The Tampa Bay Buccaneers seem desperate for depth at almost every position, which is why they might come to regret letting critical role players walk in free agency for relatively paltry sums.
Topping that list is safety Christian Izien, who started 15 games for the Buccaneers over the last 3 seasons but signed a 1-year, $2 million free-agent contract with the Detroit Lions.
Izien received some high praise from ESPN’s Aaron Schatz, who put him on a list of the NFL’s best nonstarters headed into 2026.
“If Brian Branch is healthy enough to play, he’ll spend a lot of time in the slot, which will require a third safety on the field,” Schatz wrote on July 6. “Izien started 10 games for Tampa Bay in 2024, with 75 combined tackles and good coverage metrics, then lost his job to Tykee Smith last season. Can Izien play an important role for the Lions this season?”
Bucs Previously Called Out for Losing Izien
Izien’s versatility has been on full display in his 1st 3 seasons, in which he’s shown he can play outside cornerback, nickel cornerback, and safety.
“Izien was invaluable as someone who could step in anywhere in the secondary,” Fox Sports NFL reporter Greg Auman wrote on his official X account. “But if Bucs see him as a backup and special teams guy, he’s going to want a shot at a larger role somewhere else. Minimum deal says he didn’t have a huge market, but he’s overcome that before.”
While Izien got slightly above the league minimum of 1 1-year, $1.145 million contract, it wasn’t by much.
“DB Christian Izien’s one-year contract with the Lions is worth $2M, including $1M guaranteed, per source,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote on his official X accountin March. “Izien became a free agent when the Bucs decided not to tender him.”
The move also left some Bucs fans confused.
“Kinda surprised they let him go,” Bucs fan Justin Meyer wrote on X. “I always appreciated how he could play anywhere!”
Lions Praised for Signing Christian Izien
On the flip side of the Buccaneers being called out for letting Izien go to an NFC rival in free agency, the Lions were being praised for bringing him in after missing the playoffs in 2025.
“Izien, who recorded 165 total tackles over the past three seasons in Tampa, will bring versatility to a secondary that has been banged up the past two years,” ESPN’s Eric Woodyard wrote. “The 2023 undrafted free agent appeared in 14 games in 2025, logging 25 tackles, a forced fumble and a tackle for loss. After agreeing to the new deal in Detroit, Izien wrote on X that he ‘can’t wait to get to work and keep proving them wrong!’ ”
Izien was a 2-time All-Big Ten pick at Rutgers and closed out his career with 41 consecutive starts. His size — he’s just 5-foot-8 and 199 pounds — likely kept him from being selected in the 2023 NFL draft.
It certainly wasn’t Izien’s athletic ability holding him back. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds at the NFL scouting combine, along with an incredible 41.5-inch vertical leap. Those are the kind of numbers that would get almost any secondary prospect drafted. Just not the undersized Izien.
He made Tampa Bay’s 53-man roster as an undrafted free agent rookie in 2023 and went on to play in all 17 games with 4 starts and 2 interceptions in his first 2 games — the first undrafted rookie to accomplish the feat in NFL history.
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