Todd Bowles Opens Up On Benjamin Morrison Play
December 27th, 2025
Bucs rookie cornerback Benjamin Morrison was trashed by injuries early this season and then came back and got roasted by quarterbacks.
Last Sunday was supposed to be the real Morrison on display.
Is that what Bucs fans saw? Morrison certainly was sticky in coverage but also got burned, flagged and blown up badly a couple of times by blocks.
Overall, Morrison was darn good starting at outside corner for injured Zyon McCollum, Todd Bowles told the Buccaneers Radio Network.
“We thought Morrison was ready,” Bowles said. “He [was] getting healthy the past couple weeks. He’s been watching film. Mentally, he’s been great. He’s been practicing faster and we felt like it was his time that going and play and prove and he showed us right. He did a very good job in there. He competed his tail off.
“… Just his aggressiveness. He pressed. He got up there. He wasn’t afraid of anybody. He made some plays on the ball. He gave up one play, but he was smothered all over him. Obviously the fade ball, he wanted him to stay on top, but he did a really good job seeing the run game. He did a really good job making some plays on the perimeter.”
Joe loves Morrison’s aggression. It was a very refreshing change. But if Bowles loved it so much, then why didn’t Bowles demand the same level of it from McCollum, who is a more gifted athlete than Morrison? And where was Jamel Dean’s press coverage on the crushing Panthers touchdown before halftime?
Joe hopes for more from Morrison tomorrow in Miami — perhaps even enough for Rondé Barber to stop publicly pining to draft another cornerback in April.
December 27th, 2025 at 5:30 pm
Uhhhh. No. Zyon is NOT a more gifted athlete. He’s been lousy. He fooled a lot of people. He got a contract.
Gifted athletes are guys like Tom Brady who maximize physical and mental. A learn the game.
I saw more from Morrison last week than the entire time bored, loafing and out of position Zyon has been here.
December 27th, 2025 at 5:33 pm
Bowles is not the person that gave McCollum the outrageous contract. The Bucs would have been better served letting McCollum play out the last year and not f-ing with Dean’s money, now Dean is out of here and we’re stuck with an overpaid not half as good of a player for two more years.
December 27th, 2025 at 5:43 pm
Zyon Mccollum WAS an excellent player on paper
He’s not even good on paper anymore
I hope Morrison can get healthy and stay healthy
He seems like an aggressive CB, something we’re surely missing
December 27th, 2025 at 5:54 pm
Zyon could be good. If he actually got some decent coaching.
December 27th, 2025 at 5:55 pm
I would love to draft a shut down corner in the first round.
What a boon to a defense to shut down half the field.
December 27th, 2025 at 6:11 pm
We need a LB & a stud TE in this year’s draft….
December 27th, 2025 at 6:28 pm
The last shutdown CB we had was Darrelle Revis
Licht and Lovie waived the future Hall Of Famer
It’s been tough being a Buc fan
December 27th, 2025 at 6:39 pm
Lakeland Says:
December 27th, 2025 at 6:28 pm
The last shutdown CB we had was Darrelle Revis
Licht and Lovie waived the future Hall Of Famer
It’s been tough being a Buc fan
He wasn’t a shutdown with the Bucs. And that shut down Half the field mentality makes no sense in 4 wide sets. he can only cover 1
December 27th, 2025 at 6:50 pm
ModHairKen Says:
Uhhhh. No. Zyon is NOT a more gifted athlete. He’s been lousy.
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Zyon did regress this season; I’m hopeful he’ll turn it around in 2026.
That said, he truly IS a gifted athlete. At the combine, he scored a perfect 10/10 on the Relative Athletic Score, or “RAS,”. There were 2,001 cornerback prospects tested at the Combine between 1987 and 2022, and McCollum was the first to notch a perfect RAS.
December 27th, 2025 at 7:10 pm
I would love a corner (or gunner) who could simply shed blocks consistently.
December 27th, 2025 at 7:12 pm
what happened to zyon ?
did jpp take him out in the locker room…lol
jpp is the new sherif in town
December 27th, 2025 at 7:32 pm
I questioned the pick from the beginning. I probably would’ve passed on him.
December 27th, 2025 at 7:48 pm
Morrison is gonna be a shutdown corner in his 3rd year. Mark my words. He blows McCollum away.
December 27th, 2025 at 8:01 pm
Saint,
Of course. But most teams don’t run 4 WRs a majority of the time.
Obviously.
The most aggressive offenses will trot out a back, TE and three WRs.
The point is taking their best wr out of the game with one player, not a double team
December 27th, 2025 at 8:07 pm
Obvious Says:
December 27th, 2025 at 8:01 pm
Saint,
Of course. But most teams don’t run 4 WRs a majority of the time.
Obviously.
The most aggressive offenses will trot out a back, TE and three WRs.
The point is taking their best wr out of the game with one player, not a double team
That doesn’t equate to shutting down one side of the field is my point
December 27th, 2025 at 8:20 pm
The Bucs can have 2 great lockdown corners and the D could still get torched if the Bucs do not have an edge rush. Diaby is not the answer. Interior pressure could help him but Kancey is always injured, hence a bust and Vea is getting older. Bucs need to somehow get that edge rush for whomever is coaching the D in 2026 but Licht cannot draft one if his life depended on it and does not like to trade his draft picks.
December 27th, 2025 at 8:21 pm
Clearly, Zyon has a short attention span and gets “bored.” Best way to improve his game: get a pass rush so he doesn’t have to lock 8n so long with WRs. Foolish purchase, but Jason gotta be Jason.
New coach, ILB, IDL, and OLB…and a QB for grooming (washed out Bridgewater is fools gold that only a fool GM would pull off of a HS coaching staff). We already have too much draft and cap equity in the secondary and Smith and Izien are worthy of 2nd contracts, imo
December 27th, 2025 at 8:21 pm
Bucs suck
December 27th, 2025 at 8:30 pm
I am saying right now that Morrison is a better coverage corner the high priced McCollum. McCollum has been terrible in coverage.
December 27th, 2025 at 8:43 pm
Has any body noticed how terrible McColllum has been in coverage?
December 27th, 2025 at 8:47 pm
McColum has been abused. Absolutely terrible in coverage.
December 27th, 2025 at 8:48 pm
Does Bowles think he’s talking to parents of a pee wee flag football league ???
The bucs are billion dollar corporation with two million fans !! He definitely isn’t truly aware !! Kinda Clueless i would venture to say !?
December 27th, 2025 at 10:01 pm
We have Bowles saying Zion was bored playing. We only have Bowles word on this, right? Maybe, Zyon said he was bored with Bowles crappy defense system. Maybe Zyon (along with teammates) is/are bored with the defensive scheme.
December 27th, 2025 at 10:22 pm
Once upon a time in Tampa, Bowles said there was a quarterback competition between a Knight Baker and Knight Trask. Oops!
Once upon a time Bowles said the planet of Zion was bored. Yes, but bored of ?
December 27th, 2025 at 10:33 pm
PoopyPants Says:
December 27th, 2025 at 8:21 pm
Bucs suck
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Must’ve come up for air sucking on mommy’s teet