“I Do Know That They’ll Be Targeting Corners”
March 17th, 2025
Starting cornerback (?) Jamel Dean.
Sound the alarm.
Release the hounds!
Draft chatter is seeping out of One Buc Palace.
“I do know that they’ll be targeting corners. I know that they’ll be looking at an inside linebackers,” Rondé Barber told WDAE radio this afternoon.
Someone tell Jamel Dean to hold off on buying Rick Springfield tickets.
Remember, Barber is a trusted man in the football court of Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht, who has been known to invite Barber to an official meeting and ask him to watch film of prospects.
Barber even wanted the Tampa Bay area today to know today that he’ll be “in the building quite a bit in the offseason.”
The Hall of Fame cornerback also said, “I talk to Jason about players.”
This is why Joe is hypersensitive to any Barber comments.
Could Barber be working with Licht in a CIA-style misinformation campaign designed to make the world believe the Bucs are looking to draft a cornerback in Round 1? Perhaps. There is a deep Bucs state but Joe still can’t prove it publicly.
Regardless, Barber seems to think the Bucs are poised to improve next season.
“I know that they’ll find what they need to help us win some more games in 2025, man,” he said.
March 17th, 2025 at 7:19 pm
It’s no secret, Bucs need a CB and an Inside LB. Barber’s just telling it like it is.
March 17th, 2025 at 7:21 pm
Whatever corner they draft will be forced to drop into coverage instead of rushing the passer.
Oh wait…
March 17th, 2025 at 7:21 pm
Bucs are definitely drafting a CB in round 1,2 or 3.
I’m not sure if a CB will be BPA at #19. Most likely not – which means 2nd round is the best round to try and get a good one this year…..
Seems like bringing Bryce Hall back for similar to what he signed for last year – just over vet min – would be a no brainer….. I guess we’ll see how that plays out.
March 17th, 2025 at 7:26 pm
I saw we trade down and draft more in round 2 unless a really good WR falls to us
March 17th, 2025 at 7:29 pm
Disinformation. There is no way they’re not drafting a corner. I could also see them moving Dean for a 4th rounder and then taking 2 corners. I mean, unless they think Funderburk is an under-the-radar find form last year. Or Hayes is going to develop more… I don’t know what the plan is if they’re not drafting corners. I’d argue CB is need #1.
March 17th, 2025 at 7:29 pm
Dean is soft.
March 17th, 2025 at 7:40 pm
74 speaks the truth.
March 17th, 2025 at 7:56 pm
Probably the most obvious analysis of the roster needs of all time. I’m sure Licht just loves it that our roster needs are so glaring heading into the draft.
March 17th, 2025 at 8:21 pm
Eh it’s football injuries happen. I say we keep dean he’s not blocking us from getting anyone that we want at his salary. I’d rather have a high drafted corner and dean be a 16 million dollar backup then us release him or trade him and one of our 2 starting cbs get hurt and oh look we’re back at tyreek funderburk and josh Hayes again. Can’t have enough good corners imo
March 17th, 2025 at 8:30 pm
“The Bucs are going to draft a CB and ILB”
Thank you Captain Obvious!!!
LOL.
I still believe they will keep J. Dean and will draft a CB in rounds 1-3…
You know it is possible that both these things can happen right?
March 17th, 2025 at 8:32 pm
Agreed I’m with Knucknbuc – I’d keep him, sign a vet like Samuel or Fuller, and still draft 2 – my favorite being Ben Morrison, Will Johnson, Trey Amos , Nohl Williams, Cobee Bryant. And Jaylin Smith
March 17th, 2025 at 8:35 pm
I’d say Revel. He’s capable of playing zone & man & yeah even though he’s recovering from the injury he probably won’t have to get thrown in there right away. With McCollum, Vildor & depending on Dean he can rest & heal as much as possible & if he needs to go in then he can go in & even if Dean does stay this would probably be his last year with them. So then Revel would just take over after that. He’s a pretty good size, too!
March 17th, 2025 at 8:44 pm
Emmanwori if he is available, is 19 pick. Plenty of talented CB’s in draft. Plenty of LB’s. Emmanwori is a unique talent at safety.
March 17th, 2025 at 8:49 pm
Some of yall comments saying we draft a CB high is prob right but we were able to find Zyon in the 5th so it just hope they don’t reach for one. Davis and bunting were 2nd rds and I believe Dean was too maybe a 3rd. Draft Campbell if he’s still there then grab some corners or maybe WR or maybe start thinking about VV replacement in the future. Can never go wrong drafting in the trenches
March 17th, 2025 at 8:54 pm
Gipper, I support this. Dude is almost as big as an MLB but runs like a corner. Him, Winfield, and Tykee patrolling the center would tighten up the middle of the field.
In my dreams, they draft Emmanwori then trade up to grab Jihaad Cambell to set up the defense for the next decade. Grab Cobee Bryant and some DL depth later.
March 17th, 2025 at 9:04 pm
Value!
DT/DE in Round 1.
CB in round 2.
ILB in round 3. (Unless Jihad drops to us)
CB in round 4.
ILB in round 5
Consider trading picks 6 and 7 to move up.
March 17th, 2025 at 9:08 pm
Deans worse than a lawn chair. You see at least you’re gonna know where that lawn chair will be. Right where you left it. With Dean who knows? He could get lost in the tunnel on any given play. Just sayin.
March 17th, 2025 at 9:10 pm
StickinUp4Centers Says:
March 17th, 2025 at 8:54 pm
Gipper, I support this. Dude is almost as big as an MLB but runs like a corner. Him, Winfield, and Tykee patrolling the center would tighten up the middle of the field
==============================
It is good to hear from a sensible fan. So many on this site are…..well, just not.
March 17th, 2025 at 9:10 pm
If they draft a corner. Please draft in the third round. Third round is a charm in Tampa.
March 17th, 2025 at 9:17 pm
Smokescreen as far as No. 1 pick goes. If Dean was soft he would avoid contact, BA’s Red Pen, which he doesn;t. u moron.
March 17th, 2025 at 10:14 pm
teacherman Says:
March 17th, 2025 at 9:04 pm
I don’t see how you can mention “value” and then pre-decide which position goes in each round.
1. You have to consider the depth of the quality of players at each position this year. I’ve read that this year is considered a deeper year for DTs, for example, so maybe you could afford to pass on DT in round 1 and wait until round 2 or 3, instead drafting value at a position of need when our first pick comes up, say CB or ILB, SAF, or EDGE.
2. You’d have to know which players have been picked through already at each position when we are scheduled to pick. If there’s a run on ILBs before our pick in round 3, then we probably have to pass on that position at that point. Depends on the value remaining on the board…
3. Do you know where the value clusters will appear in each round?
The problem is pre-naming a position for each round is the exact opposite of value drafting. Just sayin’.
March 17th, 2025 at 10:16 pm
Bring back the lawn chairs Says:
March 17th, 2025 at 9:10 pm
Yeah, coincidences and magic, great drafting strategies.
March 17th, 2025 at 10:30 pm
the smoke screen is making it so hard to read or let alone see this thread
March 17th, 2025 at 10:39 pm
If Emmanwori falls to the Bucs at 19 he is the DB I’d sign off on the Bucs taking in this first, after him I’d be quite pleased with Malaki Starks or Donovan Ezeiruaku but this draft has too many solid CB prospects available through to the fifth round to reach for one in the first. Bowles clearly stated that he did not have CBs that he could trust in man. The Licht and Co. Bucs have shown that they aren’t afraid to double up on DBs in a draft and that they’re pretty good at finding NFL starters in rounds 2-5. This would be a great draft to grab another pair in that range. Preferably guys with press man and ball skills. That would open up sections of Bowles’ playbook that have been on the shelf for years and likely help shore up the way the Bucs defense has been hemorrhaging passing yardage for years now. I love the idea of converted WR and physical freak Darien Porter or sound technician Trey Amos in the second. Both have NFL press man skill sets but also thrive in zone. Porter blocked 5 kicks in his career. Certified ball hawk and press man master Nohl Williams can be had in the third or fourth. Melo Dotson fits the same profile and should be available in the same late day two range. The Bucs need bodies at the CB position. I remember most of us balking at how many were on the roster after last season’s final cuts to 53 but sure enough by mid season they were still short at the position. If Bowles must devote that many roster spots to a position it would be nice if that legion of DBs could be deployed in both man and zone configurations. I’ll take ball hawks with proven production over track speed or man coverage skill though. The 2025 Bucs need to produce more picks far more than they need to bolster their sack total. There are a lot of CBs who play with a nasty streak in this draft. It’s uncanny how many of these players play bigger than their britches against the run and seem to little things like quick outs and dump offs for 5 yards super personally. I mean that in a good way. I trust Bowles to indulge his taste for DBs when the draft finally arrives.
March 17th, 2025 at 10:44 pm
If the idea is they need solid depth then cutting Dean without asking him to take a pay cut wouldn’t make sense. First he knows the defense and secondly his name isn’t Josh Hayes or funderburke.
March 17th, 2025 at 10:50 pm
Bucs need to address replacing Dean real soon. He’s soft and never plays.
March 17th, 2025 at 10:53 pm
Definitely interesting hearing it come from him, but it’s not exactly rocket science to figure it out.
It is glaringly obvious they need to focus on ILB and CB.
I can’t wait to see how SirV does that ILB and Tykee at safety.
Both brought play making ability, speed, and showed a lot of promise
March 17th, 2025 at 10:59 pm
@teacherman- I am picking up what you are putting down up above. That round 1-5 paired with a position of need for the Bucs- it is a realistic analysis of where positional value is stacking up in this draft relative to where the Bucs pick. It’s not just a wish list. I think the Bucs are without a sixth rounder this year but I would call the Bucs picking BPA at each position you attach to each round then taking BC center/poor man’s Graham Barton or another backup center in the final round the definition of taking what the draft is giving without reaching, forfeiting or forcing anything. Normally I don’t go as deep as the seventh but there are a few that would be ideal developmental combo scheme fits in that round that could outperform their draft status but none worth picking before then. Unless my draft dreamboat Emmanwori is still available at 19.
March 17th, 2025 at 11:05 pm
A hall of fame corner who holds record for games
Played discussing a highly paid corner who misses a quarter of the games?
He gone.
March 17th, 2025 at 11:41 pm
Barber is just speaking facts . I’ve said it a dozen times on Joe’s threads, Diaby was top 5 in pressures last season which means if he had a half to a whole second longer many of those pressures become sacks. I would love for them to get the corner out of Michigan. I could see them taking Jihad in round 1 and Hairston in round 2 .
Jihad’s film and combine speak for themselves. Hairston on the other hand is being overlooked by a lot of people. The young man played very well for Kentucky in S.E.C. games. He ran a 4.2 at the combine so he would be able to play in zone schemes. He a bit undersized for man but I think he’s worth a shot in the late 2nd or early 3rd round . Bucs could trade back in the 2nd and possibly pick up an extra 3rd round pick and still get Hairston. I’ve been saying all off season.
Bucs must get a corner that can give the D-line an extra second of time .
As always Go Bucs.
March 17th, 2025 at 11:57 pm
Everybody shading Dean
Dean is a very good man corner . The problem is his availability. I guarantee you if he hits the open market he will be snapped up within hours . If Dean could stay healthy it would be great but that’s a big if That said he is worth hanging in to for at least one more season . Dude is Uber talented .
March 18th, 2025 at 1:17 am
They better be targeting Corners.
March 18th, 2025 at 2:08 am
See, I’m partial to agree, corners and ILB, but what Jason said last year when drafting Barton was that when they look at mocks and their guy is on there, the team says aww crap and tries to redirect where they’re going so they don’t top their hand. I’d love Campbell, but he’s been on the radar since forever, so idk.
March 18th, 2025 at 2:09 am
Bucs are drafting a kicker in round 2
March 18th, 2025 at 2:12 am
Darius Porter in round 2 if we go cb. Hilites are impressive for a still learning cb….tons of upside and he already shows instincts
March 18th, 2025 at 2:17 am
LB Campbell Cb 1st Porter 2nd Wr Felton 3rd Dl Caldwell 4TH Ol Kandra 5th Edge Ethan downs 7th
March 18th, 2025 at 2:25 am
I have a feeling that the Bucs are going to trade down and gather picks. Not that many high caliber players in this draft.
March 18th, 2025 at 5:28 am
Dean is a above average cover corner in this league. Not what you consider a ball hawk but has good cover skills. But any corner will get beat if the qb has all day to throw. Not having a lot of glaring needs left should afford the Bucs the right to take best available atleast in the first round. Because the way it stands now there drafting future replacements and back ups and that’s a good place to be.
March 18th, 2025 at 5:37 am
And news flash Dean’s been signed he will be the starter with zyon.Drafting a corner in the first gets you depth and Dean’s replacment for next year. Defensive line makes more sense. Need guys to pressure Qb.And think whoever would have a better chance to make an impact if he’s playing on the line.
March 18th, 2025 at 11:28 am
Teacherman… FYI — Bucs have no 6th rounder
March 18th, 2025 at 11:42 am
Corners and inside LBs?
Why…I’m shocked.
Who’da think it?
(Discounting seasonal Liar’s Poker…)
/sarc
March 18th, 2025 at 11:45 am
FWIW, I like the Paul kid out of Ole Miss, could be had in round 2-3, if a truly excellent kid drops out of heaven to #19.
March 18th, 2025 at 1:42 pm
Agree with Mike, this doesn’t seem like some big secret: we need a CB and ILB (or 2).
Even if Dean and Zyon are starters- you still need your nickel and some serviceable backups. I’d be okay if Funderbunk never sees the field again…
March 18th, 2025 at 4:47 pm
Deans got hands of stone. He never met a ball he couldn’t drop.
He left no ball caught.
March 18th, 2025 at 9:56 pm
We need an impact defensive player at pick 19. A disruptor and ball hawk. I’d rather take the #1 ILB or #2 CB than the 5th EDGE.