With Tykee Smith, Bucs May Take A Page From The Lions

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles addressed local media at the NFL Scouting Combine, and one topic that he was asked about was defensive back Tykee Smith’s future as it relates to which position he plays on the field.

“Yeah, that’s definitely something we’ve talked about,” Bowles said. “Going into the spring that’s something we’re going to look at as well. Tykee wants to play safety, so we’re definitely going to be looking to be looking at it. It’s an option for us.”

Tampa Bay drafted Smith in the third round last year out of Georgia and viewed him as a versatile defensive back who could play either safety position or in the slot as a nickelback where he mostly played for the Bulldogs defense. He spent most of his rookie season playing nickel, supplanting Christian Izien, who started all 17 games there in the 2023 season.

“He’s very comfortable for us at nickel,” Bowles said of Smith. “He was our best nickel. Safety obviously stays on the field 100% of the time where the nickel is probably 75% of the time. He wants to be on the field 100% of the time. That doesn’t mean he’s not going to play from the nickel, but he can play more from the base defense. So, we’re going to look at that.”

Pros And Cons Of Bucs Moving Tykee Smith

There is inherent risk in moving Tykee Smith from a place like the slot where he had two interceptions and forced three fumbles. He barely played safety last year, logging just four snaps up top, per Pro Football Focus. And he did not play that position much at Georgia. Over five seasons in college, he had just 52 reps at safety, comprising just 3% of his total snaps. But I get the thinking on multiple levels.

To Todd Bowles’ main point regarding play time, it makes sense to find ways to keep Smith on field 100% of the time. Smith is one of the 11 best players in any configuration of a defensive roster. Finding ways to keep him on the field is just good business. And pushing him to safety in base personnel doesn’t mean he can’t drop into the nickel when the opposition moves to 11 personnel, which is a three-receiver set. And there is plenty of precedence for this kind of move.

Beyond the opportunity to keep Smith on the field more the other benefits relate to how he wins. Smith works well in short bursts working downfield. You see this in how well he works through traffic to blow up screens and helps in the run game. Those are some of his best reps.

And while Smith is great at feeling out route development behind him, his talents in zone coverage could be amplified by letting him read things out in front of him as a box or single high safety or Cover 2 safety.

Taking A Cue From Detroit

Todd Bowles used to switch former Bucs cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting from the outside in base packages to the slot in nickel from 2019-2022. Effectively, Jamel Dean was the “nickel” who would come in to play perimeter while Bunting moved inside. The Raiders used Nate Hobbs that way last year. But the most comparable situation is the position switch the Lions made with star defensive back Brian Branch last year.

Branch had a phenomenal rookie campaign in 2023 as a second-round pick. He compiled 74 tackles, seven tackles for loss, three interceptions, 13 pass breakups, a sack and a forced fumble while playing 71% of his snaps in the slot. Despite his success in that role the Lions switched Branch to safety last year.

In 2024 he split snaps almost evenly between the box, the slot and up top. And by weaponizing Branch’s playmaking ability as a true weapon across the field the Lions got an even better player. His pressure rate and forced incompletion rates both improved while he recorded more tackles and interceptions than the year before. It’s not out of line to say Branch was the best safety in the NFL last year.

And like Smith, Branch had minimal experience as a top-down safety prior to his transition with just 135 total snaps between college and his rookie season. The two have similarities in their game. Namely, both are playmakers. Both had PBU+INT rates of around 13% in college, similar builds and similar testing scores in their pre-draft process. Branch is smoother in his movements and more instinctual, but I believe Smith’s football IQ is at or above Branch’s level. Regardless of the direct comparisons, I think a similar move could unlock Smith, just as the Lions unlocked Branch last year.

The Lions paired Branch with a ballhawking free safety in Kerby Joseph last year. Joseph had eight interceptions and 10 pass breakups through his first two seasons. When the Lions moved Branch to the strong safety role it freed Joseph up to notch nine interceptions and two pass breakups last year alone.

The Bucs have a playmaking free safety in Antoine Winfield who accumulated six interceptions and 15 pass breakups in his three most recent healthy seasons (2021-2023). Could the Bucs unlock both Smith and Winfield Jr. with this move? It’s not a far-fetched thought.

The key will be finding a slot corner to take the place, at least partially, of Smith. The Lions put Amik Robertson in the slot most often last year and he was a brilliant run defender who could cover the flats and screens well. The Bucs will need to find someone who can play that role similarly.

Christian Izien is a willing defender, but his career 16.6% missed tackle rate and smaller stature has me worried whether he can truly be effective in that role on a permanent basis. But he and I disagree on that fact.

Touché.

If Tampa Bay decides it wants to move Smith to safety, I’d love the addition of Raiders free agent slot cornerback Nate Hobbs. All of it requires multiple moving parts, but I love the creative thinking. And I think it could bring out the best in Tykee Smith.