The Bucs certainly hope to be better this fall under first-year coach Dirk Koetter. They may be smarter, stronger and faster.
And already, at least in brief moments, they are much, much colder.
After any practice during training camp, players are lined up outside a converted storage room in the corner of a training area at One Buc Place. Inside are three silver cylinders, each 7 feet tall, with digital readouts and nitrogen gas spilling out from the top, suggesting perhaps time travel or maybe teleportation.
In truth, it’s a little of both. They’re cryotherapy chambers, and the Bucs are ahead of the rest of the NFL in embracing new technology that saves time from players’ busy schedules and gets them to a healthier place recovering from the trauma of a grueling practice as the team tries to limit injuries.