Jamel Dean and Sean Murphy-Bunting Battle for Starting Outside Corner

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will suit up in one week and kick off their NFL season in Dallas against the Cowboys. Football is back, and this Tampa team is just about ready, and all of the positions are locked in place, except for one of the outside cornerback positions.

It’s obvious that veteran cornerback Carlton “45-million-dollar” Davis III is locked into his starting role as the outside cornerback. He is focused, and he is more than ready to take his game to the next level. Dare I say, “it’s elite time”?

Now you might say it’s a no-brainer that the other outside cornerback spot belongs to Jamel Dean; however, that isn’t the case at all. Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles hasn’t made a decision yet. Plot twist! The man in the front running is the man you have hated all offseason: Sean Murphy-Bunting.

Bucs’ head coach Todd Bowles was recently asked if he has made a decision on who was going to become that other starting outside cornerback, and this is what he had to say:

“Not yet. Not ready to make a declaration on it. They’re both playing well, and between who starts and who plays everywhere else, it’s going to be like both of them are playing anyway.”

Now, both of these guys will play a role on a team, but once they are in that role, they will stay in that role. They both will see playing time. Bowles also mentioned that he won’t rotate corners in and out but that there will be different guys; who come in on different packages, utilizing their particular set of skills to achieve the best line of defense during football games.

“I try to stick two corners out there the whole game. We don’t rotate corners – we have packages where people do other things, but we don’t rotate corners normally.”

I would love to be a fly on the wall when Bowles makes this tough decision, and believe it or not, both Dean and Murphy-Bunting are great players, and like it or not Murphy-Bunting could be your starting outside cornerback for this 2022 NFL season. I’ve always liked SMB, and the hate he received this offseason was completely unwarranted. Sorry guys, the only burnt toast around here is coming out of your kitchens.

Jamel Dean Stats: 3 seasons, 42 games, 23 starts, 5 INTS for 69 yards, 33 pass defends, 136 combined tackles, 111 solo tackles

Sean Murphy-Bunting Stats: 3 seasons, 41 games, 31 starts, 4 INTs for 70 yards, 14 pass defends, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovered, 1 sack, 157 combined tackles, 120 solo tackles.