After surprising many by selecting a wide receiver in the first round of the 2025 Draft on Thursday night, the Bucs started Day 2 by addressing the secondary. With the No. 53 overall pick, Tampa Bay selected Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison.

Morrison, who met formally with the Bucs at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, was a standout defender for the Fighting Irish from the moment he stepped on the field as a freshman in 2022. In 13 games (nine starts), he brought in six interceptions and totaled 10 passes defensed to go along with 33 tackles and one tackle for loss. That led to a Freshman All-American nod. The next season, Morrison added three more interceptions and 13 passes defensed, with 3.5 tackles over 12 games (11 starts).

Unfortunately, his college career ended on a down note as he missed the final 10 games of Notre Dame’s season with a hip injury.

Notre Dame S Xavier Watts and CB Benjamin Morris – Photo by: USA Today

The 6-foot, 193-pound cornerback is patient and fluid, and he plays with phenomenal awareness. He has quick eyes, which is part of what contributed to his nine interceptions and 27 passes defensed over 31 games (26 starts) in South Bend. His footwork is good, too, and plays with good balance in off coverage. With that being said, though, he adjusted well to Notre Dame’s man-heavy scheme.

Morrison’s balance can get thrown off by receivers who are willing to challenge and play through his jam, leading to questions about his play strength. That questionable play strength means he can also struggle to work through screen blocks at times. Overall, though, the 21-year-old is the type of cornerback who can step in and contribute in Tampa Bay’s secondary right away, as long as he’s healthy.

That will be the biggest concern heading into the summer, as well as into his rookie season and further into his career. Morrison has actually had two hip surgeries over the past four years. Not only that, but he also dealt with a quad strain in 2023 and missed most of Notre Dame’s spring practices in 2024 due to a right shoulder injury that he had surgery on.

The injury history and durability concerns will certainly make Buccaneer fans cringe considering the longstanding hope that the team would find a Jamel Dean replacement in the 2025 Draft. But general manager Jason Licht and his staff clearly felt comfortable enough with his medicals to make him their second-round pick.

In Benjamin Morrison, Bucs Get Another Key Piece For The Secondary

Notre Dame CB Benjamin Morrison and S Xavier Watts Photo by: USA Today

There’s no doubt that Benjamin Morrison has the length and football IQ to play cornerback in Todd Bowles’ Bucs defense. He’s a good fit to play outside, though he also said he feels comfortable kicking inside and playing in the slot if need be.

It’ll be interesting to see how Bowles and the Bucs’ defensive staff gets Morrison involved from day one, as Jamel Dean is still on the roster and he and Zyon McCollum are the current starters on the outside at cornerback. Regardless, the rookie elevates the floor of the cornerback room in a big way and at the very least, adds some badly needed depth right away. The addition of Kindle Vildor this offseason, along with the re-signing of Bryce Hall, provided some depth at outside cornerback, but it was obvious Tampa Bay still needed more.

Of course, given Dean’s injury history, it could be sooner rather than later that Morrison gets his shot to step in and play.

With two draft picks already made, the Bucs’ remaining picks currently stand as follows: No. 84, No. 121, No. 157 and No. 235.

Welcome to Tampa Bay, Benjamin Morrison!