TAMPA, Fla. — One stat that will make Todd Bowles’ blood boil is the fact that the Buccaneers only intercepted seven passes last season, the fewest since he arrived in Tampa Bay as the team’s defensive coordinator seven years ago.

What’s more, it’s not like they dropped very many. The defense — particularly the cornerbacks — simply didn’t get close enough to make plays on the football.

A year ago, cornerback Carlton Davis was traded to the Detroit Lions for that very reason as well as an injury history that prevented him from playing in 26 games across six seasons with the Bucs.

Last season, cornerback Jamel Dean missed five games and produced only one pick, not exactly the type of production that justifies his $13 milion per year salary.

“So Jamel has had some injuries the last couple of years,” general manager Jason Licht said. “He was a really good player not too many years ago. He has high expectations for himself, and we have high expectations for him.”

Perhaps, but Bowles made it clear at the NFL annual meeting last month that the Bucs need cornerbacks and they needed them yesterday.

“We don’t have a lot of depth,” Bowles said. “That’s crystal clear. We don’t have a lot of depth, but we hope to address that at some point in the draft as well. We didn’t sign many in free agency. We signed (Kindle Vildor), we signed back Bryce (Hall) and he’s coming of an injury. We’ve got a lot of work to do, obviously, but we’ve got to address that in the draft.”

Hall sustained a season-ending dislocated ankle in the opener against Washington, an injury that is alarmingly like the one suffered by receiver Chris Godwin a few weeks later.

Hall was penciled in as the Bucs’ third cornerback, so his loss was profound given the relative inexperience behind Dean and starter Zyon McCollum, who had two interceptions last season.

With Hall out, the Bucs had to rely on second-year cornerback Josh Hayes, who played too loose outside for much of the season. His lack of coverage on Kansas City receiver DeAndre Hopkins cost the Bucs a touchdown and the game.

McCollum is the Bucs’ best cornerback at this point, equally reliable against the run and the pass. But he needs help and it’s available in the draft.

“It’s a pretty good draft there throughout the entire draft,” Licht said of the cornerback position. “We’ll see how it falls to us but yeah, we could use some help there, whether it’s depth or whatever it is, we could use some help there.

“There’s nothing Todd wants more than interceptions.”

Fortunately, the Bucs are in a good position to draft a cornerback and there is an abundance of good ones all through the draft.

Michigan’s Will Johnson may be the best of the bunch and some mock drafts have him going in the top 10, which would put him out of reach for the Bucs at No. 19. He missed much of 2024 with an injury but has the kind of length that Bowles covets in his defensive backs.

The other cornerbacks to watch are Texas’ Jahdae Barron, an All-American and Jim Thorpe Award winner in 2024, and Ole Miss’ Trey Amos. Barron played a lot of zone and with his eyes on the quarterback for the Longhorns while leading the SEC in interceptions (five) and passes defensed (16).

“I’m the most efficient and most consistent DB in playing all four roles,” Barron told reporters at the NFL scouting combine. “I played dime, corner, safety and nickel. Having that in my bag and knowing I can be moved around and to benefit anybody’s team I know that will help.”

Amos could be a find for the Bucs in the second round. He led the Rebels in interceptions last season and had an SEC-best 16 passes defensed.

“You’re going to get a leader, (someone who) can change a whole culture on a team and can just produce,” Amos said at the combine. “And that’s what I’ve been doing this last year.”

The Bucs have also visited with Oregon’s Nikko Reed and Kansas State’s Jacob Parrish, who could be second- or third-day picks.

“You look for certain things in a corner,” Bowles said. “Not just speed but it’s short area quickness, ball skills is something else you should have and be a willing tackler. If you’re small, you’re not going to be able to tackle everybody, but you have to be willing to tackle those guys.”

But the biggest thing? Bowles wants someone to intercept the football.

NFL draft

Thursday-Saturday, Green Bay, Wisconsin. TV/streaming: NFL Network, ESPN, ESPN2

Bucs picks: Round 1 (No. 19), Round 2 (53rd), Round 3 (84th), Round 4 (121st), Round 5 (157th), Round 7 (235th)

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