Preseason NFL games can often yield unclear results. If a player starts against backups, is he ready to shine? Or can we learn more about guys who aren’t playing than the guys who are?
And does any of it ultimately mean anything? For young players and fringe roster types, the last answer is a clear “yes.” Here’s a rundown on five disappointments from Tampa Bay’s 17-14 win over Pittsburgh.
5 losers from Steelers/Bucs Preseason Game
Connor Bazelak and Kyle Trask
It wasn’t that either Bucs backup QB played badly. In fact, Bazelak played pretty well. But Teddy Bridgewater may have locked down the No. 2 QB job. Bridgewater led the offense to two touchdowns in the first quarter, throwing TD strikes to Bucky Irving and Emeka Egbuka. For the oft-injured veteran from Louisville to show such impressive form hurts the roster spot (or at least No. 2 chances) for both of Tampa Bay’s other passers.
Shilo Sanders
The less-hyped son of Deion Sanders didn’t fare well after playing solidly in the preseason opener against Tennessee. Shilo had a pair of tackles, but failed to make his place clear in an injury-riddled Bucs secondary. In fact, one analyst noted that Sanders “fell flat on his face” in the game. It didn’t help that three other Bucs nabbed interceptions from a trio of Steelers QBs.
The Tampa Bay ground game
Despite winning the game, the Bucs didn’t do anything to make a case for their running game. The Bucs as a team rushed for 41 yards on 24 attempts with a long play of just 10 yards. Bucky Irving had just 12 yards on eight carries. Bridgewater’s passing (and some timely defense) kept Tampa Bay in good shape, but they’re certainly need to improve on 1.7 yards per carry to be competitive in the regular season.
While Tampa Bay’s improved passing attack has to be a step in the right direction, it can’t carry everything. Even the best teams need to be able to threaten in both the running and passing schemes.
Will Howard
Sometimes, not playing is losing. So it went for the injured Howard, who saw his hold on the final QB roster spot for the Steelers get loosened a bit. Pittsburgh was able to give more snaps to Skylar Thompson, who looked sharp for the second week in a row. Thompson was 10 for 15 for 113 yards. He did throw an interception, but it was a deflected pass that was simply not his fault.
Thompson might be playing his way onto the roster, and playing Howard’s way off the roster. It’s a tough break for the Ohio State rookie, but sometimes it goes that way in the NFL.
Zach Frazier
The Steelers’ center is the kind of player who should have a fairly stress-free preseason run. But he hasn’t, as he came up short on a few snaps in the game with the Bucs. It’s the kind of thing that can become mental, as the repetitive nature of center snaps certainly subjects the position to a relatively high likelihood of the dreaded yips, when a simple motor skill becomes nearly impossible.
Frazier’s snap issues could wind up coming down to absolutely nothing. But the closer the Steelers get to the regular season, the bigger the emphasis the bad snaps could be, which can only make the problem worse for Frazier.
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