Buccaneers Might Play Rookies in the Slot

Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ safeties have dominated slot snaps over the past three seasons, but spring practice reports suggest Coach Todd Bowles might shift an outside cornerback to nickelback in 2025.

The Buccaneers are bringing back both starters from last season (Zyon McCollum, Jamel Dean) and bolstered their secondary with two second-round draft picks (Jacob Parrish, Benjamin Morrison). Since all four have mostly played outside over the past three years, moving one to the slot will be necessary to field more than two at once.

Jamel Dean has been a reliable outside corner when healthy throughout his six-year career, so he’ll likely stick to that role. Meanwhile, third-round pick Parrish took first-team reps at nickel during spring practice, leveraging his college boundary experience to fit a projected slot role. If Parrish secures the starting nickel job, Dean and McCollum would probably retain their 2024 roles as full-time boundary starters.

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Coach Bowles floated Zyon McCollum as another potential nickel option, per Dan Pompei of The Athletic. McCollum has primarily played outside in his NFL career, logging over 80% of his snaps on the boundary, according to Pro Football Focus. With limited slot experience – just 267 snaps in his last six seasons – McCollum will have training camp to adapt. However, a position shift in a contract year might not sit well with him.

If McCollum moves to the slot, it would create a chance for Jacob Parrish or Benjamin Morrison to battle for a starting boundary role in nickel and dime packages. Benjamin Morrison, who’s recovering from a hip injury and surgery, missed spring practices but is expected to be ready for training camp.

The Buccaneers might still opt to use safeties in the slot, a previous strategy. While Antoine Winfield and Tykee Smith are expected to play more traditional safety roles, Christian Izien has frequently lined up in the slot over the past two seasons. After thriving as the primary nickelback as an undrafted rookie in 2023, Izien struggled last year and lost snaps to Smith. A bounce-back season could secure his spot on the roster in a contract year.