As a part of the Bucs’ attempt at turning the tides on a defense that has been ranked in the bottom third of the league four of the past five seasons, they flooded the defensive back’s unit in the 2019 draft. In three consecutive picks Tampa Bay added Sean Murphy-Bunting out of Central Michigan, Jamel Dean out of Auburn and Mike Edwards out of Kentucky.

These athletic playmakers were brought in to shore up a young secondary alongside Vernon Hargreaves, the team’s first-round pick in 2016, and Carlton Davis, the team’s second-round pick in 2018.

Lacking experience, it’s imperative that the unit learns quickly while they’re forced to adapt almost instantly to the speed that comes with the NFL, and Tuesday’s mini-camp was a promising sign.

The takeaways began early on as tight coverage led to a batted ball that Edwards laid out for, turning a pass breakup intended for Damarkus Lodge into an incredible interception off of Jameis Winston. A few minutes later Dean joined in on the action, jumping an out route and falling to the ground as he came up with an interception of his own. Two plays later Dean would jump another route and earn himself a pass breakup along the sideline on a comeback route.

Later on in the period Davis stuck to rookie wide receiver Scotty Miller with great coverage down the sideline and nearly came up with an interception of his own. Kentrell Brice followed suit shortly after, nabbing an easy pick over the middle of the field as Winston sailed a pass over the head of second-year tight end Antony Auclair, his third interception thrown of the day.

The success of the young defensive backs is of course bittersweet for the Bucs’ coaching staff, but it’s always a positive when your young players can find a groove this early. As Dirk Koetter used to say, when the team is playing against each other and when one side is winning, the other side is losing. Winston did have his fair share of impressive throws on the day however, and head coach Bruce Arians seemed less than worried when asked about the turnovers following practice.