Bucs selected Notre Dame CB Benjamin Morrison with the No. 53 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.
The Bucs finally address their defense after Thursday’s surprising selection of WR Emeka Egbuka, and at a position of need. Morrison (6’0/193) had one of the great debuts in Irish history, earning Freshman All-American honors, recording an 82.2 cover grade and six interceptions which was the most by a ND defender since 2012. He allowed just seven plays of 15+ yards on 87 targets/39 receptions over the last two seasons, in addition to an excellent 18.4 QBR allowed last year. 63.3% of his cover snaps were in press man situations. Which he thrived in and was often left to fend for himself on an island by DC/HC Marcus Freeman. Morrison’s 2024 campaign was cut short due to a torn labrum in his left hip, which kept him from testing and somewhat clouds his profile in the short term. He transitions smoothly in go-ball situations as opposed to navigating short and intermediate routes, as he had some trouble with more shifty, deceptive receivers. He showed natural ball skills and is pretty clean in his fundamentals, which helps to minimize mistakes. However, he needs to add strength and improve leverage in order to handle alpha NFL wide receivers.
