Starter tomorrow.
No, no, no, Joe doesn’t want to hear excuses for anything Charlie Heck does tomorrow in Atlanta, barring an injury or a teammate tripping him up, or an opponent cheap-shotting him.
Heck will start in place of All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs and Heck has less experience at left tackle than SirVocea Dennis has at inside linebacker. But Heck is no youngster. He’s a sixth-year player with 50 games under his belt and the Bucs have had about four-plus months to study his strengths and weaknesses.
To Heck’s credit, he stayed healthy all spring and summer, so the Bucs should know exactly what they have in their 28-year-old understudy.
Heck was signed in March to replace backup tackle Justin Skule, who took an offer from the Vikings.
Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht, an iconic offensive line whisperer, has said multiple times that the Bucs having time to prep and acclimate Heck helps give them all the confidence in the world that he’ll play solid ball until Wirfs returns.
This isn’t a situation like the Falcons have: breaking in a third-team right tackle after injuries arose last month.
With the Bucs’ quality O-line coaching, elite offensive line scouting and time to prepare and scheme for Heck’s shortcomings, Heck should be a non-issue tomorrow against Atlanta’s weak defense. Sure, he might have a couple of blunders, but the Bucs offensive line has no excuse for a poor showing, Joe believes.
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