When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers doubled up on cornerbacks in the NFL Draft this year, it did more than just pad the room with young talent.
That, of course, is the biggest thing to take away from the Bucs doubling up on cornerbacks with early picks this past weekend. Notre Dame's Benjamin Morrison is a first-round talent who slid into the 50s thanks to an injury, and Jacob Parrish out of Kansas State has been dubbed a slot demon by those who have watched his tape.
Both of those guys are adding much-needed depth to a position that has let the Bucs down over the last few years. Changes have been made, from trading Carlton Davis III to elevating Zyon McCollum to CB1 territory, but there might be a few more moves made before we get to the beginning of the season.
Kindle Vildor might already be on the roster bubble thanks to Buccaneers' draft class
Former Detroit Lions cornerback Kindle Vildor is talented, that much is clear given the fact that the Bucs signed him in the first place. However, things have changed significantly in the month since he joined the team, and the cornerback room is now a lot more crowded than it was back in March.
Last year, Tampa Bay carried 11 defensive backs into the beginning of the season, with seven of those spots belonging to cornerbacks.
Doubling up on corners on Day 2 means that Morrison and Parrish are safe, as are starters Zyon McCollum and Jamel Dean. A solid case can be made for Bryce Hall needing to do more to lose his spot than earn one after he missed all of last year after suffering a season-ending injury in Week 1.
Eight spots are already spoken for, which theoretically leaves three spots for at least four guys to fight over.
CB | S | NB |
|---|---|---|
Zyon McCollum | Antoine Winfield Jr. | Christian Izien |
Jamel Dean | Tykee Smith | Jacob Parrish |
Benjamin Morrison | ||
Bryce Hall |
If those are the spots we can assume are already locked up, Vildor will need to compete with Josh Hayes and Tyrek Funderburk for one of the last remaining cornerback spots. This is also assuming to the Bucs don't carrry an extra safety, which might happen if Shilo Sanders impresses at camp.
That would mean one less cornerback spot for Vildor, who could get squeezed out by two other guys who know Todd Bowles' defense better.
Of course, the argument for Vildor making the roster is how thing Tampa Bay's cornerback room has been the last two years. We've watched the Bucs need to dig deeper into the bag than they should thanks to injuries, which means Vildor could be kept around.
The most likely outcome here is that he gets squeezed off the active roster but ends up sticking around on the practice squad. It's something that could apply to any of the three corners fighting for a roster spot, but Vildor is on the thinnest ice of them all.
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