Much has been made about Jacob Parrish emerging as a star cornerback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and while he’s certainly been impressive, let’s not overlook Zyon McCollum.
McCollum has had an up-and-down career, flashing enough potential to earn a hefty three-year, $48 million contract extension from the Buccaneers, but struggling to consistently play at a high level.
That’s changing in 2026. McCollum just played perhaps the best game of his career against the Dallas Cowboys, matching up against CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens, and finishing the game without allowing a single reception. After his lockdown performance, he’s starting to get the recognition he deserves.
Zyon McCollum is quietly putting together an All-Pro-caliber season for the Buccaneers
Todd Bowles spoke to reporters on Friday morning after the big win on Thursday Night Football and was asked about McCollum’s impressive showing against Dallas.
“Zyon is playing like an All-Pro corner right now… He really is watching a lot more film. He really has been trying to do it physically the last few years and not mentally from that standpoint but he’s recognizing formations, understanding what guys are trying to do to him… that’s really helping him play the game a lot easier, a lot looser, and a lot smarter and I think he’s really capitalizing on that,” Bowles said.
McCollum is one of the most physically gifted cornerbacks ever, and that’s no exaggeration.
Zyon McCollum was drafted with pick 157 of round 5 in the 2022 draft class. He scored a 10 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked 1 out of 2001 CB from 1987 to 2022. https://t.co/VQ0qXsdpCD #RAS #Buccaneers pic.twitter.com/jXi883ypR6
— RAS.football (@MathBomb) April 30, 2022
At the time of being drafted, he was ranked as the most athletic cornerback prospect of all time, scoring a perfect 10.00 Relative Athletic Score.
It’s encouraging to hear that McCollum is putting in more work in the film room to develop the mental side of his game in order to complement his physical traits. It seems to be paying dividends on the field.
McCollum had 10 one-on-one matchups against Lamb, and allowed zero catches on two targets. He also had a nice pass breakup manned up on Pickens.
Zyon McCollum vs. George Pickens 👀 pic.twitter.com/RCSytR4CBN
— Chris Cooper (@ChrisCooper_NFL) October 9, 2026
It’s the second time this year McCollum is credited with allowing zero catches. Through five games, he’s allowed nine catches on 17 targets (a career-best 53%) for 102 yards. He’s also added three passes broken up.
The Buccaneers shut down Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase in the season opener, holding him to only two catches for 12 yards, and they just did the same to Lamb, holding him to two catches for nine yards.
Tampa Bay’s young cornerbacks are balling, and McCollum is leading the way with lockdown coverage in what’s shaping up to be a career year.
Add us as a preferred source on Google