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Buccaneers sign Lions corner to replace free agency loss

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are shoring up their cornerback depth with a signing from the Detroit Lions.
River Wells|
Detroit Lions cornerback Kindle Vildor reacts against the Chicago Bears.
Detroit Lions cornerback Kindle Vildor reacts against the Chicago Bears. | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had some bad cornerback depth last season, and now, they're making sure to shore up that depth in free agency before the NFL Draft.

The Buccaneers signed former Lions cornerback Kindle Vildor in free agency, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. Vildor is the third player outside of the organization that the Buccaneers have brought in this free agency, and he's the first cornerback the team has signed.

Per FOX Sports' Greg Auman, the deal is for a veteran minimum.

Vildor is not a starting-caliber player, so the Buccaneers will likely rely on him to play special teams in lieu of Tavierre Thomas' departure to the Minnesota Vikings. Vildor mostly featured on special teams last year, playing in all 17 games, but he started two games at cornerback for Detroit. He had 10 solo tackles and three passes defended and gave up a passer rating of 62.1 in his limited time in coverage. Pro Football Focus gave him a 48.3 grade overall for the season last year. Vildor is unfortunately perhaps most-known for a play in the 2023 NFC Championship game, where a ball bounced off his helmet in coverage and landed in Brandon Aiyuk's hands for a touchdown.

With Thomas gone, the Buccaneers needed some depth at cornerback, and Vildor can fill that part nicely. It might be bad news if he ends up starting, but he's an experienced special teams player that can help the Bucs right away in that regard.

READ MORE: Buccaneers lose veteran 29-year-old free agent to Vikings

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River Wells
RIVER WELLS

River Wells is a sports journalist from St. Petersburg, Florida, who has covered the Tampa Bay Buccaneers since 2023. He graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Florida in 2021. You can follow him on Twitter @riverhwells.

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