
cannot wait until Thursday! Will finally get to see all this hype on the field. 3 days and counting until we see the greatest team ever assembled ( according to some on here) in bucs history, will hit the field and line up against another team. Cannot wait for all the speculation to end and real football talk to start.
Shut it realist, you can’t even talk real football to begin with? Your still an idiot for calling David a 4th round pick, your credibility still in shambles.
Also you want a preseason game to start so you can see how fully our team will play?? Especially when the starters will play probably up 1st or maybe 2nd qtr. Great logic kid, I can’t wait till Thursday so see your try hard football conversation come in.
August 5th, 2013 at 9:21 am
God I’m still asleep the last post had grammar errors.
OT
Teams always try to find the Arian Foster of talens for undrafted rookies and also the free agents that walk the street. It is a cheap gamble, and at the same time it can really payoff. I’ll keep an eye out for Owusu and Melvin this preseason game. Also our D-line.
August 5th, 2013 at 9:33 am
@You Go Joe
Thank you! Realist is a tool!