Tennessee CB Jermod McCoy.
Initially, Joe thought this was outrageous. But a schlock draft dude might be onto something.
At the NFL owners meetings this week, Bucs coach Todd Bowles said the team needs to add at least one, maybe two corners. That could be in the draft or that could be signing someone before training camp.
So Joe was doing research and noticed Bucky Brooks of NFL.com — in his third of 30 schlock drafts, has the Bucs picking a corner. And when Brooks detailed the player, Joe nearly threw up.
Brooks wants Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht to draft a corner in the first round who missed the 2025 season with a bum knee! That would be Jermod McCoy of Tennessee.
Taking a flier on a cornerback who missed the entire 2025 season with a torn ACL is risky, but McCoy’s instincts, awareness and ball skills make it a worthwhile gamble for a team that needs to improve on the defensive side of the ball.
Well, maybe Joe is hung up on semantics, but “taking a flyer” on a player is not what a team should be doing with the 15th overall pick. It’s what you do on the third day of the draft.
Now in the past, Licht has not shied away from taking injury-prone college corners. Carlton Davis was always nicked up at Auburn. And Jamel Dean had three total knee surgeries in high school and at Auburn. Licht won a Super Bowl with those guys.
And of course, Benjamin Morrison dealt with injuries at Notre Dame that forced him to miss chunks of time. The jury is still out on last year’s second-round pick.
However, Licht did not use a first-round pick on Davis, Dean or Morrison. That’s a huge difference.
Now Brooks’ colleague, former NFL personnel guy Daniel Jeremiah, has McCoy ranked as his 15th-best prospect even after missing 2025 with a bum knee, suggesting he’s still a Day 1 starter.
So perhaps Brooks may be onto something?
Jermod McCoy (6’0 193) Tennessee
+ Man coverage ability
+ Ball skills
+ 89.6 coverage grade in 2024
+ 4 interceptions in 2024
+ Reliable tackler with just a 7.0% missed tackle rate in 2024
+ Physicality in coverage
+ Capable in run support
– Missed all of 2025 with an ACL… pic.twitter.com/EdYjvQKkFz
— Bengals & Brews (@BengalsBrews) February 16, 2026