TAMPA, Fla. — Last year, Hurricane Ian swept through the southwest Florida region.
That area includes Ft. Myers, which is the hometown of Buccaneers second-year wide receiver Deven Thompkins.
"With the situation that happened, I feel like there's a lot that I can do to give back to my city," Thompkins said at the time of when the deadly storm occurred.
Fast forward to a little less than a year later, Thompkins still feels he has a responsibility to give back to the Ft. Myers community.
"Last year, I ended up giving my old high school a scoreboard [because] it got torn up from the hurricane," he said after the team's training camp on Thursday. "[I've also been] giving back [by helping with] back-to-school drives and stuff like that. Just being able to help out the community, that's one of my biggest things."
That motivation to make his hometown proud after everything Ft. Myers went through is helping Thompkins take his game to the next level.
It won't be easy, but the road to being where he's at now came with plenty of challenges.
Thompkins was an undrafted free agent when he signed with the Bucs in May of 2022. Then, just a few months later, he was waived from the team but quickly signed to the practice squad.
The 23-year-old spent plenty of time out on the practice field at One Buc Place and that's where he eventually beat out Jaelon Darden for the starting punt and kick returner for Tampa Bay.
In December, he was promoted to the active roster. For Thomkpins, it has only been up from there.
"I want to be All-Pro this year on punt returners," he said. "I want to help this team really get to the Super Bowl and get back to where we were for the past couple of years. [I want to] win the division again and just do everything that we can to win with anything."
Deven Thompkins at Bucs training camp
It's safe to say Thompkins has been impressive at training camp so far.
He's been beating defenders in 1v1 drills, connecting well with quarterbacks and making great catches. It's everything you want to see in a player who's looking to cement himself as a go-to receiver on this Tampa Bay offense.
One of Thompkins' most notable plays so far happened on Tuesday night when he caught a deep ball thrown by Baker Mayfield. The wide receiver had to use all of his vertical strength to make the catch in the air as two other defenders were going for the ball.
It was so good, the team posted it on their social media as one of the top highlights from that day of training camp.
"I really didn't even expect to catch it, I'm not going to lie to you," Thompkins said about the play. "I just kind of went up and I was like if the ball comes, then just squeeze it."
The 5-foot-8 receiver is projected to make the 53-man roster before the season begins and a lot of fans can expect him to see plenty of action in the preseason.
Thompkins is currently in competition with rookies Trey Palmer and Rakim Jarret for the fourth wide receiver spot on the team behind Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Russell Gage.
The Ft. Myers native said he is confident he can earn that fourth spot on the depth chart and will do whatever it takes to make sure he is targeted often during games.
So far in his early NFL career, Thompkins has recorded the following:
- 32 receiving yards from five receptions
- 26 rushing yards from two carries
- 262 yards in kickoff returns from 12 attempts
- 61 punt return yards from six attempts
To keep increasing his receiving yard stats, Thompkins will have to rely on whoever wins the quarterback battle between Mayfield and Trask.
For Thompkins, he admits the competition between the two is too tough to call, even after a week of training camp.
"They both look great," he said. "It's going to be interesting to see who ends up [with the starting position]. [I'm] just really taking it day by day and getting to know both of them just because you don't know who's going to throw it to you on Sundays."
Tampa Bay will resume its training camp on Monday, Aug. 7. The Bucs will then play their first preseason game on Friday, Aug. 11, at Raymond James Stadium against the Pittsburgh Steelers, while the season opener is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 10, on the road against the Minnesota Vikings. That game can be seen on 10 Tampa Bay. To see the team's full schedule, click here.