It wasn’t until Week 8 against Amari Cooper and the Oakland Raiders that Bucs cornerback Vernon Hargreaves got his “Welcome to the NFL” moment.

Despite facing receivers like Julio Jones, Kelvin Benjamin and Demaryius Thomas in the weeks prior, it was the receiver tandem of Cooper and Michael Crabtree that forced him to take a step back.

“That Oakland game and that Atlanta game, that was the ‘Welcome to the NFL’ game,” Hargreaves said. “Both of those games, I had a rough one. But my confidence doesn’t falter. I got comfortable, I learned from it.”

The Bucs defense gave up a combined 859 passing yards in that two-game span with Raiders quarterback Derek Carr setting a franchise record with 513 in a 30-24 overtime win over Tampa Bay.

Bucs CB Vernon Hargreaves III and Raiders WR Amari Cooper – Photo by: Mark Lomoglio/PR

Five days later, the Bucs defense allowed 43 points to the division-rival Falcons.

It was a low point for Hargreaves and one for the team as a whole, but it allowed the team — primarily the defense — to sit back and assess the situation.

Since that Week 9 Thursday night bout with the Falcons, the Bucs have won four straight, forced 11 turnovers and allowed an average of 13.3 points per game.

For Hargreaves, it was the defensive leaders in the secondary that helped him move past the rough outings and help turn the defense around.

“The guys had my back, they told me not to worry about it,” Hargreaves said. “Brent [Grimes], long-time vet, told me, ‘Let it go. Let it go or it’s going to kill you.’ After that, I just started to have fun with it.

“That’s what I do, that’s when I play my best and it’s working out for me.”

Hargreaves and company have helped spark a revitalized defense during this four-game streak. Despite the lack of experience at this level, the 21-year-old rookie is beginning to develop the mindset needed to excel.

“He’s always had the skills and the talent, but his maturity is what’s changing him,” Bucs defensive tackle Gerald McCoy said of Hargreaves. “He’s starting to mature and develop into an NFL player. I’ve seen so many players that have had just as much talent as the people who last in this league, but mentally, if you don’t have it, that’s when you see guys like, ‘Man, what happened to that guy, he wasn’t there mentally.’

“Vernon is mentally growing up, he’s maturing and it’s starting to show on the field and that’s what’s gonna make him good for a long time.”

But it hasn’t been easy — though rarely, if ever, do rookies make it through their first season without these speed bumps.

Once in Tampa, Hargreaves, who was primarily an outside, shutdown corner at Florida, had to become more versatile and play positions outside his comfort zone.

“It was tough to play both,” said Hargreaves who plays snaps at both nickel and outside corner. “It was harder than I thought it was going to be. But, you know, I’m kind of glad that they threw me in the fire like that because now I know. I basically know the whole defense now.

“I can really play anywhere and that’s exciting for me. I know what everybody’s doing around me.”

Once a defense struggling to hang in games, the Bucs have transformed into an opportunistic defense that has smothered offenses in recent weeks.

To Hargreaves, the secondary played a large role in flipping that switch.

“We’ve been huge; great improvement from the beginning of the year,” Hargreaves said. “Like I said, we’re all finally starting to understand it, really understand what the defense is and where we’re supposed to be. We’re making plays on the ball, and hopefully we can keep that going as well.”