With their All-Pro starting left tackle, Tristan Wirfs, missing time to begin the year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers chose to temporarily switch things up on the offensive line. Three different players saw playing time in unexpected ways in Week 1.
Graham Barton took over the job of protecting Baker Mayfield’s blindside. In his first time playing tackle at the NFL level, the 2024 first-round pick held up. He looked comfortable on the outside, keeping the Atlanta Falcons’ pass rush in check.
The 23-year-old played his rookie season exclusively at center, starting in 16 games. Barton showcased his first-round traits throughout his rookie year, including his versatility. With collegiate experience at tackle, the Buccaneers felt comfortable throwing him out there.
In his first professional game on the outside, Barton was solid. He allowed three pressures and committed one penalty, without allowing a sack in 58 snaps played on Sunday. The former first-rounder looked confident at tackle, and should continue to build off his first appearance if he’s needed moving forward.
With a full season under his belt, Barton is ready to put together an even better year in his second campaign. The biggest growth he’s seen from year to year is on the mental side.
“I think I’ve calmed my mind down a lot,” Barton said, leading up to Week 1. “Just being able to think clearly and think about the fundamentals and techniques I want to execute, not just making sure where everyone is and where everyone needs to go, and being able to actually excel in my play.”
“I think that all comes from being able to quiet your mind or just go out there and play football.”
The Center Play Didn’t Suffer With Barton Moving
As the team’s full-time center in 2024, Barton moving out to tackle left an opening in the middle of the Buccaneers’ offensive line. And if one player changing positions wasn’t enough, the team decided to kick Ben Bredeson in from his left guard spot.
The plan to switch things around this much was completely unexpected from head coach Todd Bowles. The team began experimenting with each player at different spots in case of emergency, but they ended up liking what they saw enough to implement it in Week 1.
A big part of that was how Bredeson filled in for Barton at center. The 27-year-old had five starts in the middle back in 2023, and held up well against the Falcons. The 2020 fourth-round pick gave up just one pressure and zero sacks in 58 snaps, finishing with a team-high 80.6 PFF pass blocking grade in Week 1.
The Final Moving Piece
Filling in for Bredeson at left guard was offseason addition Michael Jordan. The 27-year-old came over to play for the Buccaneers after starting 11 games at left guard for the New England Patriots in 2024.
Jordan proved to be a serviceable replacement in a pinch, also not allowing a sack on Sunday. In his 58 snaps, the 2019 fourth-round pick allowed two pressures. With starting left guard experience dating back to his rookie year, Jordan should be ready to fill in if he’s needed moving forward.
It is currently still unknown exactly how much time Wirfs will miss this season. It seems the Buccaneers now have a plan in place to remain competitive up front until he’s able to return.
“I thought [Barton], for the first time at tackle, played very well,” Bowles said. “I thought Bredesen did a very good job at center, especially controlling where the blitzes go and the pickups and everything like that. And [Jordan] played well at guard as well. They played tough, and they battled, for those guys, moving around, playing their first game at different positions, I thought they did a good job, and going forward, we’ll see.”
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