TAMPA, Fla. — For now, he will have to settle for knocking down lesser-known NFL quarterbacks such as the Bengals’ Brandon Allen and the Titans’ Matt Barkley.
But it doesn’t take much to imagine the Bucs’ first-round draft pick sacking passers named Prescott, Stafford and Newton.
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, the player to be surnamed later, was the most feared pass rusher on the Bucs’ defense again and one of the only standouts in Saturday’s 34-3 loss to the Tennessee Titans.
When he was drafted with the final pick of the opening round in April out of Washington, he was introduced as Joe Tryon. It remained that way until sometime after the first preseason game last week. Bucs equipment managers were informed that he wanted to add his father’s name of Shoyinka, which he also wore at the University of Washington.
After two preseason games, it’s obvious that not much was missing from Tryon-Shoyinka becoming a top-flight pass rusher other than something as simple as a hyphen.
Tryon-Shoyinka put together another solid stat line Saturday night: one tackle, two assists and a sack of Barkley with 10 seconds remaining in the first half. Officials ruled that Barkley was in the grasp or the play may have resulted in a fumble.
At least this one counted. Last week, Tryon-Shoyinka sacked Allen but was flagged for a personal foul for using his body weight to tackle the Bengals quarterback.
Tryon-Shoyinka and defensive lineman Patrick O’Connor put consistent pressure on the Titans’ quarterbacks. O’Connor combined for three tackles, including one for a loss, and a sack. Second-year defensive tackle Khalil Davis also had a nice game.
Unfortunately, with starters from both teams sitting out this second of three preseason games, it wasn’t enough to overcome more sloppy play on offense. Dropped passes were a big part of the story for the Bucs again.
On Wednesday during the first joint practice, they were an issue. In the preseason game against Titans, they were the difference.
None was bigger than the one lost at the start of the second half by Tanner Hudson. After apparently catching a pass from Florida rookie Kyle Trask to start the second half, the ball popped out of his hands and was fumbled to Briean Boddy-Calhoun, who returned it 40 yards for a touchdown.
That gave the Titans a 20-3 lead.
Trask also had a pass deflected and intercepted by Titans safety Clayton Geathers. On the next play, Barkley connected with Mason Kinsey on a touchdown pass to make it 34-3.
With Tom Brady wearing a T-shirt and a ball cap, Bucs starting quarterback Blaine Gabbert was victimized by dropped passes in the first quarter — two by tight end O.J. Howard and one by Jaelon Darden.
Howard’s bobbles would have produced first downs, but he’s been limited in practice as he returns from a torn Achilles.
