TAMPA, Fla. — Jamel Dean said he changed his diet, and although he still stands 6 feet 1 and weighs 205 pounds, he feels faster and leaner to start the season.

At the very least, his wallet is significantly lighter.

Dean, 28, agreed to a massive pay cut three weeks ago to remain with the Bucs.

He was scheduled to earn $12.5 million this season but was receptive to having his salary reduced to $4.5 million with as much as $750,000 available in a performance bonus to remain with the team.

In the end, Dean said he preferred starting at cornerback for the Bucs to simply starting over.

“It was just more like I’m comfortable here,” Dean said. “So it’s just really not about the money anymore.

“I’m not in the mood to try to figure out a whole new team and city and go through all I went through my rookie year. So just to save me a headache.”

A third-round pick from Auburn in 2019, Dean signed a four-year, $52 million contract extension in March 2023. It included $24.5 million guaranteed.

But Dean has struggled to stay healthy, missing nine games in the past two seasons. He also has only one interception since 2022.

In exchange for restructuring his contract, Dean will become an unrestricted free agent in March, although his contract with the Bucs in 2026 wasn’t guaranteed anyway.

Several things also have transpired over the past few months that affected Dean. First, the Bucs drafted Notre Dame cornerback Benjamin Morrison in the second round and Kansas State cornerback Jacob Parrish in the third.

Parish started Sunday’s game at Atlanta at nickel corner and had five tackles in the 23-20 win.

Morrison was inactive for the game with a quadriceps injury but was a full participant in practice Thursday. Coach Todd Bowles said Morrison is trending toward playing against the Texans on Monday night but will be used mostly on special teams.

“We’ll probably try to get him some defensive snaps as well and get his feet wet,” Bowles said.

The Bucs also signed cornerback Zyon McCollum to a three-year, $48 million contract extension that includes $35.4 million guaranteed, locking up his future.

That likely makes Dean the odd man out after 2025. But Bowles has been impressed by his performance in the preseason and the season opener.

Dean had six tackles and three passes defensed in Atlanta, including dropping a pass that probably should have been an interception.

“I thought from a man-to-man standpoint, it’s the best press-man technique he’s had since he’s been here,” Bowles said. “From a zone standpoint, there’s some plays he’d want to have back. They were minor plays, but you would still want to have them back.

“But I thought he competed at a very high level. He’s been businesslike since he’s been here. He’s been healthy. He’s been helping the young guys to come along, so he’s been great.”

Dean was grateful he had help on one play in particular. Clinging to a 23-20 lead with 15 seconds remaining, Dean slipped trying to jam Falcons receiver Casey Washington, who was in the process of catching a pass from Michael Penix Jr. at the Tampa Bay 5-yard line when safety Antoine Winfield Jr. separated him from the football.

“Oh, I was like, ‘Whoa! Insurance,’ ” Dean said of Winfield. “He’s got to bail us out.”

While Dean’s career has been marred by nagging injuries, it’s somewhat of a longshot that he’s enjoyed an NFL career at all. He suffered three anterior cruciate ligament tears before he arrived in Tampa Bay: two at Cocoa Beach High School and one at Auburn.

He said his new diet has given him more endurance.

“I had to cut body fat. So now I feel like I can run,” he said. “Basically, I’m still at the same weight but I’m leaner now, back how I was my first year.

“I guess I had to cut out fried foods. I was eating a lot more than I normally would have, so I got back to my old diets. And I was like, ‘Okay, this is how I remember I used to feel like.’ ... I feel a lot lighter and I’m moving a little easier.”

The competition from Morrison and Parrish in the defensive backs room also has driven him.

“It’s good to have them there, though,” Dean said. “They say they’ve been watching me since they were in high school. That’s crazy to hear that. I’m like, ‘Oh, guys, I’m getting that old, now?’ But it’s good to have them there because it kind of reminds me of the situation I was in when (Pro Bowl defensive back) Richard Sherman came (to the Bucs in 2021) and now the roles reversed.”

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