Buccaneers’ Potential $45 Million CB Named Midseason NFL All-Pro

Getty Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Zyon McCollum.

With every game Zyon McCollum plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the price goes up for the talented  young cornerback.

The latest evidence that McCollum is headed toward a big payday came when he was one of two Buccaneers named to the PFF Midseason NFL All-Pro Team alongside veteran offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs.

“Across 329 coverage snaps, McCollum has given up just 17 receptions for 286 yards,” wrote PFF’s Gordon McGuinness. “While he has been beaten at times, he has also shown a knack for finding the football, recording six pass breakups and two interceptions.”

McCollum is in the the third year of a 4-year, $3.98 million rookie contract he signed after the Buccaneers drafted him in the fifth round (No. 157 overall) out of Sam Houston State in the 2022 NFL draft.

If this pace keeps up for McCollum in his first year as a full-time starter, the Buccaneers would be smart to sign him to a contract extension sooner than later if they want to save money down the road.

Over the Cap already has McCollum playing at a valuation of $12.93 million in 2024. Tampa Bay’s other starting cornerback, Jamel Dean, is playing on a 4-year, $52 million contract extension he signed before the 2023 season.

With those contract numbers, it’s fair to project McCollum could receive a deal in the neighborhood of a 3-year, $45 million contract extension that pays him approximately $15 million in average annual salary — numbers that will only continue to go up the better he plays.

It’s a deal that would put McCollum just on the outside edge of the NFL’s Top 10 highest-paid cornerbacks and slightly ahead of former Buccaneer and current Detroit Lions cornerback Carlton Davis, who is making $14.8 million in 2024.

McCollum Projected to Have Breakout Season in ’24

PFF’s Bradley Locker projected McCollum as the Buccaneers’ breakout star for 2024 in the preseason after the Buccaneers traded Davis to the Lions in 2024.

“Tampa Bay sent stud cornerback Carlton Davis III to Detroit, leaving a gap in its secondary,” Locker wrote. “One of the top names to step up is McCollum, who should start on the outside next to Jamel Dean. McCollum hasn’t been superb through two seasons, with both years ending with an overall grade no higher than 50.4, but his tackling and run defense play each improved in his second year. After all, he already has Todd Bowles’ trust, with his 870 snaps in 2023 ranking fourth on Tampa.”

McCollom’s college career saw him win an FCS national championship at Sam Houston State in 2020 — with games played in spring 2021 — and followed the team from FCS to FBS when the Bearkats moved from the Southland Conference to the Western Athletic Conference.

McCollom, 6-foot-2 and 199 pounds, blew scouts away at the NFL combine by running the 40-yard dash in 4.33 seconds. Projected as a third or fourth-round pick, he fell to the Buccaneers in the fifth round.

McCollum’s Father Played in NBA, Brother in NFL

McCollum’s twin brother, Tristin, played alongside him at Sam Houston State and is a second-year safety with the Philadelphia Eagles.

McCollom’s father, Cory Carr, was selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the second round of the 1998 NBA draft out of Texas Tech. After playing one season in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls, Carr played 18 seasons of professional basketball overseas.