Ike Taylor expects big things from Vernon Hargreaves

Vernon Hargreaves is an interesting player. There’s widespread consensus that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback struggled as a rookie, but showed a bit of potential. There’s also widespread consensus that he’s going to be very good this year.

One of the people who thinks he’ll be very good is Ike Taylor, hopped on NFL Network and gave his view of the Bucs’ second-year cornerback.

“I like his heart. Short in stature. He reminds me of Joe Haden. Young kid. His dad is a Miami defensive backs coach. Grew up around football. Knows football well. Reads combination routes. Understands what the offense is trying to do to the defense.”

“Had a tough time last year because of his stature, so opposing teams when you’re talking about a tall receiver they pick on him. But now he knows better, so now that it’s his second year coming back, I’m expecting big things from him.”

Taylor had a great NFL career as a tough, hard-nosed, hard-hitting cornerback—though he never made the Pro Bowl, he wasn’t far off either. So he knows a thing or two about football.

The Bucs do need better play from their secondary, and they really need some defensive backs who can anchor the defense in the long run. Hargreaves has a chance to be that guy, but he’ll have to improve significantly this year—and that’s never a sure thing, even if many people think he’ll be better.