Buccaneers Cut Former Mississippi State and East Webster Star

TAMPA, Fla. (WCBI/NFL) — Tampa Bay is cutting ties with a recent second-round draft pick.

The team has waived cornerback Johnthan Banks, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported, via a source with knowledge of the situation.

After starting 37 of 48 games under the regimes of Greg Schiano and Lovie Smith, Banks fell out of favor once former Falcons coach Mike Smith took over Tampa Bay’s defense this year. He has been a healthy scratch the past two weeks after being limited to special teams duty early in the season.

Banks earned the 2012 Thorpe Award as the nation’s top defensive back, playing opposite Lions star cornerback Darius Slay at Mississippi State. Although he offers ideal size at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, the No. 43 overall pick in the 2013 draft is not a high-end athlete by NFL cornerback standards.

It’s worth noting that Banks’ former defensive coordinator, Leslie Frazier, is now Baltimore’s secondary coach. Perhaps the Ravens will take a flier on a reclamation project.