Rare national praise.
In the Tampa Bay area, Joe seems to think cornerback Jamel Dean is the most disliked player on the Bucs.
At least nationally, there is one pro-Dean analyst. And that is Chris Trapasso of CBS.
How pro-Dean is Trapasso? Well, he recently put out a TikTok video where he breaks down film of Dean. This video was published prior to the Bucs’ loss to the Eagles where — guess what? — Dean went down with an injury.
“Which was a fine illustration of the plant-and-drive explosion and recovery speed that Dean has shown since his rookie season in 2019,” Trapasso said. “You could make the case that Dean is the most steady corner since his rookie season in 2019. But he hardly gets any love.”
No, but he sure does get hate.
Look, Joe is the first person to raise his hand and admit he was fed up with Dean. Not because of his play, but because of his availability. That’s the only reason why Joe wanted the Bucs to move on.
In the last four playoff games in the fourth quarter, Dean was not on the field. In three of those four playoff games, the Bucs lost by one score. Don’t think it would have helped if the Bucs had their No. 1 corner on the field in the fourth quarter?
If a guy consistently cannot be on the field in a team’s most important games, what’s the point?
But since the Bucs haven’t washed their hands of Dean, Joe will defend Dean. For his play on the field, not for his inability to stay on the field.
All Joe knows is that the Bucs were 1-4 in games Dean did not start last year. And no, Joe does not believe in coincidences in the NFL.
As Raheem Morris once said, “I will tolerate you until I can replace you.” That’s where Joe is with Dean. So will that be Jacob Parrish or Benjamin Morrison? Only time will tell.
Interestingly, not only is Dean out for today’s game in Seattle, so too is Morrison, who has been having hamstring issues since training camp.
@christrapasso The #NFL‘s most underrated CB #bucs #football ♬ Epic War – Kidmada