Despite winning the NFC South Division for a fourth consecutive season, the 2024 Tampa Bay Buccaneers still had plenty of weaknesses as a team. The most troubling of them all was surely their ability (or inability) to defend the pass.

The Bucs ranked 30th out of 32 NFL teams in terms of passing yards allowed this past season. They also ranked 27th in the league in terms of interceptions and 22nd in completion percentage, allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete 66.4% of their passes.

Although there are 11 different spots on either side of the ball, the natural target of criticism regarding this failed component of the Buccaneers’ defense, aside from Todd Bowles, is the secondary.

There are many factors that contributed to the Buccaneers’ struggles on the back end of their defense this season. Prime among them, whether viewed as an excuse or not, was the injuries. Antoine Winfield Jr., Jordan Whitehead, Jamel Dean, Zyon McCollum and Tykee Smith missed a lot of games this year, and that’s not to mention valuable reserves like Christian Izien and Bryce Hall, both of whom were lost for the season.

But it isn’t all doom and gloom when you take a deeper look at the Bucs’ secondary.

One player who really made an impression this year was versatile rookie defensive back, Tykee Smith. The former Georgia Bulldog earned himself an opportunity to start at the nickel corner position right out of the gate, which was a role he never relinquished.

Despite his strong performance this year, there’s plenty of room for optimism regarding his future in the league. Recently, Pro Football Focus identified one breakout candidate for each team in 2025, and not surprisingly, Tykee Smith was chosen for the Buccaneers.

“General manager Jason Licht’s 2024 draft class already has a proven star in Bucky Irving, and Smith is another candidate to flourish. In his first NFL regular season, Smith collected an 88.1 PFF run-defense grade, the seventh-best mark among cornerbacks with 100 or more run-defense snaps. His 21 stops tied for the 13th most among rookies. The Bucs have been one of the NFL’s premier organizations in terms of drafting and developing talent, and Smith seems to be another prime example.”

Even though Tampa Bay’s defense underperformed in 2024, there are plenty of reasons to be optimistic regarding what they could accomplish in 2025. In the eyes of many within the Buccaneers’ organization, as well as PFF, dynamic defensive back Tykee Smith’s potential breakout should be considered among those reasons.

Stick with BucsGameday for more coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the 2024 season.