Free agent CB Asante Samuel.
Joe is of the mind that the Bucs, just like they needed an established edge rusher and signed Haason Reddick, need a quality cornerback in free agency.
While the free agent crop has been picked through worse than a Plant City strawberry patch after St. Patrick’s Day, there is one cornerback out that who catches Joe’s eye.
That’s veteran corner Asante Samuel. The former Chargers cornerback didn’t play much last year due to a bum shoulder. Before that, Samuel was a three-year starter for the Chargers. He’s still just 25.
The drawback, Joe thinks, about Samuel is he isn’t a ballhawk which Bucs coach Todd Bowles professed to desire this offseason. Samuel has six picks, all from 2021-2023. Samuel just played in four games last year and had no picks.
When opposing quarterbacks target Samuel, he has allowed 59.5 percent of those targets to be completed. Jamel Dean’s career completion percentage when targeted is 58.7. So it’s not like there is a huge drop off.
BSPN NFL analyst and Chicago-area high school coach Matt Bowen has [the following breakdown](https://www.espn.com/nfl/insider/story/_/id/44192425/2025-nfl-free-agency-ranking-best-remaining-available-unsigned-players) of Samuel.
> Samuel has a playmaking mentality at cornerback, with the foot quickness and sudden closing speed to break on the ball. A shoulder injury limited Samuel to four games last season, but he has six interceptions and 26 pass breakups in his four years with the Chargers.
In the past four seasons, Dean has 34 pass breakups.
Joe is not necessarily looking to replace Dean with whatever leftovers are available after a week of free agency. “This Joe” actually thinks Dean is a decent if not good corner. Joe’s issue is he can’t stay on the field.
Last year, for example, when Dean got hurt against the slimy Saints in New Orleans and missed four games, the Bucs cratered and lost four games in a row as well. Coincidence? Joe doesn’t believe in coincidences in the NFL.
Interestingly, half of those losses in that four-game tailspin were one-score games. Don’t think the Bucs could have used Dean in those games?
And that’s why Joe had reached the end of his rope with Dean. Again, “this Joe” thinks he’s a good player. But Dean could be Darrelle Revis and it wouldn’t matter if he can’t get on the field.
What bothers Joe is that Dean couldn’t finish three of the last four Bucs playoff games, the most important games of the year. The last two playoff games Dean missed were one-score games as well. Don’t think losing a starting corner in a close playoff game doesn’t make a difference?
It currently appears the Bucs will keep Dean. And Joe is OK with that so long as the Bucs have someone capable to fill in for Dean. Because you just know Dean will get hurt. It’s not if but when.
Would Samuel be OK with being a part-time starter?