When you ask an NFL coach to evaluate a player, one of the first things you might hear is a battle cry uttered by almost every NFL coach. It's a simple sentence, six words but it carries a lot of weight. "Wait until we get into pads," a sentence that no longer will be said by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers coaching staff this year because the team has been in full pads since Sunday.
According to offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich, who met with the media on Tuesday, the team now has the opportunity to do as he stated, "play real football." And in the video below, Leftwich discusses how that helps in the evaluation process.
Leftwich also touched on other subjects on Tuesday including how in his playing days, his thoughts were he wouldn't be a coach, but simply he'd spend his post-football days playing a lot of golf. He also discussed his strong relationship with Head Coach Bruce Arians. And as you can see in the video below, Leftwich says it allows the team to be ahead of things in their preparation for the season.
Since being hired as offensive coordinator, it's safe to say the player Leftwich has spent the most time with is quarterback Jameis Winston. The two have formed a strong relationship & are hoping it translates into Winston's on-field performance. They've shared moments on the field recently where the quarterback did exactly what Leftwich wanted him to do. One of those plays was on Friday during the team's first training camp practice. The pass that Winston threw traveled less than five yards but if you listen to Leftwich in the video below, it's not about how far the pass went by the decision by the quarterback.
Click below to hear the full interview with Leftwich