The Buccaneers have done a really good job of beefing up the roster, but there’s one clear weakness heading into training camp.All NFL teams have deficiencies and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ biggest weaknesses pretty clear when looking through the roster.It’s definitely the cornerback room, where questions run rampant. The Buccaneers don’t have the luxury of having anything locked up, either. Said questions apply from the top-down and only time will tell how everything plays out.But, the one things that’s for sure is we’ll see more of the same from last year if these guys can’t provide answers in 2026.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIt starts at the top with Zyon McCollum, who is coming off the worst starting season of his pro career. From busted assignments to dropped interceptions and then worst of all – a season-ending injury, 2025 was a battle for the soon-to-be fifth-year player.He has to show he can regain his starting-caliber form or else the Buccaneers’ pass defense will remain the team’s biggest weakness. The good news is he’s still in his prime and this will be Year 5 in the same system, so it’s not like he has to overcome any extra obstacles, or anything like that.If I were a betting man, I’d wager we see McCollum get back on track. But I don’t have as much faith in the next topic of conversation.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThat’s because the Buccaneers’ next outside corner, Benjamin Morrison, is dealing with yet another hamstring injury that caused him to miss mandatory minicamp. We don’t know the severity of the injury, but the point still stands: Morrsion’s hamstrings aren’t trustworthy at this point in his career and he can’t be counted on to be consistently available.It’s a shameful thing to say about a player who is just entering the second season of his career, but it’s the unfortunate truth. Regardless, the Buccaneers need him to stay healthy, as he’s expected to play opposite McCollum when Bowles deploys his nickel packages. That’s a lot of snaps, too, as the Bucs defense is in nickel around 60-65% of the time.Sure, there are alternatives Bowles can shuffle around if Morrison gets hurt again, but that’s not the ideal lineup in the coaching staff’s eyes. Morrison is one of the guys the Buccaneers want to go to war with and anything else isn’t as effective, in their minds.It’s easy to get excited about Jacob Parrish and there’s plenty of reasons why. He had a strong rookie season, but the Buccaneers need him to take a year-two leap. He has the athletic traits, the IQ, and the mindset needed to play cornerback. His size limitations didn’t keep him from making plays and sticking to receivers, either. How he handles moving from outside-inside and vice-versa will be intriguing to watch. Last year, he played roughly 20% of snaps on the perimeter of the Buccaneers defense, which is probably less than what he’ll play, this year. It sounds like the plan for Pa
Content Source: Yahoo News
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