The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a few positions of struggle last season. Taking edge rusher out of the equation, one of those main areas was the cornerback group. During last year’s draft the Buccaneers spent their first two defensive selections adding to their cornerback room, despite other needs being prevalent. Tampa also invested in Zyon McCollum prior to the start of last season on a long-term contract extension— Three-years, $48 million.
There were positive moments for Todd Bowles’ corners in 2025,
but the unit largely underperformed.
Tackling those disappointments with the added dimension of losing Jamel Dean in free agency and the team has a need. Todd Bowles said as much himself:
“We definitely need another cornerback… Whether it’s a veteran or whether it’s a draft pick, that remains to be seen. We’d like to add one or two to the mix and kind of go forward from there. There are some good cornerbacks coming out in this draft and then there are still a few good veteran cornerbacks out on the street, so we’ll play it by ear and see what we come up with.”
Since then, almost in a direct response, the team signed two players at the position— Chase Lucas and Kemon Hall.
With Zyon McCollum being one of higher paid players on this team’s defense and the Buccaneers having high draft capital invested in both Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish, where on the list of needs does corner fall?
Brandon Cisse: College career
Cisse is a prospect coming out of USC. Cisse played just one season at South Carolina, the former Gamecock compiled 27 tackles, five pass deflections, a forced fumble, and an interception. His previous two collegiate seasons, Cisse suited up for North Carolina State University. With the Wolfpack, he notched 38 tackles, five pass deflections, and a one interception across two seasons.
The low-end ball production Cisse has had throughout his college career (2 interceptions and 1 forced fumble) aren’t sound the siren alarming, but they exciting either— Effecting the ball is number one most important thing any NFL player can do. The ball is the most important part of any play— Receivers catch it, quarterbacks throw it, defensive stop offensive players from throwing and catching it. Turnover differential is a pivotal a stat in the trend of winning as any that has every been tracked so Cisse’s lack of ball-getting was consistently noted in his draft profile on NFL.com
“[Cisse] struggles to find playmaking positioning with back to the ball.”
Also noted was the fact that a player like Cisse who lacks, “on-ball production and coverage consistency” is significantly more likely to be a player that comes with a lower floor, even if his ceiling may be high.
Brandon Cisse: Pre-draft
Cisse did not participate in much at the NFL Scouting Combine. He weighed in at 189 lbs— Recorded a 41″ vertical jump, 10′ 11″ in the broad jump and put ‘explosive’ next to his name. Though he didn’t run at the combine, his 40-yard dash at South Carolina’s pro day stamped that notion with authority, a 4.40.
In scouting, traits are important. The fascination with physical traits— Height, weight, speed, etc. always hog headlines, but there are other traits as well. While Cisse has rawness and unharnessed ability, he grades out highly in every ‘trait’ area.
Zierlein went on to say, “Teams will be willing to take a chance on Cisse’s explosive athleticism and upside… [He is an] A-rated run supporter. Work ethic and athletic testing will work in his favor [both] Cisse’s traits and competitiveness are clear selling points.
What teams will be willing to take on a potential project player full of ‘traits’ that could one day be molder into a quality pro?
Brandon Cisse: As a fit for the Buccaneers
Cornerback, in general, is an interesting fit for the Buccaneers. Todd Bowles tends to like bigger corners, Cisse stands a tick beneath six-feet tall. The Bucs, organizationally, have shown an ability to develop cornerbacks at a fairly high rate. It wasn’t that long ago that Jamel Dean, Sean Murphy-Bunting, and Carlton Davis were all homegrown starters/major contributors for this team— All three taken in rounds two and three of the NFL Draft. Zyon McCollum may be coming off of a down year, but the Buccaneers have developed him from fifth-round draft pick to a starter on his second contract with the team.
The dilemma stands with Jason Licht, who already has priority investments in the position and may be banking on a similar process of development playing out with those players. Investing more high-value draft capital would really create a logjam at a position where only a finite amount of players can be on the field at a time— A strategy that may be flawed in premise, but one Bucs’ fans have seen Licht integrate in the past.
Last season, the Buccaneers did deploy a true rotation at outside corner— Having Jamel Dean and Benjamin Morrison switch in and out throughout games when both were healthy. That approach was unorthodox, hyper-specific to the situation, and is likely to not be repeated, so adding Cisse might just be adding depth.
Depth is important, but is it a priority?
If you were on the clock…
Bucs’ fans, if the choice were yours: Would cornerback be on your mind? Let us know in the comments below.
