We've already talked about the matchups to take note of on the defensive side of the ball when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tennessee Titans face off in Thursday's joint practice. So of course, we have to flip it to the offensive side of the ball.A to Z Nashville's Easton Freeze is back to offer ...
Bucs-Titans Joint Practice: The Emeka Egbuka hype train highlights the top 3 matchups to watch on offense originally appeared on A to Z Sports.
We've already talked about the matchups to take note of on the defensive side of the ball when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Tennessee Titans face off in Thursday's joint practice. So of course, we have to flip it to the offensive side of the ball.
A to Z Nashville's Easton Freeze is back to offer some perspective and insight on the Titans' side of things, as well. That way we can provide the most thorough outlook for each team.
So let's stop wasting time and dive in.
It's Emeka Egbuka's time to shine, along with Mike Evans and the rest of the Bucs' passing attack
Evan: Literally, not one negative thing has been said about either Egbuka's or Evans' training camp through nearly two weeks. Both guys look like they're ready for monster years, which is huge when considering the uncertainty surrounding Chris Godwin's availability for Week 1.
The rave reviews have certainly poured in for the Bucs' 19th overall pick from the 2025 NFL Draft. He's learned the offense and has made plays on a daily basis since training camp kicked off on July 24. Now, he gets to face a Titans secondary that will be without its top corner in L'Jarius Sneed. However, the Titans have decent corners in Jarvis Brownlee and Roger McCreary, so it won't be too easy for Egbuka.
He can be moved around the offense, so he'll get his fair share of work against basically the Titans' entire stable of corners. We'll see if he can continue the major momentum he's built over these last couple of weeks.
Easton: And this is why I’m so interested in how the Titans secondary fares this week! With L’Jarius Sneed’s health situation still pending, a ton is being put on Jarvis Brownlee Jr. and Roger McCreary’s plates. These two have looked like starters against the Titans receivers, but besides Ridley, this is a group that has a lot to prove. Let’s see how they look against a much higher caliber (at least for now) unit in Tampa Bay.
Will no Tristan Wirfs be no problem against an iffy Titans front?
Evan: The Titans have Jeffery Simmons and T'Vondre Sweat up front and that's one of the NFL's better defensive line duos - so the interior defensive line is good to go. The outside leaves a bit much to be desired, though.
Before Wirfs had arthroscopic surgery, the Bucs offensive line was set up for a big year. That's still the case, as four of the five starters are still healthy and swing tackle Charlie Heck has had a full offseason with the 1s. It's not like he was just thrown into the lineup a day or two ago or anything like that.
However, an offensive line is only as good as its weakest link and with all due respect to Heck, that's definitely him. Reports state he's been pretty good so far and Thursday will give us a good glimpse at what to fully expect as Wirfs remains out.
Easton: How the Titans fare on the defensive front will be somewhat telling, especially without Wirfs, but expectations on the inside aren’t the same as the expectations for guys on the outside.
Simmons and Sweat (assuming he’s back to 100% from an abdominal injury) should look like a ferocious tandem up front, even against this great Bucs line. Sebastian Joseph-Day is no slouch either.
At EDGE, rookie Femi Oladejo is who I’m watching closest. How much juice can the raw young man bring against a damaged tackle situation?
Bucky Irving and the run game looks to keep trucking against what the Titans hope is an improved run defense
When removing quarterback scrambles and sneaks from the equation, the Bucs finished with the sixth-most rushing yards, averaged a second-best 5.1 yards per carry, and their 0.03 EPA/attempt tied for seventh-best.
On the contrary, the Titans allowed the ninth-most rushing yards (1,966), tied for 10th-worst in terms of yards per carry allowed (4.4), and their -0.04 EPA/attempt allowed tied for 14th-highest.
Tampa Bay returns literally all of the personnel that contributed to last year's success, so Bucky Irving and Co. are ready to build off 2024. While the Titans made a couple of additions to the front seven, it remains to be seen if they're ready to take a step forward in this department. It's going to be a good barometer for the Bucs' run game when talking about picking up where it left off in 2024.
Easton: I am not confident in many things about this Titans team, but their ability to stop the run this year is one of them. They’ve gone very large all across the front. I don’t need to tell you that Simmons and Sweat are massive. But at edge, outside of Arden Key who is a slimmer archetype, they’re heavy now too.
Femi Oladejo is a stout run defender at 6’3 260lbs. So is Dre’Mont Jones at 6’3 280lbs. So is Jihad Ward at 6’5 285lbs. Add to that a pair of linebackers in Cody Barton and James Williams who shoot gaps well, and a safety room full of guys who love to come downhill. Heck, add CB Jarvis Brownlee Jr. to the equation, who was 2nd amongst all corners in run stop EPA last year. Starting to get the picture?
If this Titans defense can’t defend the run, then they’re truly a lost cause.
This story was originally reported by A to Z Sports on Aug 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: Football
