Two bits of Tampa Bay Buccaneers news surfaced on Thursday, July 31, as training camp rolled on, and the first was a pair of signings and corresponding cuts.
“With minor injuries unsurprisingly thinning the ranks at the offensive skill positions a week into an intense training camp, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers made a pair of moves to shore up the running back and receiver rooms on Thursday morning,” Bucs team reporter Scott Smith relayed via the team’s website.
Continuing: “The Buccaneers signed rookie wide receiver Jaden Smith and second-year running back Owen Wright; to make room on the 91-man camp roster, they waived safety Marcus Banks and running back D.J. Williams.”
Later, after rumors that player agent Drew Rosenhaus was in town attending practice, the second piece of Bucs news was revealed on X.
“Buccaneers CB Zyon McCollum is seeking a contract extension, and had his agent Drew Rosenhaus in Tampa today to meet with team officials,” ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported on July 31.
McCollum is entering the final season of his rookie contract in 2025. There have been no reports of a contract extension at the time of this article’s completion.
Where Does Bucs’ Zyon McCollum Fall in the CB Market After News He Wants New Contract?
McCollum is making a base salary of $3.406 million in 2025. Considering he could be lined up to start in Week 1, and cornerback extensions have been occurring all around the league, it’s not all that surprising that the former fifth-round pick is now seeking an extension.
But where does he fall in the current CB market?
Obviously, McCollum isn’t getting Sauce Gardner or Patrick Surtain money. He could, however, garner a mid-level deal similar to someone like Byron Murphy.
The Minnesota Vikings extended Murphy with a three-year, $54 million deal earlier this offseason. That comes out to $18 million per season.
Murphy is slightly older than McCollum, at age 27 compared to his age 26, but he’s also much more established with 79 career regular season starts. McCollum has only started 29 games over his first three seasons, entering the NFL at a later age than Murphy.
Still, with inflation factoring in, this could be the range Rosenhaus is looking at.
After all, another 26-year-old cornerback with a good but not great track record also just got $18 million per season. And that was Paulson Adebo with the New York Giants.
The Buccaneers just drafted Benjamin Morrison and Jacob Parrish this April, and both have looked good so far at training camp, so McCollum doesn’t have a ton of leverage at the moment. Especially if head coach Todd Bowles feels his younger CBs could potentially replace McCollum as a starter.
More on New Bucs Training Camp Signings: Jaden Smith & Owen Wright
Per Scott Smith, new wide receiver signing “[Jaden] Smith took part in the Bucs’ rookie minicamp in May on a tryout contract.”
A 6-foot-6 undrafted rookie out of Montana State, Tarleton State and Nevada, Smith is coming off his best collegiate season with the latter university in 2024. He finished with 62 receptions for 849 yards and 7 touchdowns.
Wright, a 5-foot-9 running back, spent four years at William & Mary and then another two at Monmouth due to redshirt and COVID seasons. During his best season in 2019, he racked up 584 rushing yards and 5 touchdowns off 12 appearances and 138 carries (4.23 yards per carry).
Wright is not a rookie, and he spent his first two NFL preseasons with the Baltimore Ravens, rushing for 4.65 yards per carry in the summer of 2023 and just 2.89 yards per carry last August.
Directly replacing Williams — a 2024 undrafted rookie signing — is Wright, while Smith takes the roster spot of Banks. The newly unemployed safety was another 2024 UDFA, like Williams. Neither saw much regular season action as rookies.
Buccaneers Announce 2 Signings Amid Reports of Contract Negotiations