Cornerbacks Jamel Dean, Sean Murphy-Bunting draw notice on first day of rookie minicamp

TAMPA — Bucs coach Bruce Arians came away from Friday’s first day of rookie minicamp impressed with the defensive play on the field, particularly the playmaking ability displayed by a pair of drafted cornerbacks.

Third-round pick Jamel Dean and second-round pick Sean Murphy-Bunting both made pick-six interceptions during 11-on-11 drills. Dean almost made a second interception off a deflection.

First-round pick Devin White also nearly made an interception from his inside linebacker position.

"They were getting their hands on balls, which speaks to the defense and maybe not the offense," Arians said.

Arians took notice of the way White took command of the defensive huddle.

“I think he’d like to have that pick-six back, but other than that he had a lot of command of what he was doing,” Arians said.

Arians said the output was "probably better than normal" for the first day of a rookie minicamp.

“It was a good start,” Arians said. "There were a lot of nerves, a lot of anxiety. I think some of them were burnt out before we got to individual (drills). A couple of them I don’t think worked out in a month or two, but the rest of them I thought really looked good.

“A couple offensive linemen, it was the first time they put their hand in the ground, and they struggled mightily trying to pass block that way,” Arians said. “So it’s a big learning curve, but I was pleased with what I saw.”

It was clear Arians was more pleased with what he saw from the defense than the offense, but noted that receiver Scotty Miller, a sixth-round pick out of Bowling Green, showed his speed by making a big play, and said he was impressed by receiver DaMarkus Lodge, an undrafted free agent out of Ole Miss.

Rookie minicamp continues through Sunday.

Contact Eduardo A. Encina at eencina@tampabay.com. Follow @EddieInTheYard.