From his quotes at the NFL Combine last week, head coach Dirk Koetter made it known that finding safeties, both as a starter and depth players, was a priority for the team this offseason. 

On day three of free agency, the team got to fortifying that depth with a new face by signing former Cowboys safety J.J. Wilcox.

With Chris Conte already signed to his new 2-year deal, bringing in Wilcox most likely means the departure of safety Bradley McDougald. Wilcox and McDougald, both 26 years old, are similar players – hard-hitting, strong safety types who could both stand to clean up some consistencies –  though Wilcox is slightly more athletic. 

Wilcox was drafted by the Cowboys in the 3rd round of the 2013 NFL Draft. In his rookie season, Wilcox was set to be the starter from day one, but before the season began, Wilcox’s mother passed away. Due to the time he took away from football to deal with his personal life, Will Allen was named the starter over him. Wilcox played in a reserve role in that first year recording 38 tackles.

In 2014 he was, in fact, named the starter and started all 16 games for the Cowboys. In that season, he recorded 69 tackles and three interceptions. With the addition of Barry Church and Byron Jones, Wilcox has been an on-and-off starter for the past two seasons. He’s a powerful tackler who can really lay a big hit on players, but still needs development in consistency to be a bonafide starting caliber strong safety.

At just age 26, it’s still believed he can become that. He’ll get his chance to with the Buccaneers.