FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Damarion Williams intercepted Jets quarterback Geno Smith and returned it for a pick-six during the first 11-on-11 period of joint practice Tuesday, seizing a first-team opportunity created by injuries to two players ahead of him on the depth chart.

Starting cornerback Zyon McCollum sat out with a back ailment, and Benjamin Morrison, considered a prime candidate for a starting role before training camp, has yet to practice due to leg injuries. Williams, a third-year player, lined up opposite Jacob Parrish with the first-team defense and delivered immediately.

“Came in a little slow, a little sluggish, but started picking it up, caught the pick, took it back to the house,” Williams said. “Had to line back up on defense to catch my breath and keep going. Today was smooth. A lot of stuff to work on and stack better days.”

Williams, a fourth-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens in 2022, played in 15 games over two seasons there, recording 24 tackles and two passes defensed. He spent time on practice squads in Seattle and Tampa Bay, joining the Buccaneers a month into the 2025 season. With Morrison’s status uncertain and little experienced depth behind the projected starters, Williams has a legitimate path to the active roster.

“I’ve been on a couple teams, Baltimore, Seattle, ended up here last year midseason,” Williams said. “Since I’ve been here, it’s been just pretty much work. You get in, I mean, they rotate guys just to give different looks, stuff like that… Whether you’re one, two, three, you’re going to get in the rotation regardless. I mean, that’s how Coach Bowles likes it, to pretty much give you a different look and see how you respond to it. That’s a good thing here. They don’t do that in a lot of places.”

The joint practices also provide a critical evaluation window for edge rusher David Walker, a 2025 fifth-round pick whose rookie season was cut short by an early-camp knee injury. Walker has dominated throughout camp, drawing effusive praise from teammate Rakeem Nuñez-Roches.

“I was about to say, D-Walker is something serious,” Nuñez-Roches said. “I feel like he has a 95 win-percentage ratio right now. Every time he’s going, he’s in the backfield, literally. I don’t care if it’s one, two, three in front of him, he’s definitely vicious.”

Head Coach Todd Bowles said he is eager to see Walker against unfamiliar opponents for the first time in his NFL career. “He’s got his speed and his athleticism back,” Bowles said. “He’s still progressing, and there are some things he has to see, but he’s getting better by the day. It’s early on, so this will be great to see him against other competition as well. He’s one of the guys I’m looking forward to seeing next week.”

Undrafted rookie wide receiver Dean Patterson, a 6-2, 200-pound product of Steinbrenner High School — roughly 12 miles from the Buccaneers’ training facility — has also stacked strong practices with fellow wideouts Jalen McMillan, Tez Johnson and David Sills sidelined by minor injuries. Patterson played four collegiate years at Florida International before one season at Georgia Tech, where his eight catches went for 150 yards. His college career average stood at 14.7 yards per reception. In his senior prep season at Steinbrenner, he set the school’s single-season records with 58 receptions and 847 receiving yards while scoring 11 touchdowns.

“He studies, and that’s a big part of it,” Bowles said. “Grabbing it mentally is probably more demanding than grabbing it physically but if you can grab it mentally — which he’s doing right now — and make plays and show up on tape, that gets you seen a lot. We’ll look forward to seeing him in the preseason.”

The Buccaneers and Jets are scheduled to hold a second joint practice before Friday night’s preseason opener in New Jersey.