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Depth At Receiver Should Be Improved

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By ROY CUMMINGS | The Tampa Tribune

Published: August 29, 2008

HOUSTON - Outsiders might not agree, but the Bucs believe they have a lot of depth at wide receiver. It might not be long before they get the chance to prove it.
Joey Galloway (groin), Antonio Bryant (knee) and Michael Clayton (chest) were held out of the Bucs' final preseason game against the Texans on Thursday, and the status of at least two of those three remains uncertain for the start of the regular season.
The one who is almost certain to play in the opener against New Orleans is Galloway, who probably could have played Thursday but was rested as a precaution.
The Bucs held out Clayton and Bryant as a precaution as well, but neither has responded to treatment the way the Bucs had hoped. Clayton was expected to be back at practice earlier this week and never made it, and Bryant has missed two straight weeks of workouts and games.
With more than a week to go before the opener, the Bucs have plenty of time to get both players ready. Should they fail to do that, the Bucs could still field a formidable receiving corps.
Ike Hilliard is coming off a season in which he led the Bucs in receptions with 62 (Galloway had 57), and Maurice Stovall has been one of the team's top pass catchers this preseason.
The Bucs are also a team that makes generous use of their tight ends in the passing game, and John Gilmore and Alex Smith have combined for seven catches this preseason.
The Bucs use their running backs as wideouts as well at times, and the likes of Michael Bennett (team-leading 10 catches) and Clifton Smith (nine) have proven to be adept receivers out of the backfield.
PAT-TING THE PASS RUSH: Though it did improve slightly last year, the Bucs' pass rush still didn't generate quarterback pressures and sacks at the rate defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin would like to see.
Improving the pass rush remains one of the Bucs' chief objectives this year, and in an effort to do that they have brought back pass-rush specialist Patrick Chukwurah.
Chukwurah was brought in last year to add some speed off the edge, but he struggled to stay healthy and was released. Now that he's back, the Bucs are expecting to improve their 2007 sack total of 36.
Oddly enough, they will attempt to do so with pretty much the same group they had last year. The only real change comes from the addition of Jimmy Wilkerson, who, in essence, replaces Greg Spires.
The rest of the improvement, the Bucs hope, will come from the natural progression of young pass rushers such as Gaines Adams and Greg White, as well as Chukwurah.
ACTION JACKSON: Dexter Jackson, the Bucs' second-round draft pick, had by far his best night of the preseason Thursday.
His night started with a 23-yard kick return and continued when he ran 14 yards around left end on a first-and-10 play in the first quarter.
His night was capped by an 83-yard punt return for a touchdown, the Bucs' first in the preseason since Nilo Silvan went 91 yards for a score against Miami in 1996.
BUCS BITS: S Sabby Piscitelli left the game late in the third quarter with a right knee sprain. He walked off under his own power and will be evaluated today. … The agent for free-agent LT Fred Miller said he was planning to talk to the Bucs again after Thursday's game. The Bucs are one of at least four teams interested in signing Miller. … With both teams sitting their regulars, former USF LB Ben Moffitt got the start at middle linebacker for the Texans. Moffitt is ranked third on the depth chart at MLB and is expected to be let go, but he turned in a big play that could help his cause when he stopped Michael Bennett for a 1-yard gain on a fourth-and-2 play from the Texans' 27.

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