QUESTION: After free company and the draft, who’re the highest gamers on every of the groups within the NFC South?
ANSWER: It is a good and attention-grabbing query. Let’s begin with Tampa Bay. It’s fairly clear that left deal with Tristan Wirfs, who’s a five-time Professional Bowler and a three-time All-Professional, together with twice (2021, 2024) as a first-team choice.
A number of years in the past, it might need been a toss up between a youthful Wirfs and future Corridor of Fame receiver Mike Evans and Corridor of Fame-worthy linebacker Lavonte David, who had been nonetheless of their primes when Wirfs entered the league in 2020, the 12 months the Bucs received Tremendous Bowl LV. Now, Wirfs stands alone as the perfect Buccaneer, with quarterback Baker Mayfield, a two-time Professional Bowler, a distant second. Maybe in time, first-round choose Rueben Bain Jr. can contend for this designation if he can exceed expectations.
Bucs QB Baker Mayfield and Panthers DT Derrick Brown – Picture by: USA As we speak
In Carolina, it’s bought to be defensive deal with Derrick Brown. He’s a power alongside the inside and was not too long ago rewarded in 2024 with a five-year, $96 million contract price a median of $24 million. Brown missed all however one sport through the 2024 season with a meniscus harm, however got here again with a vengeance final 12 months. Recognized primarily as an higher tier run stuffer, Brown produced a career-high 5 sacks along with 73 tackles, seven go breakups, 5 tackles for loss and a compelled fumble in serving to the Panthers win the NFC South title final 12 months.
Atlanta has a trio of stars in Drake London, who simply turned the league’s third-highest paid huge receiver, operating again Bijan Robinson and proper guard Chris Lindstrom. London, who makes a median of $35.2 million per 12 months, is a legit 1,000-yard receiver, however has but to make a Professional Bowl or an All-Professional workforce, so I’ll eradicate him. Lindstrom is probably the most achieved present Falcon with 4 Professional Bowls and 4 second-team All-Professional honors.
However I’ll go along with Robinson, who has been within the league 4 fewer years than Lindstrom has and is a two-time Professional Bowler along with his preliminary first-team All-Professional honor coming final 12 months. In a fantasy draft, if each NFL workforce might choose one participant off the Falcons roster, nearly all of groups would take Robinson, who’s a legit runner-receiver weapon.
Falcons RB Bijan Robinson and Bucs ILB Lavonte David – Picture by: Cliff Welch/PR
New Orleans has had a number of roster turnover with Kellen Moore assuming head teaching duties final 12 months. Saints stalwarts like defensive finish Cam Jordan and center linebacker Demario Davis are gone, and the offense has had fairly an overhaul. Vast receiver Chris Olave had a 1,000-yard season final 12 months and was second-team All-Professional regardless of not making the Professional Bowl. However he’s recovering from a blood clot and his standing for 2026 is up within the air, which is why New Orleans spent a first-round choose on Arizona State receiver Jordyn Tyson, who has star potential.
However when wholesome, heart Erik McCoy, a two-time Professional Bowler from 2023-24, might be the perfect participant in New Orleans. McCoy tore his biceps within the seventh sport of the 12 months and was positioned on injured reserve. Defensive finish Chase Younger lastly lived as much as his potential and had 12 sacks final 12 months and he is likely to be within the operating, too.
QUESTION: How involved ought to we be with Benjamin Morrison’s well being contemplating we’re going to be reliant on him taking a leap in 12 months 2?
ANSWER: That’s a very good query, and a sound one. Second-year cornerback Benjamin Morrison was making some actual strides within the offseason program and within the OTAs earlier than a “leg injury” sidelined him for Thursday’s last OTA observe. Morrison made an amazing interception through the second week of OTAs when he stepped in entrance of Chris Godwin and picked off Baker Mayfield. It was a really instinctive play from the Notre Dame product, and the flexibility to create interceptions was one of many causes the Bucs spent a second-round choose on him.
His oft-injured rookie season has been well-documented. Morrison missed the ultimate day of the necessary mini-camp with a hamstring harm. Then after a number of weeks of coaching camp, he had one other extra extreme hamstring harm that price him a whole month of observe, together with all three preseason video games. That missed time confirmed up on the sector, as Morrison gave up touchdowns in shut losses to New England and at Buffalo.
Bucs CB Benjamin Morrison and Payments WR Tyrell Shavers – Picture by: USA As we speak
He wound up enjoying in simply 10 video games as a rookie, lacking seven different video games with hamstring accidents. Now it looks like he’s bought one other hamstring harm, though head coach Todd Bowles wasn’t particular once I requested him if it was certainly a hamstring that stored Morrison out of form. Bowles replied that he was “nicked up” and that it was a “leg injury.”
I do suppose it is a concern for the workforce, as the perfect means is availability. Morrison can’t assist the workforce if he’s on the sidelines in avenue garments. Let’s hope that this was a minor tweak and that he can take part on this week’s necessary mini-camp. If he misses time this week, I’d should recommend that it is a actual pink flag about Morrison’s sturdiness. The worry is that the Bucs drafted one oft-injured cornerback to exchange one other oft-injured cornerback in Jamel Dean.
Nevertheless, if Morrison can work these hamstring points out over the summer time and totally take part in coaching camp and the preseason, that will probably be a giant step to easing some considerations about his well being and sturdiness. Proper now he’s properly behind Jacob Parrish, final 12 months’s third-round choose, when it comes to his NFL improvement. Parrish performed in all three preseason video games final 12 months, along with being a starter – both at nickelback or at exterior cornerback – for all 17 video games and had a extremely promising rookie season with seven go breakups, two interceptions, two sacks and a fumble restoration. Morrison wants a very good – and wholesome – coaching camp to proceed to hone his expertise.
QUESTION: Do you suppose the Bucs will check out any veteran cornerbacks with expertise? If not, why? There may be depth on the workforce, however it’s mainly all particular groups kind of CBs.
ANSWER: Sure, I do suppose Tampa Bay’s entrance workplace remains to be keeping track of the cornerback place for a participant with extra beginning expertise. Rasul Douglas turns 31 in August, and he is likely to be the perfect accessible free agent cornerback. He’s performed a fairly excessive stage lately in Miami and Inexperienced Bay. However the issue with growing older cornerbacks like Douglas is that they wish to play on protection, however don’t essentially wish to play on particular groups at this stage of their profession.
With Zyon McCollum, Jacob Parrish and Benjamin Morrison as the highest three cornerbacks on the depth chart, a brand new cornerback like Douglas – or one other free agent – would actually have to return in and wow the workforce to unseat a type of homegrown corners. And if that didn’t occur, would Douglas or one other veteran cornerback be content material with masking kicks and punts or would they be a malcontent? That’s at all times a threat with bringing in veteran free brokers.
Bucs QB Baker Mayfield and Dolphins CB Rasul Douglas – Picture by: IMAGN Pictures by way of Reuters Join – Sam Navarro
One other route the Bucs might take can be to commerce for a youthful cornerback with some beginning expertise in August throughout coaching camp and the preseason – or maybe in early September if the waiver wire after roster cutdowns doesn’t bear any fruit on the place. A youthful cornerback might need his ego in test and be extra keen to play on particular groups as CB4 on the depth chart.
You might be appropriate in saying that the brand new cornerbacks – exterior of nickelback Keionte Scott, the workforce’s fourth-round choose – are principally particular teamers. Neither Kemon Corridor nor Chase Lucas, each age 29, have but to begin an NFL sport and neither has an interception. In reality, Lucas has only one profession go breakup. So if there may be an harm to 2 cornerbacks – say McCollum and Parrish – proper now it could be Morrison and particular teamer Josh Hayes, who has restricted beginning expertise, because the Bucs’ prime two cornerbacks. Thus, cornerback remains to be a necessity in Tampa Bay.
QUESTION: Isn’t the captain of the Titanic (Todd Bowles) simply rearranging the deck chairs by hiring completely different coaches, very like he did final season? Please clarify to us how that is going to vary the outcomes.
ANSWER: Nicely, let’s hope not, proper? The one completely different coaches the Bucs employed in 2025 had been line of defense coach Charlie Sturdy and go sport coordinator Kefense Hinson, who was tabbed for that place by new offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard, who was an in-house promotion.
The 2026 teaching workers has been revamped at a bigger diploma. New offensive coordinator Zac Robinson has employed to exchange Grizzard, and he introduced go sport coordinator TJ Yates, quarterbacks coach Chandler Whitmer and senior assistant Ken Zampese with him from Atlanta. Whitmer was the Falcons QBs coach in 2024, however spent final 12 months with Indiana, who received the nationwide championship. Tampa Bay additionally has a brand new assistant offensive line coach in Andrew Mitchell, in addition to a brand new particular groups coordinator in veteran Danny Smith.
Bucs HC Todd Bowles and CBs coach Rashad Johnson – Picture by: Cliff Welch/PR
Defensively, there are three new place coaches. Cornerbacks coach Rashad Johnson and safeties coach Tim Atkins change Kevin Ross and Nick Rapone, respectively. Each Johnson and Atkins served as assistants to Ross and Rapone for years and know Todd Bowles’ system fairly properly. They’re each about 20 years youthful than the elders they’re changing, and are extra relatable to the gamers they’re teaching.
New line of defense coach Marcus West replaces Sturdy, and he too is over 20 years youthful and has introduced much more vitality to the D-line room, very like Johnson and Atkins have delivered to the secondary, and Smith has delivered to particular groups. After seeing these coaches in motion for the rookie mini-camp and the OTAs, we at Pewter Report have come away impressed. Teaching issues. And at first look, these assistants appear higher, extra hands-on, and extra energetic than the boys they’re changing.
The final word position of a place coach is to develop and enhance the play of the gamers of their respective rooms. Whereas teaching is essential and scheme issues, soccer is extra concerning the Jimmies and the Joes than the X’s and the O’s. Expertise alone can win video games so long as it’s executed correctly. And the Bucs have elevated their expertise stage on each side of the ball this season, however most notably on the defensive facet.
Higher teaching and extra expertise ought to make Tampa Bay higher in 2025 and poised to recapture the NFC South title. However that must be confirmed on the sector for 17 weeks to really come to fruition.
