The Tampa Bay Buccaneers let Jamel Dean bet on himself in free agency by letting him out of the final year of his contract to be a free agent in 2026 — it ended up paying off for Dean and could end up burning the Buccaneers.
According to ESPN’s Peter Schrager, Dean agreed to a 3-year, $36.75 million free agent contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers on the 1st day of free agency on Monday.
It was part of a double dose of lost talent in a few minutes for the Buccaneers, with Dean’s exit quickly followed by the news that legendary wide receiver Mike Evans was leaving for a free-agent contract with the San Francisco 49ers.
Teams Warned Against Signing Jamel Dean
Dean signed a 4-year, $52 million contract extension before the 2023 season, and the Buccaneers got little to no return on the investment in the 2 years after.
As Dean was poised to cash in with another big free agent contract after putting up decent numbers in 2025, Bleacher Report’s Gary Davenport warned teams against paying up, calling Dean the NFL’s biggest “free agent bust waiting to happen.”
“It’s not a great year to be an NFL team in need of help at the cornerback position,” Davenport wrote. “This year’s draft class isn’t especially imposing, and neither is the group of available free agents. But cornerback is a premium position, and the number of teams annually looking to upgrade in the secondary usually numbers about 32. That could lead to another common mistake made by NFL general managers in free agency—overpaying the ‘top’ player available at the position … however, there’s an old saying that the best ability is availability, and that has been a career-long issue for the 29-year-old, who has missed multiple games every year he has been in the NFL.”
Bucs’ Gamble Against Dean Backfired
Like any other financial decision Tampa Bay has made with its secondary in recent years, the move to bet against Dean backfired.
In 2025, Dean had 1 of the best seasons of his career, allowing under a 50 percent completion percentage and a passer rating of just 63.1, which was the second-best mark of his career.
Dean, who had 7 interceptions in his first 4 seasons, had just 1 interception over the 2023 and 2024 seasons and responded with a career-high 3 interceptions in 2025, including 1 interception returned for a touchdown.
Pro Football Focus predicts Dean will be the highest-paid free agent cornerback in this year’s cycle with a projected 3-year, $55 million contract.
“Entering his age-30 season, Jamel Dean has a resume of tremendous consistency that is rarely seen at the cornerback position,” PFF’s Mason Cameron wrote. “Coverage play is volatile, with even the best players riding through the peaks and valleys. Yet, Dean has been able to produce a PFF coverage grade above 72.0 in each of his seven seasons as a pro. Dean profiles as one of the game’s stalwart outside cornerbacks, with his 86.9 PFF coverage grade on the outside ranking fourth among all qualifying cornerbacks.”
Dean’s personal success didn’t equal team success — the Buccaneers went 8-9 and missed the playoffs for the 1st time since 2019.
Buccaneers Lose $52 Million Free Agent to AFC Team