Bucs TE Payne Durham leaves practice with knee injury

Bucs tight end Payne Durham left practice Wednesday with a knee injury

 

Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Payne Durham left joint practice with the Jacksonville Jaguars with an apparent knee injury, per multiple reports.

The Bucs are running tests on the injury, and there’s still no update on the severity (via team senior writer Scott Smith).

Durham is entering his second year with the Bucs and is looking to expand his role on offense. Last year, he saw limited action, catching just five passes on seven targets for 58 yards.

Cade Otton is expected to return as Tampa Bay’s starting tight end, and the Bucs are also bringing back 2022 sixth-round pick Ko Kieft, who is primarily used as a blocker. An extended absence by Durham would open an opportunity for 2024 seventh-round pick Devin Culp to make a case for the final roster.

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Bucs 2024 training camp preview: Tight end

What does the Bucs’ tight end group look like heading into training camp?

The tight end position in Tampa Bay has been a bit of an afterthought since the retirement of Rob Gronkowski in 2022, devoting few resources to the position over the last few years. This year’s training camp will be the first in several years where the group will be comprised mostly of experienced players and will rely on growth and consistency rather than new talent.

This will be Cade Otton’s third year with the Bucs and once again he will be the workhorse of the tight end group. Last year he dominated the snap shares in the group, playing 1063 snaps against 383 from the rest of the Bucs’ tight ends.

Though his receiving stats are not gaudy and he is just an adequate blocker, Tampa Bay’s coaching staff trusts Otton to play a part in every aspect of the offense. Despite having just two seasons under his belt, Otton will be a veteran presence at camp.

Fellow 2022 draft pick Ko Kieft has not been a featured player since joining the Bucs roster, operating mostly as a run blocker when he does see the field. Of all the returning tight ends, his future is most in doubt, though not from team design.

Kieft was the only player that head coach Todd Bowles indicated may not be healthy at the start of training camp. Kieft’s experience will buy him some goodwill from the Bucs’ staff, but his limited utility could make him expendable if his health issues linger.

The returning tight end with some unrealized upside is Payne Durham. The Bucs’ 2023 fifth-round pick has more prototypical size for a tight end than anyone else on the roster, which made him a big target for Baker Mayfield at times last season.

However, Durham struggled with drops, a major concern given his limited opportunities. If he is going to loosen Otton’s grip on the tight end reps in Tampa Bay, Durham has earn the confidence of Mayfield and the Bucs coaching staff with sure hands.

The Bucs did add one tight end this offseason, taking Washington TE Devin Culp with their last pick in the draft. Culp is built in the mold of modern tight ends. He is smaller at 6’3″ and 231 pounds but supremely athletic for his size, recording the top 40 time among tight ends at this year’s NFL Combine.

Buried on Washington’s depth chart behind a cavalcade of now-NFL receivers like teammate Jalen McMillan, Culp had few opportunities to express his talent as a receiver before now. Culp will be among a handful of young players vying to establish himself as a dynamic and reliable target in the Bucs offense.

Like most rookies, Culp’s path to the final roster will be special teams, which he did play at Washington. While he is unlikely to crack the Bucs’ tight end rotation this year, Culp could make the investment worthwhile if he can make it through camp and earn a roster spot by the end of camp.

At the tail of the tight end depth chart are David Wells and Tanner Taula. Wells was a surprising standout at last year’s training camp, so much so that he managed to spend some time on the main roster during the season. However he is entering his seventh NFL season and comes with no real upside.

Taula also had a good camp last year, earning him a place on the practice squad. Unless he makes a major leap forward as a receiver, he is likely to be in a similar position by the end of camp this year.

Bucs sign TE Devin Culp

The Buccaneers lock down their seventh-round pick from Washington.

The Buccaneers have signed their 2024 seventh-round draft pick Devin Culp. Tampa Bay took the former Washington tight end with the 246th pick of this year’s draft. He joins former Huskies Vita Vea, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Cade Otton and 2024 third-round pick Jalen McMillan on Tampa Bay’s roster.

Culp brings a rare blend of size and speed. At 6’3″ and 231 pounds, he recorded a 4.47-second 40-yard dash time at this year’s NFL Combine, leading all tight ends. Though he was not featured in Washington’s stacked 2024 offense, he has a chance to showcase his athleticism on the Bucs’ rebuilding tight end group.

Bucs assistant GM John Spytek breaks down Day 3 draft picks

Hear what Tampa Bay Buccaneers assistant general manager John Spytek had to say about the team’s Day 3 draft picks

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers wrapped up their 2024 NFL draft class Saturday with three more picks, loading up on more help for the offense with another interior offensive lineman, a running back, and a tight end.

Oregon running back Bucky Irving was selected in the fourth round, UTEP guard Elijah Klein was added in the sixth round, and Washington tight end Devin Culp rounded out the class in the seventh round.

Watch the video above to see Bucs assistant general manager John Spytek break down all of Tampa Bay’s selections from Day 3.

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Bucs select Washington TE Devin Culp in 7th round of 2024 NFL draft

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have selected Washington tight end Devin Culp in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL draft

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finished off their 2024 NFL draft class with another pass-catcher from Washington, spending the No. 246 overall pick on Huskies tight end Devin Culp.

Culp joins wide receiver Jalen McMillan, who was selected by the Bucs with one of their third-round selections earlier in the draft.

He’ll join a young tight end room alongside another fellow Husky in Cade Otton, as well as Payne Durham and Ko Kieft.

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Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. replicates Aaron Rodgers’ historic throw

Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. had a touchdown pass on Saturday that looked a lot like Aaron Rodgers’ greatest NFL throw.

It was the ESPYs Play of the Year for 2017, and it’s easy to understand why. With 12 seconds left in the Green Bay Packers’ 34-31 divisional round playoff win over the Dallas Cowboys on January 5, 2016, Aaron Rodgers completed one of the most insane passes you will ever see. Rodgers rolled to his left, hurled the ball downfield, and tight end Jared Cook caught the 35-yard pass to put the Packers in place for their game-winning field goal.

You won’t see too many passes like that, but Washington’s Michacl Penix Jr. pulled off something very similar against USC’s wafer-thin defense on Saturday. With 11:54 left in the first half of an eventual 52-42 Washington win, Penix rolled to his left after heading to his right (he’s a lefty thrower) and hit tight end Devin Culp with a throw that had everybody shaking their heads.

We don’t know if this will win any awards, but it may just cement Penix as a first-round prospect in the 2024 NFL draft.

Michael Penix Jr., Devin Culp team for spectacular Washington score

Michael Penix Jr and Devin Culp with a great play for a Huskies TD

There was a mega-quarterback battle going on at the LA Coliseum on Saturday.

Reigning Heisman winner Caleb Williams was dueling with Washington’s Michael Penix Jr.

Penix wasn’t about to let Williams get the best of him in the first half.

On a third-and-18, Penix spun out of pressure and somehow found tight end Devin Culp.

The tight end managed to hold onto the football and after the PAT the Pac-12 game was tied at 14.