The Bucs have far more options in their secondary this season compared to what they had a year ago. With organized team activities (OTAs) beginning and training camp on the horizon, roster projections for Tampa Bay naturally come about and the secondary is going to come under scrutiny this summer.

Many would have hypothesized that second-year defensive back Tykee Smith is moving to strong safety next to Antoine Winfield Jr. This leaves an open competition for others to take Smith’s previous role as slot cornerback.

Bucs Banking On Tykee Smith’s Versatility

Yet after talking to Todd Bowles following a Bucs OTA practice on Tuesday, it appears the team is open to playing Tykee Smith playing in several different spots.

“He’s a safety but he’s always a nickel,” Bowles said. “Depending on the game he gives us a variety to do different things. We’ll see how it goes. He’s playing safety right now but he’s taking reps at nickel as well.”

Bucs S Tykee Smith – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

It sounds like Tykee Smith could be playing several roles for the Bucs this defense. That might even extend further to other players as well.

Todd Bowles Mentions Surprise Name For Nickel

When Todd Bowles was asked about who is in the running for the nickel cornerback position, he mentioned that there are many players that are qualified for the position. What came as a surprise, though, was when Bowles brought up Zyon McCollum as a potential slot corner.

“All of them,” Bowles said. “You got Tykee [Smith], you got [Jacob] Parrish, you got J.J. [Roberts], you got Zyon. Depending on how the team shakes out and what kind of mix we have, they’re all different types of player. You got Izzy (Christian Izien). We’ve got a bunch of nickels right now. We need safeties and corners. We got about four of five guys that can fill that nickel role.”

The mention of McCollum is a bit perplexing considering he’s arguably the top outside cornerback that the Bucs have this season. Plus, he’s mostly just played outside in his NFL career. With that said. McCollum has been a team-first guy that played an important factor in a playoff win two seasons ago over the Eagles when McCollum moved to safety for the Wild Card round despite not having played there all year.

Bucs CBs Zyon McCollum and Jamel Dean and CBs coach Kevin Ross – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“I’m focused on playing corner but I’m focused on playing defensive back also,” McCollum said on Tuesday. “I can play any position back there. Corner, safety, linebacker, it doesn’t really matter. I’m preparing to play anything and we don’t know what going to go on during the season. Anybody can go down at any point and we just want the best 11 on the field.”

The Bucs could have different looks each week depending on the opponent. At this time, nothing is set in stone in the secondary for this group other than Antoine Winfield Jr. playing safety and Jamel Dean playing outside cornerback. It’s up to Bowles to figure out how to best utilize everyone.