Jamel Dean And His Struggles With Injury Reports
July 31st, 2025
Healthy, for now.
Joe understands a lot of folks, including the Sage of Tampa Bay sports Ira Kaufman, are done with a starting Bucs corner and want the team to turn the page.
That corner is Jamel Dean. Joe reached that point, too, last year, because Dean struggles to stay on the field, not because Joe felt Dean was a bad corner.
Last year Dean missed five games and the Bucs were 1-4 in those games. Not only is that not a coincidence, but it’s hard for a team to make any sort of playoff run with its best corner watching the game from the sidelines in street clothes. That is why Joe would have been OK if the Bucs found Dean’s replacement.
But the way Bucs coach Todd Bowles has spoken several times about Dean in training camp, it sure doesn’t sound like Bowles has thrown in the towel on Dean.
Today, Bowles discussed Dean’s perpetual struggle to stay off injury reports.
“It’s always training and recovery,” Bowles said. “That’s not a guarantee, either. If you get hit the wrong way or you twist something, it can happen in this game – that’s part of it.
“He’s doing everything he can. It’s the healthiest he’s been in a long time. We like the way he’s moving out there right now and he’s playing well. We’ve just got to try to keep him healthy going forward.”
This prompts Joe to wonder if Dean was injured in past training camps. We’re barely one week into 2025 training camp and Bowles said Dean is the healthiest he’s been in a while?
Bowles previously noted the Bucs have depth they’ve never had since he became head coach. That’s a good thing, because Joe is sure Dean will get hurt.
The only question is, when?
July 31st, 2025 at 4:55 pm
I don’t see the purpose of holding on to Dean
He’s injury prone with no guaranteed money
You have depth at CB position, guys are bulking for his job
.
Trade him, cut him, do something with him
July 31st, 2025 at 5:10 pm
TRADE
HIM
NOW!
July 31st, 2025 at 5:21 pm
8mil cap hit. Not cutting him.
July 31st, 2025 at 5:26 pm
We have more than one guy on the team it would be easy to write off because of his injury history. Dean, Kancey and Dennis come to mind immediately. I trust Bowles and his sports science people to make the right decisions for each of them. I know it is hard to be patient. It is a trade off between their talent level and their availability.
Todd recently floated the idea that we may start rotating our CBs in and out during games. The two we drafted should be in that rotation soon enough.
July 31st, 2025 at 5:32 pm
If they are able to rotate corners as you reported earlier, Dean might make it through the whole season without injury and be relatively fresh for the playoffs.
July 31st, 2025 at 5:46 pm
Hopefully, we now have some young guys that will get significant playing time and have the ability to start when Dean goes out on injury. I would be surprised if the guy can make it 5 games this season w/o going on IR. At any rate, He needs to be gone next season.
July 31st, 2025 at 5:49 pm
If he manages to play 12 or 13 games, we’ll have gotten a good deal, as he really doesn’t make that much
July 31st, 2025 at 5:58 pm
Anybody who is typing trade or cut Dean has a super short memory. Do you remember just last season when we had multiple injured CBs? We were playing a 3rd stringer and Zion was still pretty green. We need the depth and we don’t need to take a stupid cap hit. Right now we have some depth. We need to weather the injury storm that could be coming at any moment.
July 31st, 2025 at 6:05 pm
Let’s go
July 31st, 2025 at 7:03 pm
Sooo makes you wonder if Dean shuts it down too much in the offseason
July 31st, 2025 at 7:04 pm
as a longtime bucs fan, I can say bucs fans love to have scapegoats. fall guys…
thing is, dean is a solid corner for a “reasonable” price + he knows bowles’ system.
many guys in NFL history have had several years with injury and then come back strong for several seasons…
IF dean misses a major portion of the season due to injury, he probably won’t be re-signed.
but regardless, for now, he’s worth the money while we give the new draft picks some time to develop.
July 31st, 2025 at 7:11 pm
From listening to the training camp shows on XM NFL channel, the winners are going more old school and physical.
Meanwhile, Bucs are running another Camp Cupcake.
It’s great, though. Camaraderie and team love are at all time highs. The dudes will love each other through bad times and worse.
Just for fun, go watch every loss from 2023 after you watch every loss from 2024. Lots of repeating mistakes, and losing patterns. It’s eye opening.
But if you value your mental health, don’t do it.
July 31st, 2025 at 7:35 pm
Off topic, but I’m looking at the new NFL rules, and I’m just not grasping a couple things.
First:
“Dynamic Kickoff
NFL clubs amended Rule 6 to modify and make permanent the new form of free kick play implemented in 2024. The play is designed to:
– Resemble a typical scrimmage play by aligning players on both teams closer together and restricting movement to reduce space and speed.
– Promote more returns.
2025 modifications to the existing rule include:
– Modifying the alignment requirements for receiving team players in the setup zone so they may have a maximum of three players in the setup zone not on the restraining line, but never more than one player in each of the three areas within the setup zone bordered by the sidelines and inbounds lines.
– Changing the dead ball spot after a touchback to the 35-yard line if the ball lands in the end zone and is downed in the end zone by the receiving team or goes out of bounds behind the receiving team’s goal line.
– Allowing teams to declare an onside kick at any point during a game as long as they are trailing their opponent, as opposed to only in the fourth quarter.”
Second:
“- G-3. By Washington: permits clubs that may qualify for the postseason to obtain scouting credentials for two consecutive games (Weeks 17 and 18) played by a potential postseason opponent.
Also requires clubs hosting Wild Card games to provide scouting credentials to all teams within the same conference who are participating in the postseason.”
Can anyone clarify those for me?
July 31st, 2025 at 7:37 pm
LakelandBuc Says:
“I don’t see the purpose of holding on to Dean
He’s injury prone with no guaranteed money
You have depth at CB position, guys are bulking for his job.
Trade him, cut him, do something with him”
I think they need to make sure what they have can be an improvement first. Plus, the cap hit keeps him here for now.
Unless they get a trade offer.
July 31st, 2025 at 7:40 pm
LakelandBucs and DoooshLaRue,
You both are on point. Let’s be done with Dean. That Parrish is a ball of dynamite. He’s hungry. Same about Morrison n BHall, they are aggressive n hungry. Cut Dean n use that money on a defensive end and back up corner. Dean is another JTS, passive with speed but don’t know how to use it.
July 31st, 2025 at 7:57 pm
dmatt,
Jamel Dean has 3 INTs, 19 PDs in the last seasons in Tampa
He got paid, and he stop producing
Donnie Abraham had 20 INTs, 64 PDs, in his last 3 seasons in Tampa
And the Bucs let him walk for nothing, and they won the Super. Bowl the next year, after they let Abraham walk. They had young corners that seized the opportunity.
I’m not impressed with a CB that averages 1 INT, 6 PDs during his last 3 years with the team. He have missed games, but he also have played in a lot of games.
The Bucs need to quit holding onto underperforming dead weight players. I’m not a fan of these unproductive players .
July 31st, 2025 at 8:29 pm
holy moses Grant Stuard a Bucs draftee fumbled the ball on kickoff
July 31st, 2025 at 9:08 pm
The next time he goes down will be that last time he starts in Tampa, write it down now
He has used all of his lives, he is on his last chance
July 31st, 2025 at 11:03 pm
Morrison is unproven and coming off hip surgery. Bucs need to keep Dean.
July 31st, 2025 at 11:28 pm
The team is better with Dean on the roster. You win regular season games with starters, you win playoff games and championships with depth. Even if Morrison or Parrish were to take Dean’s starting position and then get injured, would you rather have the equivalent of EJ Biggers stepping onto the field, or starting SB champ Dean?
That’s why you don’t cut him.
August 1st, 2025 at 1:01 am
Ninnies.
Jason will do the right thing. His Twocoach subordinate may not but he will.
August 1st, 2025 at 5:31 am
Todd has held on to some dues too freaking long. Dean? I am thinking trade. Now! Not after he proves Ira tight. See Diva… We could have gotten something for that dude at one point but held on too long. We are still hurting from that fiasco BTW.
Go Bucs!
August 1st, 2025 at 9:57 am
It is odd that so many of the folks saying cut Dean, must think there is no dead cap hit for the Bucs. They guy is on field for over 2 out of every 3 games and we are better when he is out there.
August 1st, 2025 at 11:59 am
Totally fakes injuries when getting beat go back and see Washington playoff game.