Byron Leftwich Away From Buccaneers for Personal Reasons

Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich was not at practice with Tampa Bay on Wednesday.

Offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich was not at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers training facility for practice on Wednesday, as the team prepares to open its preseason against the Cincinnati Bengals on Saturday at 7:30 P.M.

Head coach Bruce Arians shared that Leftwich is away due to personal reasons and that the team is hopeful Leftwich will return in time for Saturday's matchup, but is unsure if that will be the case.

“It is a very personal thing with Byron so, hopefully, he will be back on Saturday but we will see," Arians said, via Gabrielle Shirley of WFLA. Arians would confirm that Leftwich's absence is not due to COVID-19 concerns.

Arians served as the Bucs' offensive play-caller while Leftwich was unavailable, per Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times.

There have been a small handful of absences in Bucs training camp while players, and now coaches, have dealt with personal issues this offseason. Take left tackle Donovan Smith and safety Raven Greene, for example.

After being hired in 2019, Arians suggested that he would relieve any coach of their duties if they were to miss a personal commitment off the field. Although it is unknown why Leftwich is away from the team at this time, Arians' earlier comments are relevant in this instance as he values his coaches attending to personal needs.

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