Bucs Gameday

Buccaneers Offense Executes Flawless Opening TD Drive vs. Dolphins

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offense looked like a well oiled machine in Baker Mayfield's first and only drive of the NFL preseason.

Collin Haalboom

Aug 23, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) warms up before a preseason game against the Miami Dolphins at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 23, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) warms up before a preseason game against the Miami Dolphins at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports / Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
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Baker Mayfield wasted no time getting his offense in a groove during his team's final preseason game vs. the Miami Dolphins at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa on Friday evening.

In reality though, it wasn't just Mayfield. It was a full team effort. Rachaad White, Chris Godwin, and Jalen McMillan all had positive plays for the Buccaneers on their opening drive of the game — none of which would have been possible had the Bucs' offensive line not dominated the line of scrimmage.

Although he isn't going to go very deep into his bag of tricks during the preseason, Bucs' offensive coordinator Liam Coen mixed his play sequencing and calls very smoothly. He deserves plenty of credit for the success of this opening drive.

The most explosive play of the drive came on a beautiful downfield connection between Mayfield and talented rookie receiver Jalen McMillan, who's already earned a ton of respect from his teammates and coaches for his performance and attitude throughout training camp.

McMillan lined up on the outside, gave a smooth stutter to freeze the cornerback and charged downfield. Mayfield located his throw beautifully while McMillan timed his jump like a veteran, which saw him come down with the ball between two Miami defenders for the 28-yard reception.

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The play was challenged by Dolphins' head coach, Mike McDaniel, but the replay clearly showed McMillan came down in bounds.

Just a few plays later, the Buccaneers punched the ball into the end zone with their bell-cow running back, Rachaad White.

White is the one who got the drive started in the first place, with three consecutive runs to open the game. He also had a screen pass he took for a 17-yard gain, which was reminiscent of last season when we saw his elite receiving and run-after-catch skills bail out the Buccaneers' offense on numerous occasions.

The opening drive score by the Buccaneers' offense is something they didn't achieve once last season.

It's just the preseason. And it's just one drive. But if this opening drive by the Buccaneers is a sign of things to come this season, then the fans in Tampa Bay better bring their earplugs on game days because they're going to be firing the cannons a lot at Raymond James Stadium.

READ MORE: Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Miami Dolphins First Quarter Live Game Updates

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Collin Haalboom
COLLIN HAALBOOM

Prior to joining BucsGameday and Sports Illustrated, Collin's written content was provided through Bucs Banter, and NFL Draft Lounge. He is also the creator and host of the Bucs Banter Podcast. He is a graduate of the Communication Studies program at McMaster University, where he was also a varsity basketball player, and later an advanced scout. He lives with his wife and two children in Hamilton, ON. You can follow Collin on YouTube and Twitter.