The Bucs have made some moves in the secondary this offseason, signing a pair of Jets in strong safety Jordan Whitehead and cornerback Bryce Hall. But the team may not be done addressing the defensive backfield in free agency.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler is reporting that Tampa Bay has interest in free agent cornerback Tavierre Thomas, who spent the last three seasons with the Houston Texans.
Thomas, a six-year veteran, recently met with the Detroit Lions and also plans on meeting with the Bucs. The 5-foot-10, 205-pound Thomas has logged a lot of playing time in the slot as a nickel cornerback. The Bucs could be interested in giving Christian Izien some competition in 2024. Izien, an undrafted free agent out of Rutgers, started all 17 games as a rookie last year.
Thomas, who hails from Ferris State, has started 22 of the 81 games he’s played in for the Browns (2018-20) and Texans (2021-23). In his six years in the league, Thomas has logged 225 tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack, broken up six passes and forced six fumbles, including one last year against Tampa Bay in Houston’s 39-37 come-from-behind victory in Week 9.
Thomas also notched two interceptions, with both coming in 2021 with the Texans. He returned one of those 48 yards for a touchdown.
Thomas earned a 72.2 Pro Football Focus grade last year, including an 83.2 run defense grade and a 69.5 coverage grade for the Texans. By comparison, Izien earned a 66.8 PFF grade, an 80.3 run defense grade and a 66.5 coverage grade in his first season in Tampa Bay.
Bucs Have Been Active In Rebuilding Their Secondary This Offseason
Tampa Bay has made several moves this offseason to improve its secondary. The Bucs traded long-time starting cornerback Carlton Davis III, 27, and a sixth-round pick to the Lions in exchange for a third-round selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. Tampa Bay plans to elevate third-year cornerback Zyon McCollum to a starting role to replace Davis opposite Jamel Dean.
Bryce Hall is expected to replace McCollum as the team’s third cornerback this year, competing with Keenan Isaac, Josh Hayes and others.
Jordan Whitehead was signed to replace Ryan Neal, who signed a one-year deal with Tampa Bay last offseason. Neal struggled in coverage and lost his starting job at the end of the 2023 season. The Bucs do not plan on re-signing Neal.
Should the team sign free agent cornerback Tavierre Thomas, he would be the third new member of the Bucs secondary this offseason as Todd Bowles looks to improve a pass defense that ranked 28th in the league last year, allowing 249.6 yards per game. That was quite a step back from 2022 when the Bucs allowed an average of just 208.8 yards per game through the air.
Thomas signed a one-year deal with Houston last year with a $1.5 million base salary. With bonus money, Thomas’ cap hit with the Texans last year was $2,147,060.
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