Tykee Smith could have instant impact on Bucs’ rebuilt secondary
TAMPA — Both were raised in Philadelphia, but the familial feelings didn’t end with the City of Brotherly Love. Tykee Smith and Todd Bowles shared other close ties.
Bowles’ son, Troy, was Smith’s teammate on Georgia’s defense. So, when the defensive back was still unselected as the NFL draft entered its second day, he reached out to the son of the Bucs head coach.
“If you all saw me and Troy’s DMs, I kept telling him, ‘Please tell your dad to come get me,’” Smith said. “That was all on our DMs and what me and Troy were talking about on the phone. So, once I got the call (from the Bucs), he called to congratulate me.”
While Bowles may have had some inside information on Smith, given how closely he watched the Bulldogs, the Bucs’ third-round pick possesses all the traits the coach looks for in a safety, safeties coach Nick Rapone said.
“We’d like them taller if we could, but he’s 4.46 (in the 40-yard dash) and we cross-train so much,” Rapone said. “He will come in as a safety and as a nickel. It could be nickel-safety, safety-nickel, we’ll see how the progress goes. He gives you a 205-pound frame. He’s productive, he’s physical, he can run, he’s used to winning. That’s important.”
The Bucs could have as many as three new starters in the secondary this season. Cornerback Carlton Davis was traded to the Lions. The Bucs signed former Jets safety Jordan Whitehead, who played his first four seasons in Tampa Bay, as a free agent. The nickel cornerback position is up for grabs and likely will come down to a battle between second-year pro Christian Izien and Smith.
With so much change at some critical positions on defense, Bowles says communication will be key.
“Just getting used to each other,” Bowles said. “I consider Zyon (McCollum) a starter, because he started nine games last year. Jordan has been here before, so we just got him back to plug in. The communication has got to build up. (Jamel) Dean is smarter, (Antoine) Winfield Jr. is obviously smarter. Zyon is smarter.
“Those guys and the way they work out together off the field and the way they communicate on the field, you look for that to cause more turnovers with understanding what each other does.”
Smith arrives with a reputation as a playmaker from a Georgia program that won back-to-back national championships while he was there. He transferred from West Virginia after two seasons but suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament during his first year in Athens, limiting his production.
Smith played a key role in the second of Georgia’s consecutive titles, compiling 28 tackles and two sacks. Last season, he led the Bulldogs in tackles (70), solo tackles (46), tackles for loss (8½) and interceptions (4). He also added two sacks and two passes defensed.
During Smith’s visit to Tampa just prior to the draft, Bowles made it clear he planned to cross-train him at both safety and nickel cornerback.
“If I play safety, then obviously I get a chance to learn from Antoine Winfield Jr.,” Smith said, “which would be a blessing (considering) the impact he has had on the game.
“When we met, (Bowles) said they ran similar stuff to what Georgia ran, so I’d be a plug-and-play. He also has got a background at Temple, so he knows where I came from and the chip on my shoulder I’ve got.”
A year ago, Izien won the nickel cornerback job in training camp. The undrafted free agent from Rutgers had an interception in each of his first two NFL games. But he went the rest of the regular season and two postseason games without another.
Smith understands there will be an increased emphasis for the defense on creating turnovers this season, and that meshes perfectly with his mindset.
“Turnovers get you paid,” he said. “Being able to change the momentum of the game is what I pride myself on and being able to make impactful plays in the game. Just can’t wait to get the opportunity to showcase that down there.”
The Bucs talk a lot about Smith coming from a championship program. He received elite coaching and strong critiques. Assistant general manager John Spytek believes that will help Smith adapt to the pro game.
“I would expect him to come in here and compete right away,” Spytek said. “That’s a great program at Georgia. When you sit down with those kids at Georgia ― especially the defensive players ― and you talk through coverages with them, blitzes, all of that stuff, they are so well-drilled and schooled that you can see why they’re so good at playing defense in the SEC. And then, they have to be really talented athletes, too.
“So I think from that standpoint, Tykee is way ahead of a lot of kids that would enter the NFL.”
Eventually, Smith likely will spend most of his career at safety, perhaps as a successor to Whitehead, who signed a two-year, $9 million contract. The Bucs also added free-agent cornerback Bryce Hall (Jets) and Tavierre Thomas (Texans), giving them surprising depth in a rebuilt secondary.
Smith was one of eight Georgia players taken in the 2024 draft, and the pedigree should lead to production.
“I think Coach (Bowles) holds guys accountable,” Smith said. “I’m coming from the University of Georgia where Coach (Kirby) Smart ... would get on you. (Former defensive backs) Coach (Fran) Brown would get on you for any little mistake. Not listening to the tone, but listening to the message.
“Any way I can make an impact, that’s what I enjoy doing.”
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