![\"ARLINGTON,](\"https:\/\/platform.bucsnation.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/50\/2026\/04\/gettyimages-2191125659.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&crop=0,0,100,100\")
<\/a><\/p>\nARLINGTON, TEXAS – DECEMBER 22: Head coach Todd Bowles of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers calls a time out during the second quarter of a game against the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium on December 22, 2024 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins\/Getty Images) Getty Images<\/p>\n
Tackling those disappointments with the added dimension of losing Jamel Dean in free agency and the team has a need. Todd Bowles said as much himself<\/a>:<\/p>\n \u201cWe definitely need another cornerback… Whether it\u2019s a veteran or whether it\u2019s a draft pick, that remains to be seen. We\u2019d like to add one or two to the mix and kind of go forward from there. There are some good cornerbacks coming out in this draft and then there are still a few good veteran cornerbacks out on the street, so we\u2019ll play it by ear and see what we come up with.\u201d<\/p>\n Since then, almost in a direct response, the team signed two players at the position\u2014 Chase Lucas and Kemon Hall.<\/p>\n With Zyon McCollum being one of higher paid players on this team\u2019s defense and the Buccaneers having high draft capital invested in both Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish, where on the list of needs does corner fall?<\/p>\n Brandon Cisse: College career<\/p>\n ATLANTA, GA – AUGUST 31: Brandon Cisse #15 of the South Carolina Gamecocks lines up on defense during the AFLAC Kickoff Game against the Virginia Tech Hokies on August 31, 2025 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Joe Robbins\/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n Cisse is a prospect coming out of USC. Cisse played just one season at South Carolina, the former Gamecock compiled 27 tackles, five pass deflections, a forced fumble, and an interception. His previous two collegiate seasons, Cisse suited up for North Carolina State University. With the Wolfpack, he notched 38 tackles, five pass deflections, and a one interception across two seasons.<\/p>\n The low-end ball production Cisse has had throughout his college career (2 interceptions and 1 forced fumble) aren\u2019t sound the siren alarming, but they exciting either\u2014 Effecting the ball is number one most important thing any NFL player can do. The ball is the most important part of any play\u2014 Receivers catch it, quarterbacks throw it, defensive stop offensive players from throwing and catching it. Turnover differential is a pivotal a stat in the trend of winning as any that has every been tracked so Cisse\u2019s lack of ball-getting was consistently noted in his draft profile on NFL.com<\/a><\/p>\n \u201c[Cisse] struggles to find playmaking positioning with back to the ball.\u201d<\/p>\n Also noted was the fact that a player like Cisse who lacks, \u201con-ball production and coverage consistency\u201d is significantly more likely to be a player that comes with a lower floor, even if his ceiling may be high.<\/p>\n Cisse did not participate in much at the NFL Scouting Combine. He weighed in at 189 lbs\u2014 Recorded a 41\u201d vertical jump, 10\u2019 11\u201d in the broad jump and put \u2018explosive\u2019 next to his name. Though he didn\u2019t run at the combine, his 40-yard dash at South Carolina\u2019s pro day stamped that notion with authority, a 4.40.<\/p>\n In scouting, traits are important. The fascination with physical traits\u2014 Height, weight, speed, etc. always hog headlines, but there are other traits as well. While Cisse has rawness and unharnessed ability, he grades out highly in every \u2018trait\u2019 area.<\/p>\n Zierlein went on to say, \u201cTeams will be willing to take a chance on Cisse\u2019s explosive athleticism and upside… [He is an] A-rated run supporter. Work ethic and athletic testing will work in his favor [both] Cisse\u2019s traits and competitiveness are clear selling points.<\/p>\n What teams will be willing to take on a potential project player full of \u2018traits\u2019 that could one day be molder into a quality pro?<\/p>\n Brandon Cisse: As a fit for the Buccaneers<\/p>\n Cornerback, in general, is an interesting fit for the Buccaneers. Todd Bowles tends to like bigger corners, Cisse stands a tick beneath six-feet tall. The Bucs, organizationally, have shown an ability to develop cornerbacks at a fairly high rate. It wasn\u2019t that long ago that Jamel Dean, Sean Murphy-Bunting, and Carlton Davis were all homegrown starters\/major contributors for this team\u2014 All three taken in rounds two and three of the NFL Draft. Zyon McCollum may be coming off of a down year, but the Buccaneers have developed him from fifth-round draft pick to a starter on his second contract with the team.<\/p>\n The dilemma stands with Jason Licht, who already has priority investments in the position and may be banking on a similar process of development playing out with those players. Investing more high-value draft capital would really create a logjam at a position where only a finite amount of players can be on the field at a time\u2014 A strategy that may be flawed in premise, but one Bucs\u2019 fans have seen Licht integrate in the past.<\/p>\n Last season, the Buccaneers did deploy a true rotation at outside corner\u2014 Having Jamel Dean and Benjamin Morrison switch in and out throughout games when both were healthy. That approach was unorthodox, hyper-specific to the situation, and is likely to not be repeated, so adding Cisse might just be adding depth.<\/p>\n Depth is important, but is it a priority?<\/p>\n If you were on the clock\u2026<\/p>\n Bucs\u2019 fans, if the choice were yours: Would cornerback be on your mind? Let us know in the comments below.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a few positions of struggle last season. Taking edge rusher out of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":864831,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2077],"tags":[211,7,781,6,704,250,2957,2597,2596],"class_list":{"0":"post-864830","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tampa-bay-buccaneers","8":"tag-buccaneers","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-general","11":"tag-nfl","12":"tag-tampa-bay","13":"tag-tampa-bay-buccaneers","14":"tag-tampa-bay-buccaneers-draft","15":"tag-tampabay","16":"tag-tampabaybuccaneers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116391936891989342","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864830","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=864830"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/864830\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/864831"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=864830"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=864830"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=864830"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a><\/p>\n