Rookie cornerbacks shining early on at Bucs training camp

USA Today

01-08-2025

As Buccaneers training camp develops, two rookies in the cornerback room are turning heads: Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish. Both second and third-round picks by Tampa Bay have delivered standout performances that raise serious questions about their potential to start in 2025.
Morrison proved fully healthy after hip surgery and immediately resumed full contact drills during rookie minicamp.
He looked fluid and crisp in coverage, demonstrating the kind of lateral quickness and anticipation that had many evaluating him as first-round caliber despite concerns over his hip. Jacob Parrish quickly made noise as well. Fast, physical, and instinctive, he snagged interceptions in OTAs and rookie minicamp, including one in 11-on-11 drills covering rookie receiver Emeka Egbuka. Coach Todd Bowles praised the pick and noted Parrish's elite speed, which comes as no shock, as he clocked a 4.35-second 40-yard dash at the Combine.
These early reps suggest Morrison and Parrish are already pushing the upper tier of the depth chart. Bowles has described Parrish as an outside corner first, nickel second, indicating he can play boundary assignments on early downs or inside on passing situations. Morrison has earned additional praise for his football intelligence, attention to detail, and ability to control leverage. The cornerback depth chart is far from settled. Returning starters Jamel Dean and Zyon McCollum bring experience, but injuries and inconsistency have prompted the team to bring in competition this offseason.
Morrison and Parrish are locked into the roster and in direct competition for meaningful roles from nickel through boundary corner assignments.
It has been thought that Parrish has an inside track to the nickel job over veteran Christian Izien, given his speed and early impact. Morrison, meanwhile, is positioning himself to push for early playing time on the outside, especially in press and zone coverage sub-packages, and could pressure Dean for starting opportunities if he struggles to stay on the field. Morrison and Parrish may have rewritten expectations for Buccaneers rookies. With both showing readiness and versatility, it's entirely possible that long before preseason ends, both will be penciled in as starters.
It's rare for two rookie corners to emerge so clearly and so quickly, but Morrison and Parrish are making that possibility real in Tampa Bay.