Tampa Bay Buccaneers secondary gets disappointing placement in new ranking

The Buccaneers' secondary was pretty bad last season. However, they were also pretty banged up — The team did not field their starting secondary for an entire game once last season and ended up with just seven interceptions from the defensive backfield.

The Bucs noticed and took action, making the secondary, especially cornerbacks, the biggest priority in the offseason. They first brought in veteran corner Kindle Vildor to shore up depth, and did the same internally, bringing Bryce Hall back into the fold. The Buccaneers were burned badly with a lack of experience and talent last season when relying on the likes of Tyrek Funderburk and Josh Hayes when injuries thrust them into the lineup.

To infuse the group with young, talented playmakers, Tampa Bay selected corners in back-to-back picks, grabbing Benjamin Morrison in the second round and Jacob Parrish in the third. Those additions, along with the undrafted safety signings of J.J. Roberts and Shilo Sanders, have the Bucs feeling pretty good about their secondary heading into this season.

However, not everyone is ready to vault the Buccaneers up their ratings just because of the additions made. Pro Football Focus has been spending the summer ranking each position group in the NFL among the 32 teams. Unfortunately, due to injuries and ineffective play, the Bucs led the league in passing yards allowed; they've landed at No. 22.

Here's how PFF sees Tampa Bay's secondary faring this season:

"After struggling in 2024, the Buccaneers addressed their secondary by selecting cornerbacks Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish in the second and third rounds of the NFL Draft. They also added one of the league’s most physical cornerbacks, Kindle Vildor, in free agency. If Jamel Dean continues to play at a consistently high level and safety Antoine Winfield Jr. bounces back, Tampa Bay’s secondary should show improvement in 2025."

While it looks better on paper, they'll need to prove themselves in order to change people's opinions. Staying healthy would go a long way to an improved secondary, and the Bucs added to their pass rush with Haason Reddick and David Walker with the hope that added pressure will result in more incompletions and interceptions. One of those players who figures to be a pivotal part of increasing turnovers is Zyon McCollum, whom the article didn't even mention. The fourth-year corner enters a contract year and, after breaking out at the beginning of the season, saw his play trail off towards the end. That being said, the Bucs were dealing with injury after injury in the secondary.

There's a lot to like about the Bucs' secondary heading into the season. First of all, they're all healthy heading into training camp, and the competition will be fierce, especially at cornerback with the influx of talent. Tykee Smith is moving to safety after a year in the slot, and the Bucs have high hopes for the former 2023 third-round pick. If they can limit the completions and focus on creating interceptions, they should be much improved in 2025.