Could Bucs’ Trey Palmer join legacy of other LSU receivers in NFL?
TAMPA ― His elevating, Spider-Man-like snag of a pass from Baker Mayfield was one thing. The tightrope, toe-tapping of his feet in the back of the end zone for a touchdown was something else.
Trey Palmer didn’t think much of his catch in Friday’s 27-17 preseason loss to the Steelers, which may not have imploded the internet but certainly got the attention of the man in charge of his future.
“The biggest thing was he flashed in the game,” Bucs coach Todd Bowles said of Palmer, the rookie from Nebraska via LSU. “You can flash in practice, because you can’t touch most of the guys and they’re running free in practice. But he flashed in the game, and he flashed not just on offense but on special teams as well, and that gave me a lot of confidence to look at him more, and he’s a guy who is very noticeable right now.”
Palmer shrugs when you ask him about Friday’s TD catch.
“I just saw the ball and got the ball,” he said. “That’s what I was always taught. If you can see the ball, keep your eyes on the ball, and that’s what I did and tried to get my first touchdown. It was just natural, really. I’ve been working on it like after practice, so it just comes natural.”
What was scripted, however, was his touchdown dance ― somewhat reminiscent of Billy “White Shoes” Johnson’s celebration.
“You know what? I was just sitting in my house and I was bored and I said, ‘You know what? Let me do something,’” Palmer said. “I was just trying to learn a TikTok dance, and I just made that dance up myself.”
Mayfield threw a perfect ball, threading it through the hands of Steelers cornerback James Pierre.
“Trey made an absolutely great catch in the back of the end zone right there,” Mayfield said. “It was kind of one of those balls that (there is) a lot of trust right there. We’ve hit on the fact that our young guys are playing well at receiver, and Trey did his thing (Friday) and a lot of other young guys did as well.”
Palmer is among the deep pool of talent the Bucs have assembled at receiver. Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Russell Gage are their top three. But after that, players such as Palmer, Maryland’s Rakim Jarrett, and second-year pros Deven Thompkins and Kaylon Geiger are battling for the next two or three spots at that position.
Palmer, a father of two young boys, says he does nothing in training camp but practice and immerse himself in the Bucs’ playbook.
“I’m just a quick (study). I learned the playbook very easily,” he said. “Having the veterans like Chris and Mike and Russ in the room, and they’re just teaching me the game, and I’m just learning to keep going out there and perfecting my craft.”
What’s amazing is that Palmer somehow managed to escape the attention of NFL teams until the Bucs took him in the sixth round, No. 191 overall.
It’s not like he didn’t do his part. Palmer played three seasons at LSU. But it can be tough trying to crack a lineup playing behind receivers such as Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase. Terrace Marshall (second round to Panthers) and Racey McMath (sixth round to the Titans) also were on the Tigers’ roster.
Palmer had 41 receptions for 458 yards and three touchdowns over 28 games in three seasons with the Tigers before transferring last year to Nebraska. In one season with the Cornhuskers, he set school records for most receiving yards in a season (1,043) and most in a game (237 yards at Purdue) in 2022.
At the NFL combine, Palmer ran a the 40-yard dash in 4.33 seconds and isn’t undersized at 6-feet, 192 pounds.
“It’s hard. A lot of guys go undrafted or get drafted late that are very good football players,” Bowles said. “You’d be surprised how many don’t get drafted that can play and how many get drafted in the fifth, sixth and seventh round and they can play ball very well. I’m not surprised. A 4.3 is normal these days, or it seems as though it is, anyway. He got overlooked, and I’m glad we got him.”
Palmer is proud of the LSU legacy of receivers in the NFL, albeit via Lincoln, Nebraska. He’s from Kentwood, Louisiana, and about as Cajun as boiled crawfish. That’s why he loves being mentored by Gage, another Tigers’ receiver.
“It means everything,” Palmer said. “We both got that Louisiana mindset, and when I got here he said, ‘Just keep your head up and grind through it.’ So I learned from Chris, Mike and (Gage) They’ve got veterans in the room and they always say, ‘Keep your head up, and keep grinding.’
“I mean, it’s just how we grow up, how we talk. Some say it’s something in the water. It’s a blessing to even, like, put my name in the conversation. It’s a blessing to be here.”
With more plays like Friday’s touchdown reception, Palmer may soar to stardom.
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