With training camp winding down for all 32 NFL teams, the remaining undecided position battles have probably taken on epic storylines of their own. Two players at the top of their professions, fighting for their futures.
If you love football and the competition aspect, this is the good stuff.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have one of those competitions going on right now at nickleback between second-year safety Christian Izien and rookie safety Tykee Smith, which Bleacher Report’s Maurice Moton identified as the team’s most important position battle.
“With collegiate experience at cornerback and safety, Smith is an intriguing addition to the secondary,” Moton wrote. “As a quick-trigger run defender with coverage skills, he could push for snaps in a rotational role this year. Smith may also see playing time if Izien can’t shake off a leg injury. Even if Smith doesn’t earn a spot in the nickel package, he can serve as a plug-and-play option at either safety spot if Antoine Winfield Jr. or Jordan Whitehead battle injuries.”
Izien made the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent out of Rutgers in 2023 and played in all 17 games with 4 starts with 65 tackles, 4 pass breakups, 2 interceptions and graded out at 83.5 percent in pass coverage.
Smith Could Be Hidden Gem From Third Round
The Buccaneers got a tried-and-true winner with Smith in the 3rd round (No. 89 overall) of the 2024 NFL draft out of Georgia.
Smith was one of the nation’s best safeties at West Virginia for the first two seasons of his college career, earning Freshman All-American honors in 2019 then All-Big 12 and All-American honors in 2020.
Smith transferred to Georgia for his final 3 seasons, winning back-to-back College Football Playoff national championships in 2021 and 2022 before earning All-SEC honors in 2023 with 70 tackles, 4 interceptions and 2.0 sacks.
“He played nickel at a really high level at Georgia,” Tampa Bay assistant general manager John Spytek told Buccaneers.com’s Scott Smith after the draft. “He also played safety at a really high level at West Virginia, so we love the versatility of it. Obviously, with Antoine here and Jordan here, we’ll probably see how he does at nickel first, but where he goes from there … is he a long-term safety? Maybe. He had a lot of picks at West Virginia. We love the versatility of him.”
Buccaneers Have NFL’s Best Safety in Winfield
Whatever happens at nickelback, the Buccaneers have the NFL’s best safety in Winfield, who signed the biggest contract for a defensive back in NFL history with a 4-year, $84.1 million he signed in May 2024.
PFF’s Zoltan Buday put Winfield at No. 1 on his list of the NFL’s Top 32 safeties headed into the 2024 season. Winfield had a season for the ages in 2023 as he earned NFL All-Pro honors for the first time with career highs for tackles (122), pass deflections (12), interceptions (3). He also led the NFL with 6 forced fumbles.
“Winfield, who became the NFL’s highest-paid defensive back this offseason, was the highest-graded safety in the league last season (90.7),” Buday wrote. “The 25-year-old’s 92.0 PFF overall grade over the past three seasons leads the position, and his run-defense and pass-rush grades rank first among safeties, too.”
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Buccaneers Rookie Challenging for Spot in Starting Lineup